This document discusses humidification and evaporative cooling solutions from CAREL for pharmaceutical processes. It begins by outlining the importance of precise humidity control in cleanrooms for factors like preventing electrostatic discharge and controlling biological growth. It then discusses CAREL's adiabatic humidification technology, which sprays fine water droplets that evaporate to humidify and cool air, providing energy savings over steam humidification. The document presents case studies of CAREL systems installed in pharmaceutical facilities in France, Italy, and elsewhere that realized energy savings and improved humidity control. It concludes by promoting CAREL's technical publications and software tools for humidification and climate control applications.

1. Air humidification and energy saving
in pharmaceutical processes
Valerio Nalini
Pharm Connect 2016
Budapest

2. CAREL is one of the world leaders in control solutions
for air-conditioning, refrigeration and heating, and systems for
humidification and evaporative cooling.
Our products are designed to bring energy savings and reduce the
environmental impact of machinery and systems.

3. CAREL is one of the world leaders in control solutions
for air-conditioning, refrigeration and heating, and systems for
humidification and evaporative cooling.
Our products are designed to bring energy savings and reduce the
environmental impact of machinery and systems.

4. CAREL U.K.
London - GB
CAREL Ibérica
Barcelona – ES
Madrid - ES
CAREL France
Lyon - FR
CAREL Deutschland
Gelnhausen - DE
CAREL Russia
St. Petersburg – RU
Moscow - RUCAREL Nordic
Höganäs - SE
CAREL Adriatica
Labin - HR
CAREL Central &
Southern Europe
Brugine - IT
CAREL Ireland
Dublin - IE
CAREL SPOL
Prague - CZ
CAREL Turkey
Izmir - TR
Subsidiaries
Affiliates
CAREL Italia
Brugine - IT
CAREL INDUSTRIES
Headquarters
Europe & Middle East
668+
Employees

5. AAPAC
CAREL China
Suzhou – CN
Beijing – CN
Guangzhou- CN
CAREL South Africa
Johannesburg – ZA
Cape Town - ZA
CAREL HVAC&R Korea
Seoul - KR
CAREL Australia
Sydney – AU
Melbourne - AU
CAREL Asia
Hong Kong – CN
Kuala Lumpur - MAL
CAREL India
Mumbai – IN
Delhi - IN
CAREL Japan
Fukuoka- JP
CAREL Thailand
Bangkok- TH
Subsidiaries
Affiliates
267+
Employees

6. Americas
CAREL USA
Manheim – US
Milwaukee – US
Los Angeles – US
Atalanta – US
Baltimore - US
CAREL Sud America
Valinhos - BR
CAREL Mexicana
Monterrey - MX
Subsidiaries
120+
Employees

7. Continuous innovation
7% turnover
Invested each year
in R&D
18%
Of Employees in
R&D

8. Agenda
Cleanroom application
Steam vs adiabatic technologies
Evaporative cooling
Success stories

9. Relative humidity is, with temperature, one of the fundamental ambient
parameters used to define the normal operating conditions of a cleanroom.
The constant increase in the technological level of production processes has led
to the increasing use of rooms with precisely controlled air conditioning, in
a wide range of applications, such as:
• pharmaceuticals and
pharmaceutical biotechnologies
• research laboratories
• semiconductors and microelectronics
• cosmetics
• hospitals and operating theatres
• aerospace technology
• micro- and nano-technologies
• agro-food industry
• automobile industry
Cleanroom application

10. Precise and accurate control of relative humidity is required as it influences the main
factors that affect the performance of cleanrooms:
• risk of electrostatic discharges
• proliferation of biological contaminants
• speed of chemical reactions
• swings in the properties of photoresist
• increase in capillary forces
• personnel comfort and health
Cleanroom application

11. ELECTROSTATIC DISCHARGES
Electrostatic discharges are harmful to electronic components:
• relative humidity must be kept above 30%.
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
Close humidity control means greater control over processes:
• the speed of chemical reactions depends on the relative humidity
• corrosion processes are influenced by relative humidity.
Cleanroom application

12. BACTERIA & BIOLOGICAL CONTAMINANTS
Controlling and keeping relative humidity between 40% and 60%
minimises the proliferation and dissemination of bacteria and
other biological contaminants.
Source: Arundel, A.V., Sterling, E.M., Biggin, J.H., Sterling, T.D., Environmental Health Perspectives (1986)
Cleanroom application

13. SEMICONDUCTORS
Precise control limits are required when processing
semiconductors:
• the viscosity of photoresist is very sensitive to relative humidity.
CAPILLARY FORCES
Capillary forces can affect the precision and speed of processes:
• the adhesion of water particles to surfaces increases with humidity.
Cleanroom application

