[Difficulty: 2]

Problem 1.32

Given: Equation for COPideal and temperature data.

Find: COPideal, EER, and compare to a typical Energy Star compliant EER value.

Solution: Use the COP equation. Then use conversions from Table G.2 or other sources (e.g., www.energystar.gov) to
find the EER.

The given data is TL = ( 20 + 273) K TL = 293 K TH = ( 40 + 273) K TH = 313 K

293
The COPIdeal is COPIdeal = = 14.65
313 293

The EER is a similar measure to COP except the cooling rate (numerator) is in BTU/hr and the electrical input (denominator) is in W:

BTU BTU
2545
hr hr BTU
EER Ideal = COPIdeal EER Ideal = 14.65 = 50.0
W 746 W hr W

This compares to Energy Star compliant values of about 15 BTU/hr/W! We have some way to go! We can define the isentropic
efficiency as

EER Actual
isen =
EER Ideal

Hence the isentropic efficiency of a very good AC is about 30%.