EXPERIMENT 2

Refrigeration Cycle
Joyjane L. Borres | Ryan Lee G. Ronquillo | John Loui T. Tadia

I. INTRODUCTION
As early as the second century, people had already known the cooling effect of the
evaporation of water but not fully understand it. Evaporation was used in ancient Egypt to chill
jars of water and was also employed in ancient India to make ice. This led to the first attempts
to produce refrigeration mechanically. Refrigeration machines appeared in the 1850s and were
classified according to the type of refrigerants. Nowadays, refrigeration is used in the industry
for cooling and freezing products, condensing vapors, maintaining environmental conditions,
and for cold storage, among many others. (Dincer, 2017).
Refrigeration is basically in reverse effect with the heat pump. It is defined as the
process of extracting heat from a lower-temperature heat source, substance, or cooling medium
and transferring it to a higher-temperature heat sink, atmospheric air or surface water (Wang,
2000). The absorption of heat is usually accomplished by evaporation of a liquid in a steady
state condition. The vapor formed is then returned to liquid state either by compression-
condensation or absorption by liquid at low volatility. This gives us two practical refrigeration
cycle – vapor compression cycle and absorption cycle (Smith et al., 2001).
In the vapor compression cycle, four major thermal processes take place as shown in
Figure 1a. For better understanding and analysis, the cycle can be shown in temperature-
entropy(T-s) and pressure-enthalpy (ln P-h) diagrams in Figure 1b and Figure 1c, respectively.

(a) (b) (c)

Figure 1.1. Simple Vapor-compression cycle (a) schematic diagram (b)T-s diagram (c) lnP-h
diagram (Dincer, 2017).
From the Figure, it is shown the the liquid is evaporated at constant pressure with heat
absorption at a low constant temperature as in step 4-1 (reversible heat addition at constant
pressure). The low-pressure liquid from the evaporator is then compressed as in step 1 to 2
(reversible adiabatic compression) in an increased temperature and pressure. The vapor is then
cooled and condensed as in step 2 to 3 (reversible heat rejection at constant pressure). Liquid
from the condenser returns to its original pressure by the expansion process as in step 3 to 4
(irreversible expansion at constant enthalpy). In actual compression process, the line 1-2 of the
T-s diagram is sloping reflecting the inherent irreversibilities (Smith et al., 2001).
 As shown in Figure 1, the heat rejected (QH) and the heat absorbed (QL) by condenser
and evaporator, respectively can be solved by this equation (Smith et al., 2001).:
|𝑄𝐻 | = 𝐻2 − 𝐻3 |𝑄𝐿 | = 𝐻1 − 𝐻4 (Equation 1.1 and 1.2)
When changes in potential and kinetic energy are neglected, the work of compression
following the first law of thermodynamics is
𝑊 = 𝐻2 − 𝐻1 (Equation 2)
The overall energy balance for the refrigeration system then becomes:
𝑊 + 𝑄𝐿 = 𝑄𝐻 (Equation 3)
The coefficient of performance (COP) becomes:
𝑟𝑒𝑓𝑟𝑖𝑔𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑒𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑐𝑡
𝐶𝑂𝑃 = 𝑊𝑜𝑟𝑘 𝑖𝑛𝑝𝑢𝑡
𝑄𝐿
𝐶𝑂𝑃 = (Equation 4)
𝑊

The coefficient of performance or COP of the refrigeration is the measure of the

effectiveness of the refrigerator (Smith et al., 2001). The maximum COP is based on Carnot
refrigeration cycle which is an ideal refrigeration cycle. Actual refrigeration cycles are not as
efficient as the ideal Carnot due to the lower COP from the irreversibilities of the system.
(Dincer, 2017).
Finally, to design the evaporator, compressor and condenser the rate of circulation of
the refrigerant (m) is determined from the rate of heat absorption of the evaporator as in:
|𝑄𝐿̇ |
𝑚̇ = 𝐻 (Equation 5)
1 −𝐻4

