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© 2023 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.

Abstract

In previous studies, the concept of degree days has been widely used to indicate heating or cooling energy requirements, but it does not consider the dehumidification effect. In the present study, the concept of dehumidification degree days based on moisture content is used, and the degree days over the past 57 years for temperature decreasing and dehumidification in 4 cities belonging to major climate zones of China are analyzed. The results showed that the number of cooling degree days showed a significant increase (1.2–4.6 days/10 a) in all the selected cities, corresponding to the warming climate. In contrast, the degree days of dehumidification accounted for 19%–45% of the total days in summer and showed significant decreases (2.0–3.7 days/10 a) in the cold, hot summer and cold winter, and hot summer and warm winter climate zones. Comfortable days, i.e., days requiring no cooling and no dehumidification, accounting for 8–45% of the total days in summer, decreased significantly in the extreme cold and cold zones (0.9–1.8 days/10 a) but showed no apparent changes in the hot summer and cold winter and hot summer and warm winter climate zones. This study suggests that energy consumption for cooling increases linearly with climate warming, and only the energy consumed for dehumidification had an apparent decrease. The degree days of dehumidification, as well as those requiring no cooling and no dehumidification, should be fully considered in the capacity design of air-conditioning units, especially air-conditioning systems with temperature- and humidity-independent control (THIC). This study indicates that the assessment of energy consumption for requests for air-conditioning in relation to climate change should be carried out after separating energy consumption for cooling from energy consumption for dehumidification to improve building energy efficiency and indoor comfort.

Details

Title
Variations of Cooling and Dehumidification Degree Days in Major Climate Zones of China during the Past 57 Years
Author
Cao, Jingfu 1 ; Shi, Jun 2 ; Li, Mingcai 3 ; Zhai, Zhihong 4 ; Zhang, Ruixue 5 ; Wang, Min 5 

 Tianjin Key Laboratory for Oceanic Meteorology, Tianjin 300073, China; Tianjin Institute of Meteorological Sciences, Tianjin 300074, China; Key Laboratory of Cities Mitigation and Adaptation to Climate Change in Shanghai, Shanghai 200030, China 
 Tianjin Key Laboratory for Oceanic Meteorology, Tianjin 300073, China 
 Tianjin Key Laboratory for Oceanic Meteorology, Tianjin 300073, China; Tianjin Institute of Meteorological Sciences, Tianjin 300074, China 
 Guangzhou Climate and Agrometeorology Center, Guangzhou 511430, China 
 Institute of Building Environment and Energy Efficiency, China Academy of Building Research, Beijing 100013, China 
First page
752
Publication year
2023
Publication date
2023
Publisher
MDPI AG
e-ISSN
20734433
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
2806482902
Copyright
© 2023 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.