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DanVex AD Series — Adsorption Dehumidifiers for Cold and Low-RH Environments

Q: What is the difference between adsorption and condensation dehumidification?

Condensation dehumidifiers cool air below dew point on a refrigerated coil — efficient at room temperature, but stop below +5 °C. Adsorption captures water vapour by chemical affinity on a silica gel rotor — works down to −20 °C and to 1% RH. Choose adsorption for cold or very-dry environments.

Q: When should I choose adsorption over condensation?

Three conditions favour adsorption: low temperature (below +10 °C, where refrigerant loses efficiency), low target humidity (below 30% RH, beyond refrigerant reach), or no drainage available. In typical conditions above +10 °C with 40–60% RH targets, condensation is more energy-efficient per litre removed.

Q: Why does adsorption work at temperatures where condensation fails?

Condensation needs a cold coil below 0 °C, which then ices over. Adsorption captures water vapour directly onto silica gel by physical affinity, regardless of room temperature. Regeneration uses an electric heater on a separate stream to drive moisture off the rotor and exhaust it outside.

Q: How does the silica gel rotor work?

A cylindrical rotor of silica gel rotates continuously at 8–18 rph. About 75% of the face area is exposed to process air (room being dried); 25% to a hot regeneration stream. Each channel cycles between adsorbing moisture from process air and releasing it to the regen stream, which exhausts outside.

Q: Why do you use dual-fan design instead of single-fan?

Single-fan units pull regeneration air from the same room being dried — depressurising the space and pulling in untreated outside air, eroding capacity. DanVex AD uses two independent fans: process and regeneration. The regen intake is from outside, the room stays neutral, and full process airflow is used for drying.

Q: Do I need a drain connection?

No. Adsorption removes moisture as warm vapour through the regeneration duct, not as condensate. No drain line, no condensate pump, no risk of frozen drain lines in cold-storage. What is required is a short duct run for the regeneration exhaust — taking moist air out of the building.

Q: Can I combine adsorption and condensation in one project?

Yes. A hybrid approach uses refrigerant condensation for warm production halls (room temperature, 40–60% RH target) and adsorption for cold or low-RH zones. Both DanVex series use Modbus RTU RS-485, so a single facility BMS coordinates the entire installation across zones.

Q: How long does the silica gel rotor last?

5–8 years in non-corrosive industrial service with regeneration kept below 140 °C. DanVex AD units operate below this threshold by design. Corrosive contaminants in process air (chlorinated vapours, organic acids, salt aerosols) shorten lifespan. Rotor is supplied by Proflute with documented certifications.

Q: Do AD units integrate with BMS?

Yes, on every model in both series. Modbus RTU RS-485 is standard equipment, not an option. The unit appears on the facility BMS or SCADA as a Modbus slave — humidity setpoint, current RH and temperature, alarm status, run-hour counters, all over RS-485 without a protocol gateway.

AD Compact Series

AD Industrial Series

Adsorption Dehumidifiers · Compact and Industrial

DanVex AD Series — Adsorption Dehumidifiers for Cold and Low-RH Environments

DanVex AD Series is a range of adsorption (desiccant) dehumidifiers across two complementary lines: the AD Compact (0.6–3 kg/h, single-phase 220–230 V, < 45–65 dB) for archives, server rooms, restoration work, and concealed installations; and the AD Industrial (5–36 kg/h, three-phase 380–415 V) for pharmaceutical cleanrooms, lithium battery dry rooms, ice rinks, cold storage, and food production. Adsorption technology works where condensation cannot — at ambient temperatures down to −20 °C and target humidity down to 1% RH. Across the range: Proflute silica gel rotor, dual-fan design, Modbus RTU RS-485 for direct BMS integration, EN60204 electrical, and no drainage required.

Drainage Not required

Capacity 0.6–36kg/h

Operating range −20 °C / +60 °C

Drying down to 1% RH

Supply 1-Phase / 3-Phase

BMS-ready Modbus RTU

About the Range

Adsorption dehumidification removes moisture from air by passing it through a slowly rotating silica gel rotor — the same physical principle used in industrial desiccant dryers, scaled for room-level and facility-level installation. Unlike condensation (refrigerant) dehumidifiers, adsorption stays efficient at low temperatures and reaches dew points well below freezing. This is the technology to choose when the operating environment is colder than +10 °C, when the target humidity is below 30% RH, or when both conditions apply — cold storage, freezers, ice rinks, pharmaceutical and battery dry rooms, archives in unheated buildings.

