Enthalpy

Enthalpy refers to the total heat contained in air and comprises two components:

  • the heat content of the dry air;
  • the heat contained in the airborne moisture.

Klingenburg enthalpy heat exchangers and sorption exchangers allow both heat energy components to be recovered.

Enthalpy heat exchangers feature a special capillary surface, i.e. one that traps moisture, on the rotor matrix. This ensures that a proportion of the humidity in the air leaving a ventilated room does not pass to the outside but is instead fed back into the room with the supply air. This allows the room humidity level to be maintained.

A sorption heat exchanger can transfer even more moisture. The Klingenburg HUgo sorption rotor has a zeolite coating with particle sizes in the order of nanometres. Water vapour in the exhaust air condenses onto these particles and is then fed back into the supply air.

Klingenburg HUgo storage mass

A view of the coated storage mass of the HUgo rotary heat exchanger from Klingenburg.