HVAC · Psychrometrics · Problem 11 PDF Solution in PDF ↓
HVAC · Psychrometrics · Problem 11
Problem & Solution
PDF: HVAC-Psychrometrics-11.pdf
Video Synthesis
  • Problem: Psychometrics problem 11.
  • Given: 000 CFM of air cooled by a coil to 50 degrees dry bulb and 48 degrees wet bulb is mixed with 4,500 CFM of bypass air ...
  • Approach: So we can't find the dew point of each stream and then try to mix them together because of that non-linearity.
  • Calc: We have 8000 CFM being cooled by a coil and the discharge air coming off of that coil has a dry bulb temperature of 50 degrees ...
  • Calc: Then we have another 4500 CFM that's being bypassed and those two streams are going to be mixed together.
  • Result: So the way we're going to go at this, the dew point is not a linear number, right?
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Student questions asked in live office hours about this problem
OH 41: HVAC: Fluids-26
Q: Can I solve this adiabatic mixing problem using enthalpy of the two air streams and mass flow rates calculated from specific volume, instead of your approach?
A: Yes—you did everything right identifying the two state points and finding the intersection using mass-weighted enthalpy. That approach is valid and leads to the correct answer. The method in the solution is just one path; mass flow rate–weighted mixing via enthalpy and specific volume is a legitimate alternative.
OH 80: HVAC: Psychrometrics #11
Q: Can you also solve psychrometrics 11 by calculating the mixed-air dry bulb temperature first, then finding dew point by going left to the saturation curve?
A: That approach does work for finding dry bulb temperature, but finding dew point by going horizontally left from a dry bulb/wet bulb point requires that you're already on the saturation curve—you can't go 'left to find dew point' from an interior point. The more reliable method is to use the humidity ratio, find it on the vertical axis, and move horizontally to the saturation curve; that intersection gives you the dew point temperature directly. Both approaches should agree if executed correctly, but the humidity ratio method is more straightforward.
OH 87: HVAC: Psychrometrics #11
Q: I found a mixed-air dry bulb of 59°F and wet bulb of 52°F, and tracing horizontally gave me a dew point of ~47°F—am I doing it wrong, or is the humidity ratio method more accurate?
A: Using the humidity ratio is the more reliable method for finding dew point because dew point corresponds to a fixed humidity ratio—you find that value on the vertical axis and trace horizontally to the saturation curve. Tracing from a wet bulb/dry bulb intersection can introduce chart-reading error, especially when the mixed conditions are in a crowded region of the psychrometric chart. Both methods are correct in theory, but the humidity ratio approach is more accurate in practice.
MPEP OH Prep Dashboard Problem 11 · Psychrometrics PDF-Embedded Format