For this experiment using TCRC/TCRB refrigeration unit, the following equations are
given for the calculations of the obtained results.
Evaporator:
Heat Transfer in the Evaporator: 𝑄𝐸 = 𝑚̇𝑒 𝐶𝑝 (𝑇1 − 𝑇2 ) (Equation 6.1)
Heat Transfer to the surroundings: 𝑄′𝐸 = 0.8(𝑇𝑎 − 𝑇𝑒 ) (Equation 6.2)
Cooling Total Effect: 𝑄′′𝐸 = 𝑄′𝐸 + 𝑄𝐸 (Equation 6.3)
Condenser:
Heat Transfer in the Condenser: 𝑄𝑐 = 𝑚̇𝑐 𝐶𝑝 (𝑇4 − 𝑇3 ) (Equation 7.1)
Heat Transfer to the surroundings: 𝑄′𝑐 = 0.8(𝑇𝑎 − 𝑇𝑐 ) (Equation 7.2)
Total Heat Transfer: 𝑄′′𝑐 = 𝑄′𝑐 + 𝑄𝑐 (Equation 7.3)
Volumetric efficiency
𝑀𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑓𝑙𝑜𝑤 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑡 (𝑆𝑝𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑓𝑖𝑐 𝑉𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒 𝑜𝑓𝑐𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑡 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑖𝑛𝑙𝑒𝑡)
𝑛= (Equation 8)
𝑉𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒 𝑠𝑤𝑒𝑝𝑡 𝑏𝑦 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑜𝑟

Pressure Ratio = (Pc/PE)

𝑄′′𝐸
Operation Coefficient of Refrigerator : 𝐶𝑂𝑟𝑒𝑓 = (Equation 9.1)
𝑃
 𝑄′′𝐶
Operation Coefficient of Heat Pump : 𝐶𝑂𝑝𝑢𝑚𝑝 = (Equation 9.2)
𝑃
𝑄𝐶
Global Heat Transfer Coefficient: 𝑈 = 𝐴(𝜃 (Equation 10)
𝑎𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑔𝑒 )

Refrigerant is the primary working fluid used in heat exchange in the refrigeration
system. It can be either a single chemical compound or a mixture of chemical compounds
(Wang, 2000). Heat transfer depends on the refrigerant. Different refrigerant will have different
enthalpy values which also depends on the temperatures and pressures of cold and warm
regions (Yeh, n.d.). For this experiment, SES-36 coolant and water are compared. SES-36
coolant is an azeotropic mixture which is at liquid form at room temperature, is chemically
stable with excellent dielectric properties and material compatibility which can be applied to
heat pipes, high temperature heat pumps, and direct contact cooling (Edibon, 2016).

II. OBJECTIVES
General Objective:
1) To conduct and design an experiment on a refrigeration unit.
Specific Objectives:
1) To demonstrate the vapor-compression cycle or heat pump cycle.
2) To determine the relationship between the pressure and temperature.
3) To determine the effect of evaporation and condensation temperatures to the cooling
rate and heat transfer at the condenser.
4) To distinguish the effect of pressure ratio.
5) To calculate for the operation coefficients of the system.
6) To calculate or to estimate for the value of global heat transfer coefficient between the
SES-36 coolant and water.

III. SCOPE AND LIMITATION

This experiment will be done in School of Technology, University of the Philippines.
It will employ Edibon TCRC/TCRB unit to demonstrate the compression refrigeration cycle
by means of visual observation of the whole process. Also tap water will be used directly from
the faucet, however, a constant flowrate may be impossible to maintain as fluctuations may
occur as other equipment may share with the water source.
The compression refrigeration unit can be practically used to demonstrate several
applications. However, the experiment will be limited to three parts: (1) Study of the relation
between pressure and temperature, (2) Effect of evaporation and condensation temperatures in
the cooling rate and in the heat transfer at the condenser, Analysis of the effect of the pressures
ratio in the system behavior, Determination of the working coefficients of the system and
Estimation of the global heat transfer coefficient between the coolant and water, and (3)
Demonstration of the vapor compression refrigeration cycle or heat pump cycle.
The experiment will not include the demonstrations, which can be possibly done, such
as the effect of air introduction in the cooling circuit, different ways of loading the coolant and
effect of emptying and loading the coolant in the condenser. Also, to measure the volumetric
efficiency of the compressor, it would be necessary to know the turning speed of the
compressor and the mass flow of coolant. The measure of the turning speed is not feasible with
a hermetic compressor and thus will not be in the scope of the experiment.

IV. METHODOLOGY
This experiment will only use a compression refrigeration unit, along with its
accessories, and tap water as cooling liquid. The figure below shows the refrigeration unit that
will be used in the experiment.