The DanVex AD range is organised into two product lines that share the same core engineering — Proflute silica gel rotor, dual-fan design, ducted installation, no drainage — but differ in scale and electrical infrastructure. The AD Compact Series (AD-200, AD-400, AD-550) runs on standard single-phase 220–230 V supply, operates at < 45–65 dB, fits into concealed installations, and is housed in AISI 304 stainless steel. The AD Industrial Series (AD-800, AD-1000, AD-1500, AD-3000, AD-5000) runs on three-phase 380–415 V, scales from 5 to 36 kg/h, and on the upper two models (AD-3000 / AD-5000) adds a programmable PLC controller with 7″ touchscreen and anti-cold-bridge double-skin polyurethane housing.

How Adsorption Works

A slowly rotating silica gel rotor — the desiccant element — is divided into two zones: roughly 75% of the face area handles process air (the room or duct being dried), and 25% handles regeneration air (a smaller, hot stream that drives moisture out of the silica gel and exhausts it outside). The rotor turns continuously, so each segment cycles between adsorbing moisture from the room and giving it up to the regeneration stream. The two streams stay physically separated and are driven by two independent fans — the dual-fan design.

Three engineering points matter for the buyer. First, no drainage is required — moisture leaves the unit as warm vapour through the regeneration duct, not as condensate. This simplifies installation and removes a recurring failure point (frozen drain lines in cold-storage applications). Second, low-temperature performance is fundamentally different. Refrigerant dehumidifiers depend on cooling air below its dew point and stop working efficiently below roughly +5 °C ambient. Adsorption is a chemical-affinity process, not a thermodynamic one — it works as long as there is some moisture in the air, even at −20 °C. Third, dual-fan design preserves room pressure. Single-fan desiccant units pull regeneration air from the same room they are drying, depressurising the space and pulling in untreated outside air through gaps. DanVex AD units use two independent fans — process and regeneration — with the regeneration stream taken from outside, so the room stays neutral.

In practice this means:

No drainage required

Indoor or outdoor installation

Independent process & regen fans

Operates from −20 °C

Drying down to 1% RH

Engineering Standards Across the Range

What separates an industrial-grade adsorption dehumidifier from a consumer-grade desiccant is a set of design decisions that hold across both the Compact and Industrial lines. These are the standards every DanVex AD model is built to.

Proflute silica gel rotor

Rotor manufactured by Proflute — one of two leading European desiccant rotor producers. Consistent capacity at design conditions, predictable adsorption isotherm, 5–8 year lifespan in non-corrosive service with regeneration below 140 °C. Project sizing in the original Proflute rotor selection software.

Dual-fan design

Process and regeneration air streams are driven by two independent fans. Room pressure is preserved (no depressurisation as with single-fan configurations), the regeneration stream can be ducted to outside or to a separate exhaust, and capacity is not eroded by the regen flow consuming room air.

−20 °C to +60 °C operating range

Adsorption stays efficient where condensation fails — below +5 °C ambient the refrigerant cycle on conventional dehumidifiers loses capacity rapidly and below 0 °C it ices over and capacity collapses. The DanVex AD range operates continuously from −20 °C up to +40 °C (Compact and smaller Industrial) or +60 °C (AD-3000, AD-5000).

Down to 1% RH

Target humidity reachable by the technology — the limit applies in idealised conditions of inlet temperature and airflow. For pharmaceutical cleanrooms, lithium battery dry rooms, semiconductor and electronics manufacturing, and other low-RH targets that refrigerant dehumidifiers cannot reach.

Cabinets across the range

Compact cabinets in AISI 304 stainless steel (IP44). Industrial cabinets in powder-coated steel; the upper two models (AD-3000 / AD-5000) add a double-skin polyurethane panel with anti-cold-bridge aluminium frame, and cabinet surface free of condensation under normal operating conditions.

Modbus RTU RS-485 + EN60204

BMS integration is standard, not an option — Modbus RTU RS-485 protocol on every model in both series, no protocol gateway required for SCADA or facility monitoring. Electrical assemblies built to EN60204 (industrial machinery safety), Class I electrical protection, IP44 (Compact) or IPX3 (Industrial) ingress, IP54 / class F insulation on Industrial fan motors.

How to Choose — Decision Guide

Before sizing by capacity, identify the right technology and series. Adsorption is the correct choice when room temperature is low, target humidity is low, or both — otherwise condensation dehumidification is more economical in typical industrial conditions.

