초록 ▼

Disclosed is an air conditioning apparatus which is provided with two adsorption elements (81, 82). The air conditioning apparatus repeats in alternation an operation in which the second adsorption element (82) is regenerated and, at the same time, air is dehumidified by the first adsorption element

Disclosed is an air conditioning apparatus which is provided with two adsorption elements (81, 82). The air conditioning apparatus repeats in alternation an operation in which the second adsorption element (82) is regenerated and, at the same time, air is dehumidified by the first adsorption element (81), and an operation in which the first adsorption element (81) is regenerated and, at same time, air is dehumidified by the second adsorption element (82). Additionally, the air conditioning apparatus includes a refrigerant circuit. The refrigerant circuit performs a refrigeration cycle in which a regenerative heat exchanger ( 92) operates as a condenser and a first cooling heat exchanger ( 93) or a second cooling heat exchanger (94) operates as an evaporator. For example, air, which has robbed heat of adsorption in the first adsorption element (81), is further heated by the regenerative heat exchanger (92) and is introduced into the second adsorption element (82). Consequently, the second adsorption element (82) is regenerated.

대표청구항 ▼

What is claimed is: 1. An air conditioning apparatus which performs either an operating mode in which air taken in is cooled and dehumidified and then supplied indoors or an operating mode in which air taken in is heated and humidified and then supplied indoors, said air conditioning apparatus comp

