Energy & Buildings 266 (2022) 112120

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Energy & Buildings

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Performance evaluation of fabrics for evaporative cooling applications

D. Abada a,b,⇑, C. Maalouf b, O. Sotehi a, D. Rouag-Saffidine a, G. Polidori b, A.F. Boudjabi a,
Z. Derghout a
a
Energy & Environment Laboratory, Faculty of Architecture and Urban Planning, University of Constantine 3, 25016, Ali Mendjeli, Constantine, Algeria
b
MATIM, University of Reims Champagne-Ardennes, UFR Sciences Exactes et Naturelles, Campus du Moulin de la Housse, BP 1039 51687 Reims Cedex 2, France

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Due to the ever-growing demand for air-conditioning to bring the indoor air temperature to a comfort-
Received 7 January 2022 able level despite the unreasonable electricity consumption, research is more oriented towards tech-
Revised 27 March 2022 niques in connection with new methods enabling more energy savings and less adverse environmental
Accepted 16 April 2022
impacts. Dew point evaporative cooling systems hold among the most promising. Their ability to use
Available online 20 April 2022
the evaporation of water to absorb heat from the air in order to lower its temperature below its wet bulb
level without adding humidity, is an extremely low-energy and eco-friendly cooling principle.
Keywords:
The properties of the material used in the construction of the wet channel surface in an evaporative
Capillary height
Evaporative cooling
cooler, i.e, its moisture wicking ability, diffusivity and evaporation capacity, can alter cooling efficiency
Vertical wicking and performance considerably. The irregular fibres help to divert moisture and enlarge the wet area, thus
Diffusivity and evaporation aptitude promoting evaporation.
Water absorption A measuring device was mounted to test the capillary rise of evaporative fabrics, which is one of the
Hydrophilic fabric techniques used to assess the liquid moisture transmission performance of fabrics.
A variety of materials (fabrics) woven from different types of fibres have been experimentally tested and
compared to Kraft paper, which is commonly used as a wet surface medium in evaporative cooling systems.
The wicking rate of fabrics obtained from the test device correlated well with the NF EN ISO 9073-6.
Consequently, the test device clearly demonstrated differences between the fabrics used in the study,
and can be used to determine vertical wicking behaviour of fabrics.
Most textile fabrics have been found to have superior properties and qualities in terms of moisture wick-
ing ability than the Kraft Paper. Also, that the type of weaving and the compactness of the fabric improved
the capillary rise. Compared to Kraft paper, the absorbency of some fabrics has been found 160% to 355%
higher.
An estimation evaluation regarding both moistures transfer and mechanical properties revealed that two
of the fabrics were the most suitable for evaporative cooling applications.
Ó 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction BCE. J.-C indicates that the ancient Egyptians noticed and exploit
the phenomenon of humidity evaporation and its cooling effects
The global energy consumption rapid growth has raised serious potential, to refresh water in porous jars through outside ventila-
concerns about the depletion of energy resources and the environ- tion [1].
mental problems associated to global climate change. In some regions of the world in particular in North Africa, fab-
The air conditioning market today is dominated by mechanical rics soaked in water, hung on doors and windows to cool the
vapour compression systems, which require more energy for lesser indoor air when the wind blows through, were and are still
thermal performance in hot climatic conditions. Thus, interest to adopted. The hot air that passes through the fabric transfers its
the use of evaporative air cooling systems for thermal comfort in heat to the water, which will lower the air temperature. In addi-
buildings is visibly re launched. Such a technique is not a new idea; tion, evaporative cooling system were and are until now integrated
it has older origins, since it was applied at the time of the Egypt of in Middle Eastern and Persian architecture in the form of ‘‘wind
the Pharaohs and the Roman Empire. Frescoes from around 2500 towers” or ‘‘wind sensors”.
With technology advances, it was developed conventional
⇑ Corresponding author.
mechanical compression systems, in which the refrigerant circu-
E-mail address: [email protected] (D. Abada).
lates in a closed loop and undergoes a phase change. Yet, unlike

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2022.112120
0378-7788/Ó 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
D. Abada, C. Maalouf, O. Sotehi et al. Energy & Buildings 266 (2022) 112120

