Experimental performance evaluation of date palm fibers for a direct evaporative cooler operating in hot and arid climate

Abstract

This paper presents an experimental investigation of a direct evaporative cooler, DEC, designed and installed in the hot and arid region of Biskra, Algeria. Date palm tree fibers are used as a novel evaporative cooling material. Different performance parameters are experimentally tested to assess the thermal performances of the DEC system. Results show that the cooling capacity, cooling efficiency and total cooling capacity of the pad improve by increasing the pad thickness and air mass flow rate in extreme ambient conditions. Besides, operation duration has no remarkable effect on the DEC performance. The operating parameters (pad thickness, air mass flow rate, ambient conditions, quantity and temperature of water) are the determinant factors to reach the optimum operating conditions of DEC. Finally, a comparison with the usual cooling systems shows that the date palm fibers pad is an effective material compared to the conventional pads in hot and arid zones.