Experimental comparison between two honeycombed desiccant wheels, namely, a conventional one treated with silica gel and a new one fabricated with a new kind of composite desiccant material, was made in this paper. It is found that the newly developed composite desiccant wheel performs better than the conventional one and can remove more moisture from air by approximately 50%. Also encouraging is that the new desiccant wheel can be driven by a lower regeneration temperature for acquiring the same amount of moisture removal. The reason is that the composite desiccant materials, which are constructed with LiCl and silica gel solutions in an optimal way, behave better than silica gel in moisture adsorption, according to the findings from the scanning electron microscope (SEM) pictures as well as the equilibrium adsorption test results. Some parameters, such as inlet air humidity, regeneration temperature, air mass flow rate, etc., which may affect the performance of the desiccant wheels, are also analyzed and discussed. It is further identified that the new composite desiccant wheel has potential for dehumidification applications in many fields. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.