these systems, recent innovation has allowed to develop possible to obtain a constant temperature of the supplied air and,
evaporative coolers using water as a natural refrigerant and per- subsequently, a constant cooling capacity.
forming a phase change by natural evaporation with no recourse With regard to the materials used as wet substrate for cooling
to energy-intensive steam compressor and CFC refrigerant. In pad, several investigations were carried out to determine their
regions with dry and hot climate, such systems can be of a positive properties (capillarity, diffusion, evaporation. . .) or methods and
contribution to the environment and an energy efficient cooling apparatus for testing them.
system [2]. A study of the vertical wicking properties of the polyester fabric
Researches inherent to improving the performance of indirect based on the change in direction and tension of the sample was
evaporative cooling system are numerous. Besides developing carried out by Chatterjee and Singh [15] and the obtained results
innovative types of heat and mass exchangers (HMX), aiming to were compared with the theoretical results. It was observed that
improve heat and mass transfer rates by optimizing the HMX the maximum height reached both in the warp and in the weft,
geometry [2–10], studies have focused on the wet substrate that is greater than that of the theoretical values. The maximum height
serves as an HMX medium. The properties of the wet substrate, reached by the fabric experimentally in the weft is greater than
i.e. its moisture wicking capacity, diffusivity and evaporation that in the warp. The vertical wicking is proportional with the
capacity, can greatly influence the wetted area as well as the diffu- increased tensions.
sion of moisture and the rate of evaporation, and thus impact the Zhu et al. [16] studied the Wicking Property of Cotton Fabric.
cooling efficiency and performance of evaporative cooling systems. They conclude that:
Fig. 1 shows an HMX of an Evaporative Cooler system, which is ‘‘(1) The Lucas-Washburn equation was suitable for evaluating the
obtained by assembling a plate and an intermediate material that wicking behaviour of woven cotton fabrics, and the wicking height
will act as a receptacle for the water to be evaporated. This set sep- square had a positive and good correlation with time in both the warp
arates channels (dry and wet) exchanging heat through the HMX and weft directions; (2) the wicking rate in the weft direction was
plate and is in contact with the airflow in the wet channel through higher compared to the warp, especially at the beginning of the wick-
a thin wet substrate or a saturated wet porous material meanwhile ing process; (3) the increment in mass absorbed per centimetre of fab-
it is impermeable to moisture on its back surface in contact with ric was inversely proportional to the wicking height; (4) the mass of
the dry channel. The outdoor dry air enters the dry channel and absorbed water in the fabrics did not have a significant difference in
loses heat towards the wet channel through the HMX plate sepa- the weft and warp directions”.
rating them. The sealed surface of the exchanger allows the air pro- Das et al [17,18] developed a mathematical model to predict
duced to pass into the dry channel without gain in humidity. vertical wicking behaviour of Yarns and fabrics. The model was
However, the hydrophilic evaporation surface, on the wet channel found to predict the wicking height with time through the yarns
side, allows the secondary air to become saturated as it passes. with reasonable accuracy. The theoretical wicking values of the
Depending on the location and climatic conditions of the instal- yarn and fabric made from that yarn have been compared. Exper-
lation, and to ensure precise control of the temperature and imental verification of the model has been carried out using polye-
humidity of the ambient air, the supply air may require a pre- ster and polypropylene fabrics. The model is found to predict the
dehumidification treatment before entering the system by using, wicking height with time through the yarns and fabrics with
for example, a desiccant wheel [11–14]. This treatment makes it reasonable accuracy.

Fig. 1. Schematic representation of the studied evaporative dew point cooler component.

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D. Abada, C. Maalouf, O. Sotehi et al. Energy & Buildings 266 (2022) 112120