Your situation	Recommended series	Why
Cold environment (below +10 °C) or very low target RH (below 30%) — cold storage, freezers, pharma dry rooms, archives in unheated buildings — with single-phase 220–230 V supply or quiet operation required	AD Compact	Single-phase 220–230 V, < 45–65 dB, AISI 304 stainless steel, IP44, ducted installation. Models: AD-200, AD-400, AD-550 (0.6–3 kg/h)
Plant-scale or facility-wide adsorption installation with three-phase supply — pharmaceutical cleanrooms, lithium battery dry rooms, ice rinks, food production with low-RH targets, large cold storage	AD Industrial	Three-phase 380–415 V, 5–36 kg/h, electric regeneration heater, Modbus RTU on lower models, programmable PLC + 7″ touchscreen on AD-3000 / AD-5000, anti-cold-bridge housing on top two models
Typical industrial environment, +15 °C and above, target RH 40–60% (warehouses, food production at room temperature, manufacturing halls, plant cultivation rooms) — condensation dehumidification is more energy-efficient	DEH-K Stationary	Refrigerant-cycle stationary industrial dehumidifiers (DEH-K Series), 200–1000 L/day, Full Inverter on 3K / 5K / 10K, R-32 refrigerant, top-discharge airflow. Lower energy cost per litre of water removed in the conditions where condensation works

The DanVex AD Range

Compact

AD Compact Series

0.6–3 kg/h · 180–550 m³/h process · 220–230 V single-phase · < 45–65 dB · AISI 304 · IP44

Quiet, ducted, single-phase adsorption units for concealed installation. AISI 304 stainless steel housing, G3 air filter, Modbus RTU RS-485, auto-restart, settings memory. For cold storage, archives and museums, small pharmaceutical rooms, restoration work, and specialty manufacturing. Models: AD-200, AD-400, AD-550.

View AD Compact Series →

Industrial

AD Industrial Series

5–36 kg/h · 820–5000 m³/h process · 380–415 V three-phase · −20 °C to +60 °C (AD-3000/5000) · IPX3

Three-phase, high-capacity, ducted adsorption units for plant-scale installation. Proflute silica gel rotor, dual-fan design with belt-driven rotor rotation, G4 plate filter, Modbus RTU. AD-3000 and AD-5000 add programmable PLC + 7″ touchscreen, anti-cold-bridge double-skin polyurethane housing. Models: AD-800, AD-1000, AD-1500, AD-3000, AD-5000.

View AD Industrial Series →

Find by Application

Application	Recommended series
Cold storage, cold rooms, freezers	AD Compact (small rooms) or AD Industrial (large warehouses)
Pharmaceutical cleanrooms & dry rooms	AD Industrial (PLC + 7″ touch on AD-3000 / AD-5000)
Lithium battery & semiconductor dry rooms	AD Industrial — for < 1% RH targets
Ice rinks	AD Industrial (typically AD-3000 / AD-5000)
Food production with low-RH targets (powders, confectionery, freeze-drying, spices)	AD Industrial
Archives, museums	AD Compact — quiet, concealed installation
Defence & military storage (ammunition, electronics, equipment)	AD Compact or AD Industrial by volume
Plastic injection moulding — resin pellet drying	AD Industrial
Paper & cardboard mills	AD Industrial
Water-damage restoration in cold weather	AD Compact — for sub-zero conditions where mobile refrigerant units stall
Restoration workshops, conservation labs	AD Compact

Find by Capacity

Capacity needed	Model	Type / supply
up to 0.6 kg/h	AD-200	Compact / single-phase / < 45 dB
up to 2.2 kg/h	AD-400	Compact / single-phase / < 50 dB
up to 3 kg/h	AD-550	Compact / single-phase / < 65 dB
up to 5 kg/h	AD-800	Industrial / three-phase
up to 7 kg/h	AD-1000	Industrial / three-phase
up to 11 kg/h	AD-1500	Industrial / three-phase
up to 21.6 kg/h	AD-3000	Industrial / three-phase / PLC + 7″ touch
up to 36 kg/h	AD-5000	Industrial / three-phase / PLC + 7″ touch
> 36 kg/h	Multiple AD Industrial units in parallel	Project-specific sizing

Capacity figures measured at 20 °C / 60% RH (industry standard test condition for desiccant dehumidifiers). Real-world capacity depends on inlet temperature, RH, and airflow. For sub-zero applications, specific moisture removal stays high but absolute capacity decreases with air density — contact us for project-specific sizing using the original Proflute rotor selection software.

