Dehumidifier with Polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) is suitable for high-accuracy, limited-space humidity control in refrigerators. This study experimentally investigated the performance of PEM-based dehumidifier under the temperature range of -10~10°C. Empirical equations of PEM water content at refrigerator temperatures were developed. Results showed that although the low-temperature performance of electrolytic dehumidifier is not as good as that of room temperature, the efficiency (~1.3 × 10⁻² g·J⁻¹·m⁻²) is still competitive to desiccant or electrochemical methods. The dehumidifier has a starting voltage, and the voltage is higher at lower air temperatures (i.e. 1.3V for 26.1°C and 2.3 V for -3.9°C). During dehumidification, the operating current first increases significantly and then drops as the applied voltage increases, leading to a first increase and then steady dehumidification rate. The peak of current occurs at a smaller voltage as the air temperature decreases, i.e. 1.8V for 0°C and 2.5V for 26°C. Furthermore, the dehumidification rate increases as the air temperature and flow rate increases, while the changing rate with operating conditions was lower at sub-zero temperatures. Dehumidification has little effect on the oxygen concentration or temperature increment of the supply air. Characterizations also indicated that there was no obvious physical change on the PEM surface after operating at low temperatures. However, there exists a starting temperature for the dehumidifier, i.e. -9.5°C for the 3V applied voltage, which is due to the possible icing and swelling problem within the membrane. This study provided a new method, and proved its feasibility for dehumidifying at refrigerator temperatures.

带聚合物电解质膜（PEM）的除湿机适用于冰箱中高精度，有限空间的湿度控制。本研究通过实验研究了基于PEM的除湿机在-10〜10°C温度范围内的性能。建立了冰箱温度下PEM水含量的经验方程。结果表明，尽管电解除湿机的低温性能不及室温，但效率（〜1.3×10 ^-2 g·J ^-1 ·m ^-2）在干燥剂或电化学方法方面仍具有竞争力。除湿机具有启动电压，并且在较低的空气温度下该电压较高（即26.1°C为1.3V，-3.9°C为2.3V）。除湿期间，工作电流首先显着增加，然后随着施加电压的增加而下降，从而导致先增加然后稳定的除湿率。随着空气温度的降低，电流的峰值出现在较小的电压上，即0°C为1.8V，26°C为2.5V。此外，除湿率随着空气温度和流量的增加而增加，而在低于零温度的温度下，随着操作条件的变化率降低。除湿对送风的氧气浓度或温度升高几乎没有影响。表征还表明，在低温下操作后，PEM表面没有明显的物理变化。但是，除湿机存在一个起始温度，即3V施加电压的起始温度为-9.5°C，这是由于膜内可能存在的结冰和溶胀问题。这项研究提供了一种新方法，并证明了其在冰箱温度下除湿的可行性。