Atasağunet al. [19] designed and manufactured a test apparatus 2. Characteristics of the tested fabrics
based on electrical conduction principle which has the sensors
detecting the rise of liquid in vertical wicking measurements of Table 2 lists the characteristics of the tested fabrics (Fabric
fabrics. They tested different woven shirting fabrics, which have material, weave, thickness and nature of the surface of each fabric
different raw material, weaving type and weft density generally . . .), an alphabetical classification was assigned to each sample for
caused a decrease in capillary height, they find that the test appa- facilitate description in other parts of the document. The dissimi-
ratus clearly demonstrated differences between the fabrics used in larity between fabrics is determined by the way the fibres are
the study and the wicking rate of fabrics obtained correlated well woven and the nature of their surfaces. The costs of the textile fab-
with DIN 53924, and can be used to determine vertical wicking rics are listed in Table 3.
behaviour of fabrics.
Raja et al. [20] described three test methods (Manual Method,
Commercial image analysis method using Photoshop and embed- 3. Moisture transfer properties of fabrics and evaluation
ded image analysis method using digital signal processor through methods
MATLAB software (EIAS)) to measure the water spreading beha-
viour of fabrics (rate of absorbency. total absorbent capacity. . .etc.) The main concerns to study when choosing a wet substrate for
and the correlation among the methods was analysed, they found a evaporative cooling are moisture wicking ability, diffusion and
very good agreement (more than 0.9) between the three methods. evaporation capacity. More details about the method of measuring
Many studies have been carried out on the efficiencies and per- and evaluating the rate of spread of the wetted area and the capil-
formances of evaporative cooling systems using different materials lary rise are presented in the section 4.
as wet substrate, but few of them have focused on determining The performance of evaporative cooling depends on the charac-
their properties such as vertical wicking height, diffusion, absorp- teristics of the wet media and the mass airflow. When air passes
tion, evaporation. . . as can be seen in Table 1. through a porous moist substrate, a quantity of water evaporates
For their part, Velasco-Gómez et al [39] designed and built an and lowers the air temperature. The performance of an evaporative
alternative HMX Pad using cotton fabric. The saturation efficiency cooling system is directly influenced by elements such as the type
registered is above those of other alternative pads studied in the of material used as the wet substrate, area, air mass flow rates,
literature. This is mainly due to both the pad design and the wick- substrate efficiency, air dryness and the relative humidity of the
ing ability and capillary diffusion of the cotton fabric. It was set up air passing through the wet channels and the volume of water
that the pressure drop generated for the 25 cm pad is of the same used. Therefore, the selection of moist substrates requires special
magnitude order as the one registered for the 15 cm conventional attention.
cellulose and the 15 cm fabric-based pads while it greatly Moisture-wicking ability refers to the transport of moisture into
decreases for other alternative pads made of vegetable fibres and a fabric by capillary action, usually along the surface of the fibre,
different stones. In addition, Particle counting demonstrates that where it can evaporate quickly. The capacity of water transport
the wetted media ensures air cleaning for particles above 0.3 lm by capillarity is generally estimated by the capacities of vertical
and more than 99.6% of the airborne particles counted did not con- rise and diffusivity (horizontal). Higher absorption capacity is the
tain the Legionella bacteria, both for dry and wet media. ability of the fabric to transfer water through the spreading action.
Sohani et al. [40] have studied various types of materials to It can direct moisture and enlarge the wetted area, thus maximiz-
appraisal the best design of dew point coolers and set up the state- ing the effective wet surface, which promotes evaporation in the
ment that the optimal characteristic values such as (velocity, wet channel.
length, height, width. . .. etc.) were more dependent of the climatic Evaporation capacity is assessed by the rate of evaporation of
conditions than of the materials cost. moisture from the wet surface. This was achieved by dropping a
In the other hand, Lin et al. [41] designed and investigated a certain amount of water onto the surface of the fabric, after the
counter-flow dew point evaporative cooler in both vertical and water has completely spread out; the countdown is started by
horizontal orientations. As a result, it was found that the sprayed observing and recording the process of reducing the wet area.
water has negative effect on the state of the channel plate The rate of evaporation of moisture from the wet surface directly
because it disturbs the temperature distribution on the surface affects the efficiency of evaporative cooling. Therefore, a higher
of the channel and that the horizontal orientation is relatively capillary moisture propagation capacity and a higher evaporation
more stable. A product air temperature ranging from 15.9 to rate can increase the performance of an evaporative cooler.
23.3 °C and a COP between 8.6 and 27.0 were attained, and Capillary transfer is the spontaneous flow of a liquid inside a
Bruno [42] built an IEC system with a cross-flow flat plate heat porous substance, driven by capillary forces. Capillarity character-
and mass exchanger, in which he used a special support based izes the capacity of the material to allow the more or less rapid
on capillary films with high water retention characteristics to movement of the liquid within it, to penetrate into the pores.
form the wet channel, and a moisture-proof membrane for the The capillary rise in fibrous structures is often observed in many
dry channel. Tests indicated that the heat exchanger had a environments (textiles. papers and porous supports) [43].
dew point efficiency of around 75% and a wet Bulb efficiency Numerous research works have treated textile threads either as
of around 124%. porous media[44–46], where the transfer of liquid is defined by
Upon the basis of the here above cited various findings, the fol- Darcy’s law [47], or as capillary tubes[48–51] in which the liquid
lowing investigation consists of an experimental evaluation of wet- which can be modelled by the Lucas-Washburn kinetic method
ted substrate for use in evaporative cooling purpose. [52]. Although these assumptions can be applied, in the first case
The aim of this work is to find an alternative to materials the parameters, such as permeability, are difficult to assess and
(Cellulose, Kraft Paper. . ..) traditionally and specially designed are obtained empirically, in the second case, the tangible radius
to be used as a wet substrate [32,24,31,28,29,39], often expensive of the capillary tube, the angle of physical contact, etc. are deter-
and sometimes not very available especially in many countries, mined by fitting the experimental data[53]. Kissa [54] stated that
by investigating materials that are accessible and inexpensive, the transfer of liquid moisture through a textile material consists
which can be implemented easily, with performances at least of two processes - wetting and capillarity. In the wetting process,
equal, if not better than those usually used in evaporative cooling the fibre-air interface is exchanged by the fibre-liquid interface
systems. and the effect of capillary rise begins when the liquid enters the
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D. Abada, C. Maalouf, O. Sotehi et al. Energy & Buildings 266 (2022) 112120

Table 1
Performances of evaporative cooling systems using different materials as wet substrate.

