Abstract
Split residential air conditioners with a variable-speed fan have three fan control modes: auto, on, and enhanced. This paper investigates their energy and dehumidification performance by evaluating coefficient of performance (COP), sensible heat ratio (SHR), and indoor air humidity through experiments at a residence in Miami, Florida. The results reveal that the COP remains approximately constant and the SHR decreases as the airflow rate decreases. Thus, the fan overrunning in the on and enhanced modes significantly increases the indoor air humidity. Overall, the auto mode with appropriate airflow rate has the best energy and dehumidification performance.