Understanding Superheat

Superheat is probably the most talked about, yet misunderstood, technical

June 3, 2004 term used by technicians.
Superheat is a measured value. It is the difference between two temperatures.
Superheat is measured as the difference between the actual temperature of the refrigerant vapor and the
saturation temperature of the refrigerant at that same point. Superheat on the system's low side can be
divided into two types: evaporator superheat and total (or compressor) superheat.

Evaporator Superheat
Evaporator superheat starts at the 100-percent saturated vapor point in the evaporator and ends at the
outlet of the evaporator. The 100-percent saturated vapor point is the point where all the liquid has just
turned to vapor. The temperature at this point can be obtained from a pressure-temperature chart.
Figure 1. A diagram of a basic refrigeration system.

The evaporator outlet is where the remote bulb of the thermostatic expansion valve (TXV) is located. (See
Figure 1.) Technicians usually put a thermistor or thermocouple at the evaporator outlet to get the
evaporator outlet temperature. A pressure gauge at the same point as the temperature reading will give a
technician the saturated vapor temperature. Most manufacturers of larger evaporators supply a Schrader
tting at the evaporator outlet pretty close to the remote bulb of the TXV for measuring pressure. (See
Figure 2.)
Figure 2. A Schrader tting at the evaporator outlet or the beginning of the suction line can be used for
measuring pressure.

Example No. 1
Let's look at an R-134a refrigeration system. The low-side gauge reading at the evaporator outlet equals 20
psig or 23 degrees F. (See Table 1.) The evaporator outlet temperature (thermistor reading) equals 30
degrees.
The evaporator superheat calculation would be as follows: The evaporator outlet temperature (30 degrees)
minus the saturation temperature at the evaporator (23 degrees) equals the evaporator superheat (7
degrees).

Errors To Avoid
If a technician were to measure the pressure at the compressor instead of the evaporator outlet, a higher
and ctitious superheat value would be read. As the refrigerant travels the length of the suction line, there
would be associated pressure drop from friction and/or restrictions. This would cause the pressure at the
compressor to be lower than the pressure at the evaporator outlet.
This higher, ctitious superheat reading may lead the technician to adjust the TXV stem clockwise (open)
to compensate for the erroneously high superheat reading. This could cause compressor damage from
liquid ooding or slugging from too low of a superheat setting.
Example No. 2
Assume a 5-psi pressure drop from the evaporator outlet to the compressor in an R-134a system. The low-
side gauge reading at the compressor inlet equals 15 psig or 15 degrees. The evaporator outlet temperature
(thermistor reading) equals 30 degrees.
In this case, the evaporator superheat calculation would be: Evaporator outlet temperature (30 degrees)
minus saturation temperature at compressor inlet (15 degrees) equals degrees superheat (15 degrees).

The superheat changed from 7 degrees to 15 degrees simply by reading the pressure at the compressor
inlet instead of the evaporator outlet. This correct evaporator superheat would be 7 degrees. It is best to
measure the pressure at the same location as you measured the temperature to exclude any system
pressure drops.

Superheat Amounts
The amount of evaporator superheat that is required for a certain application will vary. Commercial
icemakers call for 3 degrees to 5 degrees of evaporator superheat to ll out their ice sheets.
However, suction line accumulators are often employed on these systems for added protection. This will
help ensure the entire refrigerant entering the compressor is free of liquid. This will also help keep a fully
active evaporator. Lower temperature applications generally utilize lower evaporator superheat. Please
consult the case manufacturer if in doubt. In the absence of manufacturer's data, a chart such as the one
shown in Table 2 shows guidelines for superheat settings.

There will always be a time when the evaporator sees a light load and the TXV may lose control of its
evaporator superheat due to limitations of the valve and to system instability. This is where total
superheat comes into play.