Authors Types of materials Purpose Performance Cooling

efficiency (%)
Vertical wicking Diffusion Absorption Evaporation
rate (%) rate (%) rate (%) rate (%)
Riangvilaikul [2] Cotton sheet Wet Substrate for / / / / 92–114
Al-Sulaiman [21] Date palm fibres Cooling Pad / / / / 38.9
Jute / / / / 62.1
Luffa / / / / 55.1
Zhao [22] Fibres / / 1–60 / /
Ceramics / / 1–80 / /
Zeolite / / 40–80 / /
Carbon / / variable / /
Jiang [23] Alumnium Foil padding / / / / High
Duan [24 32] Pure textile fibre 98.9 / 173.61 / /
waxed Kraft paper 112.09 / 77.8 / /
Aluminium coating textile fibre (by heat) 82.42 / / / /
Aluminium coating KraftPaper 110.44 / / / /
(by heat)
Aluminium coating nonwoven fabric 81.32 / / / /
Aluminium coating textile fibre (by glue) 118.7 / 215.28 / /
Aluminium coating Kraft paper (by glue) 139.56 / / / /
Soponpongpipat[25] -Recycled High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) / / / / 29.1
-Rice husk / / / / 55.9
Lee [26] Hydrophilic porous layer treatment / / / High /
Niyomvasa [27] Curtain fabric / / / / 46.3–61.3
Raw cotton fabric / / / / 29.7–39.2
Kulkarni1 [28] Rigid cellulose / / / / 79.89
Corrugated paper / / / / 82.53
High-density polythene packing / / / / 84.10
-Aspen fibre / / / / 89.33
Maurya [29] Aspen fibre / / / / 80.99
Cellulose / / / / 69.58
Coconut coir / / / / 68.15
Cui [30] Hollow Fibre / / / / 74
Xu [31] CoolpassÒ bird eye mesh fabric 182 14 / 20 /
Bamboo charcoalÒ+Coolmax 171 37 / 14 /
Kraft Paper / / / / /
320D Supplex + 3 M 24 396 / 77 /
228 T Supplex + 3 M 7 298 / 93 /
Wan [33] natural fibrous wick / / / / High
Kesavan [34] Luffa / / / / 77
Zizanoides / / / / 88
Guilizzoni [35] HPHI / / / / 78.4–84.4
(STD) / / / / 65.7–77.1
Dogramacı [36] Eucalyptus fibres / / / / 57–71
Dogramacı [37] Eucalyptus fibres / / / / 33–72
Ceramic Pipes / / / / 26–68
Yellow Stone / / / / 22–46
Dry bulrush basket / / / / < 35
Cyprus marble / / / / < 35
Yan [38] Hollow fibre / / / / High

capillary formed by two adjacent filaments or threads. Many The diffusivity rate is expressed by:
researchers have attempted to discern the moisture transfer char-
acteristics of textiles by concrete use of different test methods. DA
In this research, tests for a range of fabrics were performed to D¼ ð2Þ
Dt
identify their absorption, evaporation capacities, moisture-
wicking capacity and their mechanical suitability for evaporative where, D is the diffusivity rate (cm2/s) and DA is the increase in
cooling applications. A Kraft paper specimen, which is convention- wetted area (cm2) at a time difference Dt (s).
ally used as a wet substrate in evaporative cooling [32,24,31,28], Kissa [51] measured the spreading surface of a drop on
was also tested for comparison. textile as a function of time. He found that assuming the fabric
The moisture-wicking capacity was evaluated by the capillary was impermeable to liquid; the spread rate could be represented
rise rate, and the diffusivity (expansion) and evaporation capacity by the equation:
was estimated by the diffusivity rate and the evaporation rate,
defined as follows:
c u
The capillary rise rate is expressed by: A ¼ Kð Þ V m t n ð3Þ
g
Dh
W¼ ð1Þ Where, A is the area of the liquid drop at time t, V is the volume
Dt 1
of the drop, c is the surface tension, g is the viscosity and K the cap-
where W is the capillary rise rate (cm/min) and Dh is the increase in illary sorption coefficient. All of the above observations have
wicking height (cm) at a time difference Dt1 (min). shown that the moisture transfer properties of textile fabrics are
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D. Abada, C. Maalouf, O. Sotehi et al. Energy & Buildings 266 (2022) 112120

Table 2
Fabric characteristics.

Sample Photo of the Fabrics Material Thickness Surface Yarn Waterproof

(mm)
A Fibre fabrics (tight straight weave) 0.4 Smooth Woven No

B Fine viscose fibre 1 Smooth Nonwoven No

C Kraft paper 0.2 Rough / No

D Polypropylene geotextile felt 2 Rough Nonwoven No

E Thick viscose fibre 3 Rough Nonwoven No

F Coarse fibre 3 Rough Woven No

Table 3
Cost of the fabrics.

Sample A B C D E F
Cost per m2 in European currency (Euro) < 1.86 < 1.55 < 1.86 < 6.21 < 1.55 < 1.24

affected by characteristics such as fibrous material, structures, tie To calculate the water absorption time (Fig. 2), based on the NF
and weft directions, surface tension, viscosity and macromolecular ISO 20158 standard, the sample of fabrics is horizontally placed a
composition. few millimetres above the water surface, then without forcing,
the sample is dropped onto the surface of the water while simulta-
neously starting the stopwatch (Fig. 2 (a)). When the sample is
4. Experimental platform and test methodology completely submerged in water, the time is recorded to the nearest
0.1 s as the water absorption time (t). If the duration of the test
The decision how to choose the appropriate wet materials for exceeds 180 s, the test is stopped and noted that the water absorp-
an HMX is based on an overall consideration of low cost and high tion time is ‘‘Greater than 180 s”.
performance. The HMX of the system is obtained by assembling a On the other hand, a test on the capillary rise, was also carried
waterproof plate and a wet substrate media which will act as a out for the chosen materials, the vertical capillary height of hydro-
receptacle for the water to be evaporated. These evaporative mate- philic substrate was measured and compared to reach the desired
rials can have different thicknesses, water absorption and retention evaporative surface used in heat exchanger. A schematic of the test
capacities. apparatus (measurement range: 0–600 mm, 1 mm resolution) and
First, a test was performed to measure the thickness of the the experimental set-up as shown in Fig. 3 (tinted water was used
materials. The results show a variation in the thicknesses of the dif- to highlight the observations) shows the vertical moisture wicking
ferent materials which vary between 0.2 and 3 mm. In cases where test. Here, the six different strips of fabric were hung vertically
the wall thickness of the heat/mass exchanger is <0.5 mm, the with their lower ends (2.5 cm) submerged in a container of water.
thermal conduction resistance may be negligible regardless of A ruler contiguous to the bands was used to measure the capillary
the thermal conductivity of the materials [22]. rise height (Fig. 3(b)).
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D. Abada, C. Maalouf, O. Sotehi et al. Energy & Buildings 266 (2022) 112120

Fig. 2. Water absorption time Test (a) Schematic of test method; (b) Absorption phenomenon.

