Difference between an air cooler and an air conditioner
Nowadays air conditioners, as well as air coolers are being used by people as those things have become an essential item in their lives. Therefore, in order to get maximum benefits from them, one will have to know about the differences between an air cooler and an air conditioner.
Let us discuss it under following titles.
- Difference in the mechanism of cooling
- Difference in the way machines work
- Changes in effect on humidity
First and the main difference between an air cooler and an air conditioner in the separate mechanism of cooling. In the case of the air cooler, it has a capacity to hold water, in vapor form, up to a certain point called saturation point. In order to transform water from its usual state, liquid to vapor state energy (e.g.: Heat) is required. When the air can keep this vapor given by the air cooler, its temperature reduces accordingly. But how much temperature can be reduced is depended on the humidity inside the room. In low humidity (dry air) air coolers can cool the room efficiently but in humid air, like in the coastal area, air coolers cannot do much. In the air cooler which has above mechanism consist of a fan which drives area through a wet medium.
When it comes to air conditioners, the mechanism of cooling is totally different. When the air conditioner is used, straight forward cooling occurs. The air conditioners circulate the air inside the room and when this air is going through a cooling coil, inside the air conditioner temperature reduces. Inside the cooling coil, there is a cold medium. That is either a refrigerant (R22, R410A) or chilling medium. This is achieved by a vapor compression device where the refrigerant gas is cooled and compressed at high pressure to get the liquid state of that gas. This liquid form of gas, inside the air conditioner, absorbs the energy from circulating air to transform back into the vapor state. When this happens, the cooling of the room occurs.
So, those are the difference between air coolers and air conditioners in terms of mechanism of cooling and the way machines work.
The other important difference between air coolers and air conditioners are, their effect on humidity. The mechanism of cooling of the air coolers is dependent on the humidity whereas the air conditioners are independent on humidity inside the room. The maximum cooling of the air coolers is limited to its saturation point where the humidity is 100%. Whenever the air coolers bring down the temperature the humidity goes up. Therefore, not suitable to use in humid climates. But in the case of the air conditioners, in addition to reducing the temperature, the decrease the humidity also.