PSYCHROMETRY
• Behaviour of humid air and the prediction of its properties
• Prediction of the properties of moist air, for example, humidity, maximum
possible humidity, temperature, density and so on, is especially important
in drying operations
• The psychrometric chart is a simple graphical method of presenting this
information
• The outcome of a drying process can often be followed more easily by
monitoring the condition of the air with the aid of a psychrometric chart
than by directly measuring the moisture content of the substance being
dried.
Absolute Humidity
• Absolute humidity H is the mass of water vapour associated with unit mass
of dry air.
• This is often referred to as simply humidity or sometimes as moisture
content, although the latter is more appropriate for the water content of
solids.
• Humidity is a mass ratio and as such is a dimensionless quantity.
• However, the units are often quoted as kilogram of water vapour per
kilogram of dry air,that is, kg kg−1, to emphasise the difference between
humidity and a mass fraction.
• Assuming ideal behaviour, the mass of vapour per unit volume of air is
given by the ideal gas law and
• mass of vapour = p M /RT w w (1)
• where p is the partial pressure of water vapour and
w
• M is the molecular weight of water.
w
• If the total system pressure is P, then the partial
pressure of the air will be P−p and the mass of dry air is
w
then
• mass of dry gas = (P − p )M /RT w A (2)
• where MA is the mean molecular weight of the air.
• Thus humidity becomes
• H = pwMw/(P − pw)MA (3)
Saturated Humidity
• At any given temperature there is a limit to the quantity of water
vapour which air can hold before the vapour condenses back into
liquid water.
• Saturated humidity Ho is the absolute humidity of air when it is
saturated with water vapour at a given temperature.
• saturated humidity increases with temperature.
• If pwo is the partial pressure of water vapour at saturation then, from
Eq. (3), saturated humidity is given by
Ho = pwoMw / (P − pwo)MA
Percentage Saturation
• This is a measure of the humidity of air compared to the saturated
humidity at the same temperature.
• It is defined by percentage saturation = H / Ho × 100 (5)
• Also called percentage absolute humidity or percentage humidity.
• It should not be confused with relative humidity.
Relative Humidity
• It is a measure of the humidity of air relative to saturation conditions,
but it is defined in terms of partial pressures:
• relative humidity = pw / pwo × 100 (6)
• Percentage saturation and percentage relative humidity are not the
same and the terms are not interchangeable.
Relationship Between
Percentage Saturation and
Relative Humidity
• The relationship between percentage saturation and relative humidity can be obtained
simply as follows: substitution of the definitions of H and Ho into Eq. (5) gives
• It can be seen from Eq. (7) that percentage saturation is equal to %RH multiplied by
the quantity P−pwo/P−pw
In practice the values do not differ greatly but are equal only when this quantity is equal
to unity. This occurs at two conditions:
• (i) when the gas is almost, or completely, saturated and pw ≈ pwo and
• (ii) when the gas is almost, or completely, dry and pw ≈ pwo ≈ 0.
PROBLEM 1
• A sample of humid air has an absolute humidity of 0.01 kg kg−1 dry air.
What is the partial pressure of the water vapour if atmospheric
pressure is 101.3 kPa?
• 1b. A sample of humid air has an absolute humidity of 0.01 kg kg−1 dry
air. What is the partial pressure of the water vapour if atmospheric
pressure is 108 kPa?
• 1c. A sample of humid air has an absolute humidity of 0.01 kg kg−1 dry
air. What is the partial pressure of the water vapour if atmospheric
pressure is 112.7 kPa?
Solution -1
• Assuming the molecular weights of water and air to be 18 and 29,
respectively, Eq. (9.3), based on the ideal gas law gives
• 0.01 = pw18 / (101.3 − pw)29
• from which
• pw = 1.606 kPa
Problem-2
• Calculate the humidity of air saturated with water vapour at 30◦C and
standard atmospheric pressure.
• 2b Calculate the humidity of air saturated with water vapour at 40◦C
and standard atmospheric pressure.
• 2c Calculate the humidity of air saturated with water vapour at 50◦C
and standard atmospheric pressure.
• 2d Calculate the humidity of air saturated with water vapour at 92◦C
and standard atmospheric pressure.
Problem-3
• The partial pressure of water vapour in a storage area, maintained at
a temperature of 25◦C and a pressure is 101.3 kPa, is 2 kPa. Calculate
the relative humidity and the percentage saturation.
• 3b The partial pressure of water vapour in a storage area, maintained
at a temperature of 30◦C and a pressure is 101.3 kPa, is 2 kPa.
Calculate the relative humidity and the percentage saturation.
• 3c The partial pressure of water vapour in a storage area, maintained
at a temperature of 40◦C and a pressure is 101.3 kPa, is 2 kPa.
Calculate the relative humidity and the percentage saturation.
• Humid Heat
• It is the heat capacity of moist air.
• On some psychrometric charts it is possible to read values of humid heat
from an auxiliary line.
• Alternatively the heat capacity of moist air (in kJ kg−1 K−1) can be estimated
from cp = 1.005 + 1.88H
• Humid Volume
• Humid volume is the volume occupied by unit mass of dry gas and its
associated vapour.
• This is sometimes called specific volume and is the reciprocal of density.
• Dew Point
• The dew point is the temperature at which the gas is saturated with vapour
Wet Bulb and Dry Bulb Temperatures
• A stream of unsaturated air passing over the surface of a mass
of water.
• Due to the difference in water vapour concentration, water
will evaporate and increase the humidity of the air.
• As evaporation takes place the temperature of the water will
fall (i.e. ‘evaporation causes cooling’) and there will be a
temperature difference between the air and the water.
• This temperature difference results in heat transfer to the
water which in turn causes further evaporation.
• At equilibrium, the heat which is transferred from the air is Humidification of an unsaturated ga
just sufficient to vaporise the water and the temperatures of
both air and water become constant.
• The equilibrium temperature attained by the water is
known as the wet bulb temperature, Tw, and
• The equilibrium temperature attained by the air is called the
dry bulb
Unless temperature,
the air T
is saturated (when the two temperatures will be equal), the wet bulb is always lower than the
dry bulb temperature.