Fig. 3. Capillary rise experiment (a) Schematic of test apparatus of vertical wicking height, (b) experimental set-up and (c) hygrothermograph.

The idea is to ensure that the mesh pattern of the fibres allows wicked upwards through the test samples. During this process, the
good moisture transfer. This method is based on the physical spaces between the fibres or the spaces between the threads of the
effect of capillarity, characterized by the fact that liquids adhere fabrics act as capillaries causing a suction effect. The capillary rise
to the surface of a material while being transported by inter- heights of different materials varying with time (120 min) until
molecular forces. During this process, the spaces between the equilibrium, the wicking height where capillary forces on the
fibres of the threads or the spaces between the threads of the tex- water are balanced by the weight of the water. The rapid wetting
tile act as capillaries producing a suction effect. Capillary rise capability of the material is highly desirable for evaporative cool-
heights of different materials varying with time (120 min) are ing applications as it allows the system to provide the required
shown in Fig. 4. cooling within a short period after start-up.
In the test (Fig. 3(a)), using the clamps, the samples are fixed The absorption rate is the ability of the fabric to transfer water
vertically to the horizontal support and placed near the ruler while through the spreading action. In this method, an amount of dis-
the other end is soaked vertically in a water tank. The height of tilled water falls on the tissue and the spreading area is recorded
capillary rise of the liquid is noted over a certain period. If the cap- as a function of time. The absorption rate is calculated from the
illary rise does not form a uniform straight line, we note the high- value of the spreading surface with respect to time.
est point (Fig. 3(a)). Several samples, as shown in Table 2, were Fig. 5(a) and (b) shows the spreading behaviour of the liquid on
soaked vertically below the water level of the reservoir. The water the fabric. The fabric (10 cm  10 cm) was laid horizontally on a

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D. Abada, C. Maalouf, O. Sotehi et al. Energy & Buildings 266 (2022) 112120

Fig. 4. Capillary rise detection test bench (a) observation after 10 min (b) observation after 60 min (c) observation after 120 min.

flat surface. Ten drops of water (0.5 ml water in total) were 5. Results and discussions
dropped onto the centre of the tissue surface using a pipette, which
was positioned 5 mm above the tissue surface. 5.1. Absorption time

4.1. Area calculation Fig. 6 shows the time taken by each sample to absorb water
when they come into contact with it. It is noted that samples B
A tracing paper is used to draw the boundary of the spreading and D have the shortest absorption time (3 s and 3.65 s respec-
surface of the water on the fabric (Fig. 5 (c)). Then a sheet of mil- tively) followed by sample E with 16.84 s and sample A with
limetre paper is used to transfer the boundary of the water spread- 101.64 s, for the C and F steps, the absorption time exceeds the
ing area using a pencil, as shown in Fig. 5 (d). From the marked required 180 s (183.87 s and 181.76 s respectively).
graphic sheet, the area in mm2 can to be found (Fig. 5(e)). This The reason why the absorption times vary in this way is mainly
method takes on average5-10 min to measure the water spread due to the thickness but also to the way in which the different
area in mm2 for each sample (depends on the manual count area samples were made.
of the graph sheet). Some are resistant to water penetration because of the way the
Ambient humidity and temperature were observed using surface that comes into contact with a liquid is made, sometimes
hygrothermographs during the test period, shown in Fig. 3(c). these surfaces are compact which prevents water from being
The tests were performed in an environment with an ambient tem- absorbed easily and quickly. Therefore, it is preferable to orient
perature of 22 °C-24 °C and a humidity of 36%-40%. Recurrent tests the compact surfaces towards the side which will be applied to
have shown that the influence of this minor variation in ambient the intermediate wall, and put the side which facilitates the
conditions on capillary rise and evaporation performance can be absorption of water towards the interior of the wet channel.
ignored.
(b) Close-up view of the spread of the liquid; (c) Marking and 5.2. Capillary height
transferring the liquid spreading area (use of tracing paper); (d)
Transferred line on the graph sheet; (e) finding the area in mm2 The wicking height test was carried out for 120 min. The results
by counting. are shown in Figs. 7-9. Fig. 7 shows the variation in the wicking

Fig. 5. Investigating the spreading behaviour of the liquid on the fabric (a) Spreading Behaviour action.

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D. Abada, C. Maalouf, O. Sotehi et al. Energy & Buildings 266 (2022) 112120

Fig. 6. Average Absorption time.