What is claimed is: 1. An air conditioning apparatus which performs either an operating mode in which air taken in is cooled and dehumidified and then supplied indoors or an operating mode in which air taken in is heated and humidified and then supplied indoors, said air conditioning apparatus comprising: a refrigerant circuit, including a compressor, a condenser, an expansion mechanism, and an evaporator, for performing a refrigeration cycle, divisionally formed passageways including one or more humidity adjusting side passageways where flowing air comes into contact with an adsorbent, and one or more cooling side passageways through which air flows for taking heat of adsorption from said one or more humidity adjusting side passageways, and first and second adsorption elements, collectively in which said one or more humidity adjusting passageways and said one or more cooling side passageways are formed, wherein said air conditioning apparatus performs: a dehumidifying operation in which first air is dehumidified by a humidity adjusting side passageway and thereafter is subjected to heat exchange with refrigerant in said evaporator; and an adsorbent regenerating operation in which said second air, after passing through a cooling side passageway, is subjected to heat exchange with refrigerant in said condenser and thereafter is introduced into a humidity adjusting side passageway, and wherein said air conditioning apparatus performs in alternation: a first operation in which a dehumidifying operation is carried out by causing first air to flow through a humidity adjusting side passageway of said first adsorption element and, concurrently with said dehumidifying operation, a regenerating operation is carried out by causing second air to flow through a humidity adjusting side passageway of said second adsorption element, and a second operation in which a dehumidifying operation is carried out by causing first air to flow through said humidity adjusting side passageway of said second adsorption element and, concurrently with said dehumidifying operation, a regenerating operation is carried out by causing second air to flow through said humidity adjusting side passageway of said first adsorption element. 2. The air conditioning apparatus of claim 1 further comprising: an air flow path for regeneration by which an outlet side of a cooling side passageway of any one of said first and second adsorption elements is brought into communication with an inlet side of a humidity adjusting side passageway of the other of said first and second adsorption elements, wherein said condenser is so disposed as to cross said regeneration air flow path. 3. The air conditioning apparatus of claim 1, wherein: said first and second adsorption elements are each shaped like a square column with four side surfaces, in each of said first and second adsorption elements said humidity adjusting side passageway has openings in a pair of opposite side surfaces of said four side surfaces and said cooling side passageway has openings in another pair of opposite side surfaces of said four side surfaces, and said first and second adsorption elements are disposed such that the longitudinal direction of said first adsorption element corresponds to the longitudinal direction of said second adsorption element and, in addition, a diagonal line of an end surface of said first adsorption element and a diagonal line of an end surface of the second adsorption element lie in a straight line. 4. The air conditioning apparatus of claim 1, wherein: said air conditioning apparatus is constructed so that the route of flows of said first air and said second air is changed for switching between said first operation and said second operation. 5. The air conditioning apparatus of claim 4, wherein: the route of flows of said first air and said second air is changed by activating an opening/closing mechanism for opening and closing an air flow path with said adsorption elements fixed in place. 6. The air conditioning apparatus of claim 4, wherein: the route of flows of said first air and said second air is changed by activating an opening/closing mechanism for opening and closing an air flow path, and by rotating said adsorption elements. 7. An air conditioning apparatus comprising: first and second adsorption elements, each including: a humidity adjusting side passageway in which a first air flow comes into contact with an adsorbent, and a cooling side passageway in which a second air flow absorbs heat of adsorption from the humidity adjusting side passageway, wherein the first and second adsorption elements are configured to collectively perform the following in alternation: a first operation in which dehumidification is carried out in the humidity adjusting side passageway of the first adsorption element while adsorbent is concurrently regenerated in the humidity adjusting side passageway of the second adsorption element, and a second operation in which dehumidification is carried out in the humidity adjusting side passageway of the second adsorption element while adsorbent is concurrently regenerated in the humidity adjusting side passageway of the first adsorption element, wherein: during the first operation, the first air flow is directed through the humidity adjusting side passageway of the first adsorption element and, concurrently, the second air flow is directed through the humidity adjusting side passageway of the second adsorption element, and during the second operation, the first air flow is directed through the humidity adjusting side passageway of the second adsorption element and, concurrently, the second air flow is directed through the humidity adjusting side passageway of the first adsorption element, wherein: during the first operation, the second air flow is directed through the cooling side passageway of the first adsorption element and subjected to heating by the heating element before being directed through the humidity adjusting side passageway of the second adsorption element, and during the second operation, the second air flow is directed through the cooling side passageway of the second adsorption element and subjected to heating by the heating element before being directed through the humidity adjusting side passageway of the first adsorption element, wherein the heating element is a condenser, which is part of a refrigerant circuit for performing a refrigerant cycle. 8. The air conditioning apparatus of claim 7, further comprising: an air flow path by which an outlet side of a cooling side passageway of any one of said first and second adsorption elements is brought into communication with an inlet side of a humidity adjusting side passageway of the other of the first and second adsorption elements, wherein the heating element is disposed, such that the air flow path is directed through the heating element. 9. The air conditioning apparatus of claim 7, wherein: the first and second adsorption elements are each shaped like a rectangular column with four side surfaces, in each of the first and second adsorption elements, the humidity adjusting side passageway has openings in a pair of opposite side surfaces of the four side surfaces, and the cooling side passageway has openings in the other pair of opposite side surfaces of the four side surfaces, and the first and second adsorption elements are disposed such that the longitudinal direction of the first adsorption element corresponds to the longitudinal direction of the second adsorption element, and two corners of a cross-section of the first adsorption element is collinear with two corners of a cross-section of the second adsorption element. 10. The air conditioning apparatus of claim 7, wherein the air conditioning apparatus is configured so that the routes of the first and second air flows are changed as the first and second adsorption elements alternate between the first and second operations. 11. The air conditioning apparatus of claim 10, wherein the routes of the first and second air flows are changed by activating an opening/closing mechanism for opening and closing an air flow path while the first and second adsorption elements remain in a fixed position. 12. The air conditioning apparatus of claim 10, wherein the routes of the first and second air flows are changed by activating an opening/closing mechanism for opening and closing an air flow path, and by rotating the first and second adsorption elements. 13. An air conditioning apparatus comprising: humidity adjusting side passageways in which flowing air comes into contact with an adsorbent; cooling side passageways through which flowing air absorbs heat of adsorption from humidity adjusting side passageways; a first adsorption element, which includes the first subset of humidity adjusting side passageways and the cooling side passageways; and a second adsorption element, which includes the second subset of humidity adjusting side passageways, wherein said air conditioning apparatus is configured, without rotating the adsorbent, to concurrently perform the following: dehumidify air in a first subset of humidity adjusting side passageways by passing a first air flow through the first subset of humidity adjusting side passageways, and regenerate adsorbent in a second subset of humidity adjusting side passageways by passing a second air flow through the second subset of humidity adjusting side passageways, wherein the second air flow is passed through the cooling side passageways and subjected to heat exchange by a condenser before passing through the second subset of humidity adjusting side passageways. 14. The air conditioning apparatus of claim 13, wherein: the second adsorption element includes cooling side passageways, and the air conditioning apparatus is operable to switch to a state to concurrently perform the following: dehumidify air in the second subset of humidity adjusting side passageways by passing the first air flow through the second subset of humidity adjusting side passageways, and regenerate adsorbent in the first subset of humidity adjusting side passageways by passing the second air flow through the first subset of humidity adjusting side passageways, wherein the second air flow is passed through the cooling side passageways of the second adsorption element and subjected to heat exchange by the condenser before passing through the first subset of humidity adjusting side passageways.