Basic Engineering Thermodynamics

GAS–VAPOR MIXTURES AND

AIR-CONDITIONING

Dr. Sathyabhama A, Associate Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, NITK Surathkal

 DRY AND ATMOSPHERIC AIR
Air is a mixture of nitrogen, oxygen, and small amounts of some other
gases.
Air in the atmosphere normally contains some water vapor (or moisture)
and is referred to as atmospheric air.
Air that contains no water vapor is called dry air.
It is convenient to treat air as a mixture of water vapor and dry air since the
composition of dry air remains relatively constant, but the amount of water
vapor changes as a result of condensation and evaporation from oceans,
lakes, rivers, showers, and even the human body.
Although the amount of water vapor in the air is small, it plays a major
role in human comfort. Therefore, it is an important consideration in air-
conditioning applications.
The temperature of air in air-conditioning applications ranges from about -
-10 to about 50°C. In this range, dry air can be treated as an ideal gas with
a constant cp value of 1.005 kJ/kg ·K with negligible error (under 0.2
percent)
2
Taking 0°C as the reference temperature, the enthalpy and enthalpy change of dry
air can be determined from

At 50°C, the saturation pressure of water is 12.3 kPa. At pressures below this
value, water vapor can be treated as an ideal gas with negligible error (under 0.2
percent), even when it is a saturated vapor.
Therefore, water vapor in air behaves as if it existed alone and obeys the ideal-
gas relation Pv =RT.
Then the atmospheric air can be treated as an ideal-gas mixture whose pressure
is the sum of the partial pressure of dry air Pa and that of water vapor Pv:

The partial pressure of water vapor is usually referred to as the vapor pressure.
It is the pressure water vapor would exert if it existed alone at the temperature
and volume of atmospheric air
3
 Since water vapor is an ideal gas,
the enthalpy of water vapor is a
function of temperature only,
that is, h = h(T )

At temperatures below 50°C, the

h = constant lines coincide with
the T= constant lines in the
superheated vapor region of water

Note: For the dry air-water vapor mixture, the partial pressure of the water vapor in
the mixture is less that its saturation pressure at the temperature.

Pv  Psat @Tmix 4
Definitions

Dew Point Temperature , Tdp

The dew point is the temperature at which vapor condenses or
solidifies when cooled at constant pressure.

Tdp= Tsat @ Pv

5
Absolute humidity or specific humidity (sometimes called humidity ratio), 
Mass of water vapor in air mv
= =
Mass of dry air ma
PVM v / ( Ru T ) Pv M v
= v
=
PaVM a / ( Ru T ) Pa M a
Pv Pv
= 0.622 = 0.622
Pa P − Pv
Saturated air
The air can hold no more moisture, any moisture introduced into
saturated air will condense.
Relative Humidity, ϕ

6
 Mass of vapor in air mv
= =
Mass of in saturated air mg
Pv
=
Pg

For saturated air, the vapor pressure is

equal to the saturation pressure of
water.

Using the definition of the specific

humidity, the relative humidity may be
expressed as
Specific humidity is the actual
amount of water vapor in 1 kg of dry
P 0.622Pg
air, whereas relative humidity is the = and  =
ratio of the actual amount of moisture (0.622 +  ) Pg P − Pg
in the air at a given temperature to
the maximum amount of moisture air
can hold at the same temperature. 7
Volume of mixture per mass of dry air, v

V mm RmTm / Pm
v= =
ma ma
After several steps, we can show (you should try this)

V RT
v= = va = a m
ma Pa
So the volume of the mixture per unit mass of dry air is the specific volume of the dry
air calculated at the mixture temperature and the partial pressure of the dry air.

Mass of mixture
mv
m = ma + mv = ma (1 + ) = ma (1 +  )
ma
a
Mass flow rate of dry air, m

Based on the volume flow rate of mixture at a given state, the mass flow rate of dry
air is V 3
m /s kga
m a = 3
= 8
v m / kga s
Enthalpy of mixture per mass dry air, h

Hm Ha + Hv ma ha + mv hv
h= = =
ma ma ma
= ha + hv

The enthalpy of moist (atmospheric)

air is expressed per unit mass of dry
air, not per unit mass of moist air.

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Example 14-1

Atmospheric air at 30oC, 100 kPa, has a dew point of 21.3oC. Find the relative
humidity, humidity ratio, and h of the mixture per mass of dry air.

Pv 2.548 kPa
= = = 0.6 or 60%
Pg 4.247 kPa

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 2.548 kPa kgv
 = 0.622 = 0.01626
(100 − 2.548) kPa kga

h = ha + hv
= C p , a T +  (25013
. + 182
. T)
kJ kgv kJ
= 1005
. (30 C ) + 0.01626
o
. + 182
(25013 o
. (30 C))
kga  C
o
kga kgv
kJ
= 7171
.
kga

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Example 14-2

If the atmospheric air in the last example is conditioned to 20oC, 40 percent relative
humidity, what mass of water is added or removed per unit mass of dry air?

At 20oC, Pg = 2.339 kPa.

Pv = Pg = 0.4(2.339 kPa ) = 0.936 kPa
Pv 0.936 kPa
w = 0.622 = 0.622
P − Pv (100 − 0.936) kPa
kg
= 0.00588 v
kga
The change in mass of water per mass of dry air is

mv , 2 − mv ,1
=  2 − 1
ma
mv , 2 − mv ,1 kgv
= (0.00588 − 0.01626)
ma kga
kgv
= −0.01038 12
kga
Or, as the mixture changes from state 1 to state 2, 0.01038 kg of water vapor is
condensed for each kg of dry air.