Fig. 7. Wicking heights variation in function of time.

height over time for the six samples from different fabrics. It is all samples, the growth rate of wick height decreased rapidly dur-
seen that the Capillary heights of samples A, B and E increased ing the first 3–5 min, and the growth rate continued to decrease
more rapidly and demonstrated a higher vertical climbing ability over time. Fig. 9 also shows that the growth rates of capillary rise
than samples C, D and F. Sample C (Kraft paper) showed the lowest height of all samples were close to zero for a large part and until
vertical rise. the end of the test and that these rates had almost reached their
Fig. 8 shows the change in the rate of the rise height growth stabilities after the first 15 min. However, the growth rates of sam-
over time. It can be seen that samples A, B and E achieved a rate ples A and F were at rates of 0.32 cm/min and 0.14 cm/min respec-
of wicking height generally higher than Sample C, D and F. For tively in 15 min. but for samples B, C, D and E. their growth rates

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D. Abada, C. Maalouf, O. Sotehi et al. Energy & Buildings 266 (2022) 112120

Fig. 8. Wicking heights growing rate with time.

Fig. 9. Wicking elevation heights at 120 min.

were at lower rates of 0.06 cm/min (B,C, D) and 0.02 cm/min height of 16 cm after 120 min. Same thing for Materials ‘‘E” and
respectively in 15 min. ‘‘B” or even Material ‘‘D”, despite the fact that they have an excel-
The comparison of capillary rises at 120 min for the six samples lent absorption capacity, fail to have a suitable capillary rise. How-
is shown in Fig. 9. It is seen that samples A, B and F reached the ever, the sample F cannot be used as a wet substrate because of the
highest heights of 27.8 cm. 15.3 cm and 15.9 cm respectively and fact that it is very thick and swells when it absorbs water. Which is
the lowest height of 6.1 cm was observed with sample C (Kraft not practical when it is known that the dimensions in the wet
paper). In summary, the tests have shown that all fabrics give bet- channels of an indirect evaporation system are small.
ter wick heights compared to conventionally used Kraft paper and
samples A. B and F show excellent wick height performance among 5.3. Diffusivity and evaporation aptitude
the fabrics tested.
For all specimens, the growth rate of capillary rise prematurely A preliminary estimate of the moisture diffusion/evaporation
slowed down within the first 3 min and the growth rate continued characteristics was carried out by visual evaluation for each of
to decline over time. the samples (Fig. 10 and Fig. 11). Using a pipette, an amount of
After absorbing for about 50 min, the capillary rise height of the water (0.5 ml) was applied to each fabric positioned horizontally
material ‘‘C” had reached a much lower level than that of the Mate- on a flat surface. It was observed that unlike other samples in
rial ‘‘A” and then stabilized at a more or less fixed height. which the water drops had a natural and immediate diffusion
Material ‘‘F”, and despite good absorption capacity, fails to have (within one second), the drops in Sample C tended to retain their
a satisfactory capillary rise. We notice that it does not exceed a droplet shapes and did not seem to diffuse immediately, but after
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D. Abada, C. Maalouf, O. Sotehi et al. Energy & Buildings 266 (2022) 112120

Fig. 10. Moisture diffusion (a) no diffusion for several seconds; (b) Diffusion (Sample C).

Fig. 11. Moisture Evaporation Phenomenon (a) area reduction; (b) direct observation (Sample A).

several seconds or even a minute (Fig. 10 (a)) although they even- different from each other and this can be attributed to the disparity
tually diffuse (Fig. 10 (b)). Typically, wet surfaces in an indirect in thickness of each sample. Thicker materials absorbed more
evaporative cooler are arranged vertically, so if the droplets do water, which restricted the area of spread. Since thinner materials
not diffuse instantly, they would be subjected to gravitational can reach larger wet areas, it can help more efficient evaporation
forces, which could result in dehydration of the top of the wet sub- when water is sprayed onto wet surfaces in an evaporative cooler.
strate. Therefore, the speed of water absorption is paramount. The As shown in Fig. 12, samples A, B and C reached larger wetted areas
shorter the absorption time, the lower the risk of water bouncing of 29.08 cm2, 6.92 cm2 and 9.01 cm2 respectively. Samples D, E and
off the wet substrate. F reached a smaller wetted area of 2.43 cm2, 1.75 cm2 and 2.38 cm2
Based on direct observation, evaporation time is the time it respectively.
takes for the wetted area of the fabric to dry completely (Fig. 11 Among the six materials, sample A to show exceptional overall
(a)), this phenomenon was observed as the wetted area shrunk performance in terms of final wetted area of 29.08 cm2, an average
until it disappeared (Fig. 11 (b)). diffusion rate of 0.552 cm2/s and an average evaporation rate of
The results are stated in Table 4 and shown in Figs. 12-16. 0.0145 cm2/s. However, other studies done previously on its per-
Table 4 classifies the diffusion time and the evaporation time rela- formance when it was glued to a waterproof plate simulating the
tive to the final wetted area for each sample. heat and mass exchanger using an adhesive revealed that if it is
Fig. 12 shows the final wetted area on each sample obtained not done in a precise manner, there is a risk of trapping air pockets
during the diffusion process. It can be seen that for the same water between the fabric and the waterproof plate, which can prevent
amount (0.5 ml), the final wetted surfaces of the tested samples are the uniform distribution of water in the moist substrate and even

Table 4
Moisture diffusion and evaporation test results.

