Sorption dehumidification can be applied to a number of different applications all of which result from the same physical principles of the use of sorbents. The most common use of sorption is probably the drying of compressed air for the protection of control instrumentation. Removal of moisture from air at atmospheric pressures also constitutes a sizeable market involving manufacturers of equipment using liquid sorbents and various types of solid desiccants.

Members of this Society may not be too conversant with this type of equipment, since a familiar solution is usually the use of refrigeration. However, the two should be considered to be complementary and not really competitors. Some applications are better suited to refrigeration, others are better suited to sorption, and sometimes use of both together will provide the most economical result.

The papers in this symposium address various types and characteristics of sorption dehumidification.