Example 14-3

Atmospheric air is at 25oC, 0.1 MPa, 50 percent relative humidity. If the mixture is
cooled at constant pressure to 10oC, find the amount of water removed per mass of
dry air.

Sketch the water-vapor states relative to the saturation lines on the following T-s
diagram.
T

s
At 25oC, Psat = 3.170 kPa, and with  1 = 50%

Pv ,1 = 1Pg ,1 = 0.5(3.170 kPa) = 1.585 kPa

Tdp ,1 = Tsat @ Pv = 13.8o C
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 Pv ,1 15845
. kPa
w1 = 0.622 = 0.622
P − Pv ,1 (100 − 15845
. ) kPa
kgv
= 0.01001
kga
Therefore, when the mixture gets cooled to T2 = 10oC < Tdp,1, the mixture is saturated,
and  2 = 100%. Then Pv,2 = Pg,2 = 1.228 kPa.

Pv ,2 1.228 kPa
w2 = 0.622 = 0.622
P − Pv ,2 (100 − 1.228) kPa
kgv
= 0.00773
kg a
The change in mass of water per mass of dry air is
mv , 2 − mv ,1
=  2 − 1
ma
kgv
= (0.00773 − 0.01001)
kga
kg
= −0.00228 v
kga 14
Dry bulb temperature (DBT)
temperature of the moist air as measured by a standard
thermometer or other temperature measuring instruments
Saturated vapour pressure (psat)
saturated partial pressure of water vapour at the dry bulb
temperature.
available in thermodynamic tables and charts. ASHRAE
suggests the following regression equation for saturated
vapour pressure of water, which is valid for 0 to 100oC.
Degree of saturation μ:
ratio of the humidity ratio ω to the humidity ratio of a saturated mixture ω s
at the same temperature and pressure,

Wet-bulb temperature Twb

The temperature measured using a thermometer
whose bulb is covered with a cotton wick saturated
with water
Commonly used in air-conditioning applications.

Wet-bulb depression = DBT-WBT

The Adiabatic Saturation Process

Air having a relative humidity less than 100 percent flows over water contained in a
well-insulated duct. Since the air has < 100 percent, some of the water will

evaporate and the temperature of the air-vapor mixture will decrease.

If the mixture leaving the

duct is saturated and if
the process is adiabatic,
the temperature of the
mixture on leaving the
device is known as the
adiabatic saturation
temperature.

17
 For the dry air:  a1 = m
m  a2 = m
a
For the water vapor:
 v1 + m
m  l2 = m
 v2
The mass flow rate water that must be supplied to maintain steady-flow is,

m l 2 = m v 2 − m v1
= m a ( 2 −  1 )
Divide the conservation of energy equation by m a , then

ha1 +  1hv1 + ( 2 −  1 )hl 2 = ha 2 +  2hv 2

What are the knowns and unknowns in this equation?

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Solving for 1 ha 2 − ha1 +  2 (hv 2 − hl 2 )
1 =
(hv1 − hl 2 )
C pa (T2 − T1 ) +  2 h fg 2
=
(hg1 − h f 2 )
Pv1
Since 1 is also defined by  1 = 0.622
P1 − Pv1

 1 P1
We can solve for Pv1. Pv1 =
0.622 +  1

Pv1
Then, the relative humidity at state 1 is
1 =
Pg1
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Example 14-4

For the adiabatic saturation process shown below, determine the relative humidity,
humidity ratio (specific humidity), and enthalpy of the atmospheric air per mass of dry
air at state 1.

20
Using the steam tables:
kJ
hf 2 = 67.2
kg v
kJ
hv1 = 2544.7
kg v
kJ
h fg 2 = 2463.0
kg v

From the above analysis

C pa (T2 − T1 ) +  2 h fg 2
1 =
(hg1 − h f 2 )
kJ kg v kJ
( − ) +
o
1.005 o
16 24 C 0.0115 (2463.0 )
kg a C kg a kg v
=
kJ
(2544.7 − 67.2)
kg v
kg v
= 0.00822
kg a 21
We can solve for Pv1.
1 P1
Pv1 =
0.622 + 1
0.00822(100kPa )
=
0.622 + 0.00822
= 1.3 kPa
Then the relative humidity at state 1 is
Pv1 Pv1
1 = =
Pg1 Psat @24o C
1.3 kPa
= = 0.433 or 43.3%
3.004 kPa
The enthalpy of the mixture at state 1 is
h1 = ha1 + 1hv1
= C paT1 + 1hv1
kJ kg v kJ
= 1.005 (24 o
C ) + 0.00822 2544.7
kg a o C kg a kg v
kJ
= 45.04 22
kg a
Wet-Bulb and Dry-Bulb Temperatures

In normal practice, the state of atmospheric air is specified by determining the wet-
bulb and dry-bulb temperatures. These temperatures are measured by using a device
called a psychrometer. The psychrometer is composed of two thermometers
mounted on a sling. One thermometer is fitted with a wet gauze and reads the wet-
bulb temperature. The other thermometer reads the dry-bulb, or ordinary,
temperature. As the psychrometer is slung through the air, water vaporizes from the
wet gauze, resulting in a lower temperature to be registered by the thermometer. The
dryer the atmospheric air, the lower the wet-bulb temperature will be. When the
relative humidity of the air is near 100 percent, there will be little difference between
the wet-bulb and dry-bulb temperatures. The wet-bulb temperature is approximately
equal to the adiabatic saturation temperature. The wet-bulb and dry-bulb
temperatures and the atmospheric pressure uniquely determine the state of the
atmospheric air.

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The Psychrometric Chart

For a given, fixed, total air-vapor pressure, the properties of the mixture are given in
graphical form on a psychrometric chart.

The air-conditioning processes:

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