Sample Wetted area [cm2] Diffusion time [s] Average Diffusion Rate [cm2/s] Evaporation time [s] Average evaporation rate [cm2/s]
A 29.08 52.68 0.552 2006.62 0.0145
B 6.92 51.7 0.134 3715.19 0.0019
C 9.01 5829.86 0.002 978.24 0.0092
D 2.43 71.75 0.034 554.28 0.0044
E 1.75 42.47 0.041 7015.69 0.0002
F 2.38 166.21 0.014 3609.95 0.0007

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D. Abada, C. Maalouf, O. Sotehi et al. Energy & Buildings 266 (2022) 112120

Fig. 12. Comparison of the wetted areas of the different fabrics in cm2.

Fig. 13. Moisture diffusion time for different fabrics.

increase the thermal resistance of the heat exchanger, and in fine, an indirect evaporative cooler, the wet surfaces of two adjacent
alter the desired results. plates are placed opposite each other to form a wet channel. Like-
With regard to sample C, not only is its diffusion time the long- wise, the dry surfaces of two adjacent plates are opposite each
est of all materials (5829.86 s) but it deteriorates and deforms after other to form a dry channel. Although the glue method is difficult
being wetted and especially if it dries (see Fig. 17), which could to perform for thin materials such as Sample A. other methods,
affect the efficiency of heat transfer in the evaporator. This may such as stretching the material on the heat transfer plate with fas-
be due to its thinness, which makes it difficult to hold evenly with teners at its edges, could be applied to allow this material to be
a very thin layer of adhesive. used as a substrate.
Usually, the wet substrate is bonded to a heat transfer plate to As shown in Figs. 13-16. Sample D, i.e. Geotextile Felt, gave the
form the wet side in which the evaporation of indirect evaporative lowest evaporation time (554.28 s) and one of the lowest diffusion
cooling takes place (as shown in Fig. 1) and when manufacturing and evaporation rates (0.034 cm2/s and 0.0044 cm2/s respectively),
11
D. Abada, C. Maalouf, O. Sotehi et al. Energy & Buildings 266 (2022) 112120

Fig. 14. Average moisture diffusion rates of different fabrics.

Fig. 15. Moisture evaporation time for different fabrics.

with a final wetted area of 2.43 cm2. In practice, a water dispenser rate of 0.002 cm2/s. It was observed, moreover, that samples A, B
usually sprays a higher water drop density continuously onto the and D show good mechanical performance when they are bonded
moist substrate in the indirect evaporative cooling system, which to a thermal transfer plate using a thermal transfer adhesive.
would provide a sufficient wetted surface even though the final The behaviour of capillary rise, wettability and evaporation was
wetted surface of the fabric performed in this test is smaller. also studied for different temperature and relative humidity condi-
Therefore, the dissimilarity between the final wetted area tions. The results are presented in Fig. 18 for the capillary rise and
among samples A, B and D is less important than the diffusion in Table 5 and Fig. 19 for Diffusivity and Evaporation.
and the evaporation rates. A higher diffusion rate can prevent the Fig. 18 shows a reduction in water rise heights, varying from 1.3
formation of a thin film of water on the moist substrate, which is to 4.1 cm for all materials. When the ambient air temperature
detrimental to water evaporation, and significantly higher evapo- increases (and unavoidably water temperature too), it is observed
ration rates can, without a doubt, provide higher cooling efficiency. a difficulty of water vertical rising no matter the sample type. This
Therefore, samples A, B and to a lesser extent sample D, which phenomenon is assumed to be due to a decrease of water surface
have relatively higher diffusion rates of 0.552 cm2/s, 0.134 cm2/s tension with rising temperatures. Which also provoke a reduction
and 0.034 cm2/s respectively and evaporation rates of of the available pulling force that water can exert to drag itself on a
0.0145 cm2/s. 0.0019 cm2/s and 0.0044 cm2/s respectively, are con- vertical surface against gravity.
sidered to have better overall performance than sample C. i.e. Kraft Concerning diffusivity and evaporation, a gradual expansion of
paper despite an evaporation rate of 0.0092 cm2/s but a diffusion wet surfaces is noted with a more or less importance according
12
D. Abada, C. Maalouf, O. Sotehi et al. Energy & Buildings 266 (2022) 112120

Fig. 16. Average moisture evaporation rates of different fabrics.