14. PERSONNEL COMFORT
Relative humidity between 40% and 60% represents the
personal comfort zone:
• higher humidity causes a feeling of discomfort
• lower humidity causes dryness of the respiratory system and
chapped skin
• personnel efficiency is improved due to the increased well-being
and the reduced diffusion of viruses and diseases.
Absenteeism drops by 20% as relative humidity
increases from 22% to 35%*.
-20%
absenteeism
*Source: Green, G.H., ASHRAE Trans. 85 (1979)
Cleanroom application

15. PRECISION
In some applications tolerance limits are very strict (even just ±1%).
RELIABILITY
Service continuity must be ensured in mission-critical situations.
HYGIENE
Contamination agents in the environment must be kept under control.
Three main drivers may be identified:
Cleanroom application

16. Psychrometric chart
• Dry bulb temperature is the one we normally
perceive. It is a measure of sensible heat.
• Air contains another form of energy other than
sensible heat: it is called latent heat and we do
not directly feel it.
• Enthalpy is the total amount of energy
contained in the air and is the sum of
sensible and latent heat.

17. Psychrometric chart
• Absolute humidity is the total mass of water
vapor present in a given volume of air.
• The capacity of air to contain
humidity increases with
temperature.
• Relative humidity is the value that indicates
how far the air is from saturation. When air is
100% saturated condensate starts forming.

18. Isothermal humidification
• Isothermal humidification is achieved by
introducing steam into the air
• Energy for the water to steam change of
state (≈700W/l) is provided externally.
Enthalpy increases
• Air temperature does not change (hence
isothermal)

19. Adiabatic humidification
• Adiabatic humidification is achieved by
spraying fine water droplets
• Water spontaneously evaporates
• Energy for the change of state is provided
by air. The total amount of energy does
not change (hence adiabatic)
• Sensible heat is converted into latent heat
Air is cooled

20. Plants of CAREL in Brugine
CAREL Headquarters
CAREL 2 and 3
CAREL 4

21. Plants of CAREL in Brugine
CAREL Headquarters
CAREL 2 and 3
CAREL 4

22. Winter humidification
Outside air
-5°C
90% RH
Set point
22°C
50% RH
Outside air
-5°C
90% RH
Set point
22°C
50% RH
Supply air before humidification
22°C
13.5% RH
Supply air before humidification
37.2°C
5.6% RH
STEAM HUMIDIFIER (750 W/kg)
PRESSURIZED WATER ATOMIZER (4 W/kg)

23. Winter humidification
Assumptions
Air flow rate: 7000 m3/h
Humidification load: 50 kg/h
Heat pump CoP: 3.5
ADDITIONAL
PRE-HEATING
HUMIDIFICATION TOTAL
STEAM HUMIDIFIER
PRESSURIZED
WATER ATOMIZER
-
10.7 kW
37.5 kW
0.2 kW
37.5 kW
10.9 kW
Absolute saving (kW) increases with humidification load
Relative saving (%) increases as the Coefficient of
Performance of the heating system improves
71%energy saving
COMPARISON OF ELECTRICITY CONSUMPTION

24. Indirect Evaporative Cooling
Return air is humidified and cooled down before entering the heat recovery
system. It does not mix with the supply air.
Supply air is not humidified, but only sensibly cooled
Smaller coil and smaller chiller: lower investment and running costs

25. Indirect Evaporative Cooling
Outside air
35°C
40% RH
Return air
25°C
50% RH
Exhaust air
31°C
36% RH
Cooled outside air
29°C
56% RH
Assumptions
Air flow rate: 30.000 m3/h
Heat recovery efficiency: 58%
Cooling system CoP: 2.8
Cooling capacity: 58 kW

26. Indirect Evaporative Cooling
Outside air
35°C
40% RH
Return air
25°C
50% RH
Cooling capacity: 58 kW
Humidified air
18°C
100% RH
Cooled outside air
25°C
70% RH
Exhaust air
28°C
55% RH,
Cooling capacity with IEC: 100 kW
Capacity increase: 42 kw
Assumptions
Air flow rate: 30.000 m3/h
Heat recovery efficiency: 58%
Cooling system CoP: 2.8

27. Indirect Evaporative Cooling
100 kg/h
atomized water
58%
heat exchanger efficiency+ +1kW
electric consumption
= 42kW
extra cooling capacity
= smaller
cooling coil and chiller
≈ 15kW
electric energy saving
Quick recap…
-21t
each year
≈

28. Hum + IEC
According to the season and the geographic region, it is possible to use a combination
of both systems to maximize energy saving:
• directly in the supply air for winter humidification
• IEC during the summertime to support the cooling system

29. Energy saving and ROI estimation
State City Koppen climatic classification
USA Denver Cold semi-arid
USA Los Angeles Warm Summer Mediterranean
Spain Madrid Hot Summer Mediterranean
France Paris Oceanic
Italy Rome Hot Summer Mediterranean
China Shanghai Humid subtropical
China Beijing Humid continental
Feasibility and results of evaporative cooling depend on the starting temperature-
humidity conditions.