For HVAC Engineers and Project Designers

The DanVex AD range is built around the same industrial-grade standards across both ranges:

Proflute silica gel rotor — manufactured by Proflute, one of two leading European desiccant rotor producers. 5–8 year lifespan in non-corrosive service with regeneration below 140 °C; predictable adsorption isotherm for thermodynamic modelling
Project sizing in original Proflute software — we use the rotor manufacturer’s own selection software for project-based sizing, with full thermodynamic modelling of process and regeneration streams. This is more accurate than rule-of-thumb sizing by room volume
Dual-fan design — independent process and regeneration fans on every model; room pressure preserved, capacity not eroded by regen consuming room air
BMS-ready — Modbus RTU RS-485 standard on every model in both series; direct integration with SCADA, building management systems, and facility monitoring without protocol gateways
EN60204 electrical standard — assemblies built to industrial machinery safety standard; Class I electrical protection; IP44 (Compact) / IPX3 (Industrial) ingress protection; IP54 with class F insulation on Industrial fan motors
Anti-cold-bridge double-skin housing (AD-3000, AD-5000) — injected polyurethane panel with aluminium frame and thermal break, cabinet surface free of condensation under normal operating conditions
Programmable PLC + 7″ touchscreen (AD-3000, AD-5000) — humidity and temperature controller with customisable setpoints, schedules, alarm thresholds, and full RS-485 telemetry. Industrial-grade circuit components and relays from established European manufacturers
No drainage required — moisture leaves the unit as warm vapour through the regeneration duct, not as condensate. Simplifies installation, removes the recurring failure point of frozen drain lines in cold-storage applications
Technical documentation & engineering support — full datasheets, wiring diagrams, dimensional drawings, and BMS integration notes on request to qualified contractors. Project-specific moisture-load calculations and on-site assistance via dealer network across Europe and the Middle East

FAQ — Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between adsorption and condensation dehumidification?

Condensation dehumidifiers cool air below its dew point on a cold refrigerant coil; water condenses on the coil and drains away. This is the standard technology in commercial and industrial dehumidifiers at typical room temperatures (above +10 °C, target RH 40–60%). It is energy-efficient in those conditions, but it stops working efficiently in cold environments — below roughly +5 °C the coil begins to ice over and capacity drops sharply. Adsorption (desiccant) dehumidifiers work by passing air through a rotating silica gel rotor that captures water vapour by chemical affinity, then driving the moisture off into a separate hot regeneration stream that is exhausted outside. Adsorption is the correct technology when the environment is colder than roughly +10 °C, when the target RH is below 30%, or when both apply — cold storage, freezers, ice rinks, pharmaceutical and battery dry rooms, archives in unheated buildings.

When should I choose adsorption over condensation?

Three conditions tilt the choice toward adsorption. Low temperature — below +10 °C ambient, condensation loses efficiency rapidly; below roughly +5 °C it stops being a viable technology. Adsorption operates continuously down to −20 °C. Low target humidity — refrigerant dehumidifiers cannot reach RH below about 30%; adsorption reaches down to 1% RH in idealised conditions. No drainage available or no drainage desirable — adsorption removes moisture as warm vapour through a regeneration duct, with no condensate. In every other case — typical industrial warehouses, manufacturing halls, food production at room temperature, plant cultivation, water-damage restoration in heated buildings — condensation is more energy-efficient per litre of water removed. For those, see the DanVex DEH-K Stationary Series (200–1000 L/day, refrigerant cycle).

Why does adsorption work at temperatures where condensation fails?

Condensation depends on cooling air below its dew point on a refrigerated coil. As the surrounding air gets colder, the coil has to go colder still to keep removing moisture — and below 0 °C the coil ices over rather than collecting liquid water. Hot Gas Defrost cycles delay this failure mode but cannot eliminate it. Adsorption is a fundamentally different process: water vapour is captured directly onto the surface of silica gel by physical affinity, with no phase change required in the room air. The rotor handles moisture regardless of room temperature, as long as there is some moisture to capture. Regeneration — the step that drives water off the rotor — uses an electric heater to warm a separate smaller air stream to roughly 100–140 °C; that hot stream carries the moisture out of the building. Room temperature never enters the equation as a limit on the adsorption side.

How does the silica gel rotor work?

The rotor is a cylindrical wheel of silica gel formed onto a thin honeycomb substrate — thousands of small channels parallel to the rotation axis, each lined with active silica gel. The rotor face is divided into two sectors: roughly 75% of the face area is exposed to process air (the room being dried) and 25% is exposed to regeneration air (a smaller, hot stream from outside or from a dedicated source). The rotor turns continuously at 8–18 rotations per hour. Each tiny channel cycles between adsorbing moisture from the process stream as it passes through the larger sector, then giving up that moisture to the hot regeneration stream as the rotation brings it into the smaller sector. The two streams stay physically separated by seals at the rotor faces. Process and regeneration air ratio is roughly 3:1 — standard for silica gel rotor technology.

