This paper presents a numerical and experimental analysis of the coupled heat and mass transfer mechanisms in the adsorbent of a waste-heat adsorption cooling system. A new three-dimensional non-equilibrium model is developed and used to investigate the simultaneous transport of heat and mass. In the model, a linear driving force equation is used to account for mass-transfer resistance within the pallets (internal resistance), while Darcy＇s law is introduced to describe the adsorbate flows in the interparticle voids (external resistance). An experiment has been conducted to validate this model. The temperature, pressure, velocity and water uptake fields of the bed and their effects on system performance are discussed.