30. Energy saving and ROI estimation
Break-even occurs in less than 2 years in most climatic conditions.

31. Location: France
Type of activity: production of pumps and valves for the
distribution of drugs
Humidification load: 9 AHUs for a total load of 880 kg/h
Location: Italy
Type of activity: manufacturing of medicinal products in solid oral
dosage forms
Humidification load: 1 AHUs for a total load of 306 kg/h
Location: Italy
Type of activity: research labs and office building
Humidification load: 6 AHUs for a total load of 912 kg/h
Notes: replacing existing gas-fired steam humidifiers
Success stories

32. PRECISION
In some applications tolerance limits are very strict.
RELIABILITY
Service continuity must be ensured in mission-critical situations.
HYGIENE
Contamination agents in the environment must be kept under control.
All these applications shared the same, basic needs:
ENERGY SAVING
Steam humidification may collide with renewed energetic targets.
Success stories

33. Carel solution:
The adiabatic humidifier that combines performance efficiency,
energy saving and maximum hygiene.
Success stories

34. WORKING PRINCIPLE
• The volumetric piston pump pressurizes demineralized water up to 70 bar
• Dedicated nozzles spray water, nebulized into minuscule droplets (10µ)
that spontaneously evaporate
• Air is humidified and cooled down at the same time
Success stories

35. CAREL U.K.
London - GB
CAREL Ibérica
Barcelona – ES
Madrid - ES
CAREL France
Lyon - FR
CAREL Deutschland
Gelnhausen - DE
CAREL Russia
St. Petersburg – RU
Moscow - RUCAREL Nordic
Höganäs - SE
CAREL Adriatica
Labin - HR
CAREL Central &
Southern Europe
Brugine - IT
CAREL Ireland
Dublin - IE
CAREL SPOL
Prague - CZ
CAREL Turkey
Izmir - TR
Subsidiaries
Affiliates
CAREL Italia
Brugine - IT
CAREL INDUSTRIES
Headquarters
Europe & Middle East
668+
Employees

36. CAREL U.K.
London - GB
CAREL Ibérica
Barcelona – ES
Madrid - ES
CAREL France
Lyon - FR
CAREL Deutschland
Gelnhausen - DE
CAREL Russia
St. Petersburg – RU
Moscow - RUCAREL Nordic
Höganäs - SE
CAREL Adriatica
Labin - HR
CAREL Central &
Southern Europe
Brugine - IT
CAREL Ireland
Dublin - IE
CAREL SPOL
Prague - CZ
CAREL Turkey
Izmir - TR
Subsidiaries
Affiliates
CAREL Italia
Brugine - IT
CAREL INDUSTRIES
Headquarters
Europe & Middle East
668+
Employees

37. CAREL U.K.
London - GB
CAREL Ibérica
Barcelona – ES
Madrid - ES
CAREL France
Lyon - FR
CAREL Deutschland
Gelnhausen - DE
CAREL Russia
St. Petersburg – RU
Moscow - RUCAREL Nordic
Höganäs - SE
CAREL Adriatica
Labin - HR
CAREL Central &
Southern Europe
Brugine - IT
CAREL Ireland
Dublin - IE
CAREL SPOL
Prague - CZ
CAREL Turkey
Izmir - TR
Subsidiaries
Affiliates
CAREL Italia
Brugine - IT
CAREL INDUSTRIES
Headquarters
Europe & Middle East
668+
Employees

38. Environment Temperature RH
Outside air -6°C 74%
Set point 1: offices 20°C 45%
Set point 2: multizone 22°C 45%
Set point 3: operating rooms 24°C 45%
Set point 4: newborn care 26°C 45%
DESIGN CONDITIONS
Intrinsically hygienic, humiFog is safely used for the
humidification of surgery halls.
Success stories

39. SYSTEM SUPPLIED
• pumping unit with continuous flow-rate modulation controlled by inverter
• distribution racks with nozzles and valves, pre-assembled and tested
• stainless steel droplet separators for hygiene-certified installations
• electronic controller with intuitive user interface
• water treatment system for demineralized water (reverse osmosis)
PRODUCTS INSTALLED
• 44 humiFog units from 100 kg/h
to 460 kg/h
• 16 humiFog multizone units, 8
masters and 8 slaves
Success stories

40. eBooks – Climate tools
Unless specified, all technical information comes from the Air humidification and
Evaporative cooling publications. You can request them in e-book format:
• at carel.com
• via the climate tools app