Why do you use dual-fan design instead of single-fan?

A single-fan desiccant unit uses one fan to push both the process stream and the regeneration stream — the regen air is bled from the same room being dried. This is cheaper to build but has two practical consequences. The room is depressurised by the amount of air being exhausted as regeneration, which pulls in untreated outside air through every gap in the building envelope — defeating part of the dehumidification work. Effective capacity is lower because the regen stream consumes room air that would otherwise be dried. DanVex AD units use a dual-fan design — two independent fans for process and regeneration. The regeneration intake is taken from outside (or from a dedicated exhaust source), the room stays neutral, and the full process airflow is used for drying.

What is the energy cost of regeneration?

Regeneration uses an electric heater to warm the smaller regeneration air stream to roughly 100–140 °C, where it can carry moisture off the silica gel. This is the main energy consumer in an adsorption unit. For context: AD-3000 uses a 30 kW electric regeneration heater; AD-5000 uses 60 kW. The smaller Compact and Industrial models scale down proportionally. Adsorption is more energy-intensive per litre of water removed than refrigerant dehumidification at typical room temperatures — which is why it is chosen by environment (cold, very dry) rather than across the board. In cold environments where condensation cannot work at all, the comparison is not energy efficiency but feasibility. Many installations also use waste heat from a separate process or low-cost off-peak electricity for regeneration.

Do I need a drain connection?

No. Adsorption dehumidifiers remove moisture as warm vapour through the regeneration duct, not as liquid condensate. This is one of the practical advantages of the technology — no drain line to install, no risk of frozen drain lines in cold-storage applications, no condensate pump for installations where gravity drainage is not available. What you do need is a ducted route for the regeneration exhaust: a short duct run that takes the warm moist regen air out of the building. Process intake and dry-air outlet are also ducted by default — AD units are designed for ducted installation, not free-standing operation in the room.

Can I combine adsorption and condensation in one project?

Yes — and for some projects this is the most economical answer. A hybrid approach uses condensation (refrigerant) dehumidifiers as the primary moisture removal at typical room temperatures, with adsorption units handling the colder zones or the lower target-RH zones where condensation cannot reach. Example: a pharmaceutical facility might use DEH-K stationary refrigerant units for the general production halls (room temperature, 40–50% RH target) and AD Industrial adsorption units for the dry-room sections (low RH target, sub-zero dew point). Both series share Modbus RTU RS-485 BMS integration, so a single facility BMS can monitor and coordinate the entire installation from one screen.

How long does the silica gel rotor last?

5–8 years in non-corrosive industrial service with regeneration temperature kept below 140 °C. DanVex AD units run regeneration below this threshold by design, so the rotor stays within its specified service life. Two factors shorten rotor life: corrosive contaminants in the process air (chlorinated cleaning vapours, organic acids, salt aerosols) that attack the silica gel, and overheating during regeneration that thermally damages the substrate. Neither is a normal condition. The rotor itself is supplied by Proflute — one of two leading European desiccant rotor producers, with documented adsorption isotherms and material certifications. End-of-life rotor replacement is a service operation, not a unit replacement.

Do AD units integrate with BMS?

Yes, on every model in both series. Modbus RTU RS-485 is standard equipment, not an option. The unit appears on the facility’s BMS or SCADA as a Modbus slave; the BMS reads humidity setpoint, current RH and temperature, regen heater state, alarm status, and run-hour counters, and can issue setpoint changes and on/off commands. No protocol gateway is required. On AD-3000 and AD-5000, a programmable PLC with 7″ touchscreen handles the local control and exposes the same data over RS-485 to the BMS. Wiring diagrams and BMS integration notes are provided to qualified contractors on request.

How do you size the right model for my project?

Sizing an adsorption dehumidifier by room volume alone — the “litre per day per cubic metre” rule of thumb commonly used for condensation units — is misleading for desiccant technology, because adsorption capacity is much more sensitive to inlet temperature, inlet RH, target dew point, and required airflow than refrigerant capacity is. For every project-based enquiry, DanVex runs the calculation in the original Proflute rotor selection software, which models process and regeneration air streams with full thermodynamic accuracy — inlet T and RH, target dew point, process and regen airflows, regeneration temperature, ambient conditions. This typically improves sizing accuracy versus rule-of-thumb and reduces the risk of an under- or over-specified installation. Send room dimensions, target RH or dew point, moisture sources, and operating temperature — we return a sizing recommendation, typically within one working day.

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