Refrigeration Cycles

Power Users
Refrigerators and Heat Pumps
Refrigerators: move
heat from colder
space
Heat pump: move
heat to warmer space
Both require work
input
Refrigerators and Heat Pumps
Performance is
expressed in term of
coefficients of
performance
Carnot Cycle Model
Reverse Carnot Cycle
Reverse Carnot Cycle
Coefficients of performance for Carnot
cycles can be expressed in terms of
temperature
Ideal Vapor-Compression
Refrigeration Cycle
1-2 Isentropic
compression in
compressor
2-3 Constant-pressure
heat rejection in a
condenser
3-4 Throttling in an
expansion valve
(irreversible process)
4-1 Constant-pressure
heat absorption in an
evaporator

Ideal Vapor-Compression
Refrigeration Cycle Analysis
Steady-flow






Where h
1
= h
g@P
1
and h
3
= h
f@P
3

Actual Vapor-Compression Cycle
Differences
Evaporator discharge
Higher specific volume
in compressor
Compressor losses
Condenser pressure
losses
What Refrigerant?
Types:
Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)
Ammonia
Hydrocarbons (propane, ethane, ethylene,
etc.)
Carbon dioxide
What Refrigerant?
Driving criteria:
Temperatures of
where heat is removed
from and where it is
moved to.
Heat Pumps
Reverse of
refrigerators
Bring heat from lower
temperature space to
higher temperature
space.
Energy source
Air
Water/soil
Gas Refrigeration Cycle
Gas Refrigeration Cycle
Fluid always a gas, no phase change





Lower COP than vapor-compression systems
Used in aircraft and gas liquefaction