Fig. 17. Distorted fabrics after drying (Kraft Paper).

to the sample material (Fig. 19) [55]. On another side, function of Sample C is not a good choice for use as a wet substrate in evap-
the substrate porosity, the dynamics of early water spreading orative coolers because its immediate natural diffusion character-
affects the evaporation dynamics. The results indicate that the sub- istics are not good. Samples A and B are too thin to allow a
strate wettability leading to the expansion of a wetted area plays a simple adhesive bond to a heat transfer plate, but other suitable
crucial role in determining the evaporation rate which accelerates fastening methods could be applied.
in the early experience stage, corresponding to a rapid soaking With the exception of Sample A, other samples (B and D)
phase. Later the wetted radius becomes constant, incurring a showed better performance in terms of their capillary rise, diffu-
deceleration of the evaporation phenomenon and increasing vari- sion and evaporation capacity, compared to Kraft paper. The results
ably each sample evaporation time (as shown in Table 5). showed that fabrics, i.e. sample A. and to a lesser extent samples B
and D. have great potential in terms of making more efficient indi-
5.4. Evaluation of the results rect evaporative coolers.
Table 6 summarizes the performances of the evaporative mate-
On the basis of the experimental work presented above, a suc- rials tested, including thickness, water absorption capacity, capil-
cinct summary of the performance of the tested fabrics is shown lary height, strength, durability. . .etc. The straight weave fibre
in Table 6. fabric might be the most suitable material among the materials

13
D. Abada, C. Maalouf, O. Sotehi et al. Energy & Buildings 266 (2022) 112120

Fig. 18. Wicking elevation heights for different temperature and relative humidity conditions.

Table 5
Moisture diffusivity and evaporation test results (T = 27.6–29.9 °C/RH = 27.2–29.8%).

Sample Wetted area [cm2] Diffusion time [s] Average Diffusion Rate [cm2/s] Evaporation time [s] Average evaporation rate [cm2/s]
A 31.07 88.29 0.352 2040.2 0.0152
B 8.62 105.45 0.082 4250.52 0.0020
C 12.82 3687.59 0.003 1456.27 0.0088
D 5.94 101.42 0.059 726.4 0.0082
E 2.55 67.94 0.038 7140.92 0.0004
F 2.62 339.39 0.008 3720.01 0.0007

Fig. 19. Comparison of the wetted areas of the different fabrics for different temperature and relative humidity conditions.

14
D. Abada, C. Maalouf, O. Sotehi et al. Energy & Buildings 266 (2022) 112120

Table 6
Performances of the studied evaporative materials.

Sample Performance Thickness Durability Suitability

Water Vertical Diffusion Evaporation Solidity
Absorption Wicking
A Higher Higher Higher Higher Strong Suitable Higher Suitable with higher
performance
B Higher Higher Higher Higher Medium Suitable High Suitable with higher
performance
C Lower Lowest No Immediate natural Lower Weak Suitable Weak Not suitable
diffusion
D Highest Low Low Highest Strong Suitable Highest Suitable with medium
Absorption Evaporation Durability performance
E Highest Low Lowest Lowest Strong Not High Not suitable
Absorption suitable
F Highest High Low Lower Strong Not High Not suitable
Absorption suitable

selected due to the superior properties mentioned above, namely, method should be applied in a manner that does not alter the
fast wetting, high water absorption capacity, low cost. Polypropy- thermal conduction of the waterproof plate/evaporative
lene geotextile felt would also make an excellent candidate as a material assembly or the uniform distribution of water on the
wet substrate despite its low capillarity and high cost, yet it has material.
high water absorption, and also it is made from fibers resulting Therefore, an option on a suitable wet substrate media is the
from the recycling of plastic bottles, it is reusable for several years trade-off between strength, water absorption (capillary forces),
and recyclable at the end of its life, therefore a significant environ- thermal resistance and thickness to meet requirements to maxi-
mental impact, which should not be overlooked. mize heat/mass transfer. The wet substrate of evaporative materi-
For a large-scale indirect evaporative cooler, a suitable wet sub- als must have good absorption and water retention capacities,
strate glued to a plate has proven to be the most efficient and basic which implies a rapid and higher wetting capability with a propa-
way to build a wet channel wall for indirect evaporative coolers. gation capacity and an optimal evaporation rate can increase the
For this reason, sample A and sample D (despite a reduced capillary performance of an evaporative cooler.
rise and a higher price than the others) are considered the most Based on the various findings mentioned above, fibre fabrics
suitable materials for this application. (tight straight weave) and polypropylene geotextile felt are the
optimal choice for evaporative cooling Pad purpose. It has been
noticed that the cost of fibre fabrics (tight straight weave) is much
6. Conclusion
lower than that of the Polypropylene geotextile felt fabric. The use
of these fabrics therefore offers great potential to improve the effi-
The state of art of wet substrate materials is presented and ana-
ciency of indirect evaporative cooling systems.
lyzed. For this study, six different samples, including five fabrics
and one made from Kraft paper, were experimentally studied and
Declaration of Competing Interest
compared based on their performance as wet substrate for indirect
evaporative cooling applications.
The authors declare that they have no known competing finan-
Tests were carried out to study their absorption capacity, capil-
cial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared
lary rise, expansion of wet areas, diffusion rates and evaporation.
to influence the work reported in this paper.
The obtained results of five fabrics were analysed and compared
to those of the traditionally used Kraft paper. Three of the fabrics
Acknowledgements
were found to have superior properties in terms of moisture trans-
fer capacity, diffusivity and evaporative ability compared to those
This work is part of the results of scientific research cooperation
of commonly used Kraft paper. Related with Kraft paper, the wick-
between LEE (UC3-ALGERIA) and MATIM (URCA-FRANCE) and sup-
ing capacity of some fabrics was found to be around 160% to 355%
ported by Hubert Curien Partnership (PHC Tassili).
higher.
Two of them have a low immediate release capacity, which is
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