Total Superheat
Total superheat is all the superheat in the low side of the refrigeration system. It starts at the 100-percent
saturated vapor point in the evaporator and ends at the compressor inlet. (See Figure 1.)
Sometimes referred to as compressor superheat, total superheat consists of evaporator superheat plus
suction line superheat. A technician can measure total superheat by placing a thermistor or thermocouple
at the compressor's inlet and taking the temperature. A pressure reading will also be needed at this same
location.
Table 1. A pressure-temperature chart for R-134a.
Example No. 3
Let's take another look at an R-134a system. Low-side pressure at the compressor is 20 psig or 23 degrees
F. (See Table 1.) The compressor inlet temperature equals 50 degrees.
The total superheat calculation is as follows: Degrees compressor in temperature (50 degrees) minus
saturation temperature (23 degrees) equals total superheat (27 degrees).

In the above example, the total superheat was calculated to be 27 degrees. It is possible to have a TXV that
is adjusted to control superheat at the coil (evaporator superheat) and still return liquid refrigerant to the
compressor at certain low load conditions.

If so, the conditions causing the oodback should be found and corrected. It is recommended that all TXV-
controlled refrigeration systems have at least 20 degrees of compressor superheat to ensure that the
compressor will not see liquid refrigerant ( ood or slug) at low evaporator loads. Total superheats from 20
degrees to 30 degrees are recommended to ensure adequate compressor cooling and preventive liquid
control to the compressor. The TXV, however, should be set to maintain proper superheat for the
evaporator.

Air-cooled compressors are more vulnerable to slugging and valve damage because the suction gases are
not heated by the motor windings. The gases enter the sidewall of the compressor and go directly to the
valves. The 20 degrees of compressor superheat will be a buffer in case the TXV loses control of superheat
at these low loads.

However, the evaporator superheat must still be maintained by the guidelines in the chart shown. A buffer
of 20 degrees to 30 degrees of compressor superheat will also make sure that the refrigerant vapor entering
the compressor is not too dense. Vapors at too high of a density entering the compressor will cause the
compressor to have a higher-than-normal amp draw.

This will overload the compressor in many instances and open thermal overloads.

On the other hand, excess suction gas superheat and/or long periods of low mass ow rate (e.g., an
unloaded compressor), can result in insuf cient cooling of the stator and open the internal protectors.

Increasing Total Superheat

Remember, the TXV controls evaporator superheat. To obtain more total superheat, one may add a
liquid/suction heat exchanger, or even run a bit longer suction line to allow heat gains from the
surrounding temperature to heat the suction line.
It is not recommended to take the insulation off of the suction line to increase total superheat. This will
cause the suction line to sweat from water vapor in the air reaching its dew point on the suction line.
Freezing at this condensation may also occur if suction line temperatures are below 32 degrees. Water
damage can occur.
Table 2. A sample chart showing recommended superheat settings for evaporators.

If at all possible, do not sacri ce (raise) evaporator superheat to get the amount of total superheat needed.
This will not maintain an active evaporator and system capacity will suffer.
TXVs often lose control of evaporator superheat at evaporator loads. Low evaporator loads can be caused
by many different situations.

Causes for low load conditions on evaporator coils include:

Inoperable evaporator fan motor.

Iced-up or dirty coil.

Defrost circuit malfunction causing coil icing.

End of the refrigeration cycle.

Low air ow across evaporator coil.

Low refrigerant charge.

TXV Hunting
Anytime the evaporator coil sees a reduced heat load than that it is designed to see, a TXV can lose control
and hunt. Hunting is nothing but the valve overfeeding and then underfeeding, trying to nd itself.
Hunting occurs during periods of system unbalance (e.g., low loads), when temperatures and pressures
become unstable. The TXV tends to overfeed and underfeed in response to these rapidly changing values
until the system conditions settle out, and the TXV can stabilize.

It is this overfeeding condition that hurts compressors. Too low evaporator superheat setting also causes
the TXV to hunt.

In conclusion, a total superheat of at least 20 degrees can prevent the compressor from seeing any liquid
refrigerant.

Tomczyk is a professor of HVACR at Ferris State University, Big Rapids, Mich. He can be reached by e-mail
at tomczykj@tucker-usa.com.

Publication date: 06/07/2004

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