Review Analysis for the Energy Performance of Integrated Air-Conditioning Systems

In response to the significant increase in cooling needs for the built environment due to climate change, hybrid air conditioning units can provide energy efficient alternatives to vapor compression systems. This paper reviews the reported energy performance of integrated air conditioning systems consisting of three types of hybrid options: direct expansion (DX) combined with evaporative cooling, DX with desiccant, and evaporative cooling combined with desiccant. In addition, the reported analyses of integrating these hybrid systems with phase change materials (PCMs) and/or photovoltaic (PV) systems are considered. The evaluated analyses generally confirm that integrated air conditioning systems offer substantial energy saving potential compared to traditional vapor compression cooling units, resulting in substantial economic and environmental benefits. Specifically, hybrid systems can reduce the annual energy consumption for space cooling by 87% compared to traditional air conditioning units. This review analysis indicates that hybrid systems can have a coefficient of performance (COP) ranging from 6 to 16 compared to merely 3 to 5 for conventional systems. Additionally, liquid desiccant cooling systems have reported notable improvements in dehumidification efficiency and energy savings, with payback periods as low as three years. Future work should focus more on real-building applications and on conducting more comprehensive cost–benefit analyses, especially when integrating more than two technologies together.