Figure 4.1. Refrigeration unit (Edibon, 2016)

Part 1. Study of the relation between pressure and temperature

1. Switch on the refrigeration unit. Set the water flow cooled by the condenser up to 3 L/min
approximately.
2. Make sure that there is no air in the system and let the unit work for 15 minutes,
approximately, to reach uniform operation conditions.
3. With the aid of the needle valve, reduce the water flow in the condenser in small increments,
until pressure reaches approximately 0.1 – 0.2 bar.
4. Allow the unit to stabilize for a few minutes and record the temperature in the condenser.
5. Repeat the previous process until reaching the pressure switch cutoff value (2.3 bars).
6. Plot the results, in both evaporation and condensation, Absolute pressure – Saturation
temperature graph.
Part 2. Effect of evaporation and condensation temperatures in the cooling rate and in the heat
transfer at the condenser, Analysis of the effect of the pressures ratio in the system behavior,
Determination of the working coefficients of the system and Estimation of the global heat
transfer coefficient between the SES-36 coolant and water
1. Use the free leak purge valve placed at the upper base of the condenser. Make sure that the
unit is free of air.
2. Once the unit is free of air, increase the flow of water cooled by the condenser until reaching
a value around 1.2 L/min.
3. Set the water flow of the evaporator between 0.8 and 1 l/min and allow the unit to work
approximately about 15 or 20 minutes. The time required to become stable will depend on
the environmental conditions and the cooling water inlet temperature.
4. Take note of the pressure, coolant temperature, flowrate, water inlet and outlet temperatures
of the condenser and evaporator.
5. Reduce the water flow of the condenser until the pressure increases. Allow the unit to
become stable and write down the obtained new value of each parameter.
6. Repeat the procedure increasing the pressures in the condenser until reaching the minimum
readable value of the water flow in the condenser.
7. Compute for the heat transfer rate and plot against condensation temperature.
8. Compute for the pressure ratio and plot against the heat transfer rate.
9. Compute for the coefficient of performance and plot against the condensation temperature.
10. Compute for the global heat transfer coefficient between the SES-36 coolant and water
Part 3. Demonstration of the vapor compression refrigeration cycle or heat pump cycle
The performance of this practical exercise should begin after turning the unit off.
1. Check the correct position of the ball valves (the isolating valve and load valve).
2. Turn on the interface, but not the hermetic compressor.
3. Finally, turn on the compressor and feed the coils’ loops of the condenser and evaporator
with a suitable water supply.
4. Observe the pressure in the compressor, condenser and evaporator. Take note also the
behavior of the cooling liquid.
5. Take note of the behavior of the pressure in the condenser once the water flow, both in the
evaporator and in the condenser, is under the normal working conditions.
 V. EXPECTED RESULTS
PART 1
Atmospheric pressure: ______
Table 1. Experimental results on pressure vs temperature
CONDENSER
Test number 1 2 3 4 5 6
Relative pressure: PC (bar)
Absolute pressure: PC (bar)
Coolant temperature ST-6: TC (°C)
Water flow: Q2 (1/min)
EVAPORATOR
Test number 1 2 3 4 5 6
Relative pressure: PE (bar)
Absolute pressure: PE (bar)
Coolant temperature ST-9: TE (°C)
Water flow: Q1 (1/min)

PART 2
Atmospheric pressure: ______
Table 2. Experimental results on part 2
CONDENSER
Test number 1 2 3 4 5 6
Relative pressure: PC (bar)
Absolute pressure: PC (bar)
Coolant temperature ST-6: TC (°C)
Water flow: Q2 (1/min)
Water inlet temperature ST-3: T3 (°C)
Water outlet temperature ST-4: T4
(°C)
EVAPORATOR
Test number 1 2 3 4 5 6
Relative pressure: PE (bar)
Absolute pressure: PE (bar)
Coolant temperature ST-9: TE (°C)
Water flow: Q1 (1/min)
Water inlet temperature ST-1: T1 (°C)
Water outlet temperature ST-2: T2
(°C)
Room temperature ST-11: Ta (°C)
Table 3. Data on heat transfer rate vs condensation temperature
Test number 1 2 3 4 5 6
Coolant temperature in the evaporator
ST-9: TE (°C)
Coolant temperature in the condenser
ST-6: TC (°C)
Heat transfer in the evaporator:
QE (W)
Heat transfer in the condenser:
QC (W)

Table 4. Data on pressure ratio in the compressor vs heat transfer rate

Test number 1 2 3 4 5 6
Pressure ratio in the compressor:
PC/PE
Heat transfer in the evaporator:
QE (W)
Heat transfer in the condenser:
QC (W)

Table 5. Data on condensation temperature vs coefficient of performance

Test number 1 2 3 4 5 6
Coolant temperature in the evaporator
ST-9: TE (°C)
Coolant temperature in the condenser
ST-6: TC (°C)
Total refrigeration effect: QE’’ (W)
Total heat transfer in the condenser:
QC’’ (W)
Coefficient of performance as
refrigerator: CoRef
Coefficient of performance as heat
pump: CoPump

Table 6. Global coefficient of heat transfer

Test number 1 2 3 4 5 6
Global coefficient of heat transfer for
condenser: UC (W/m2 K)
Global coefficient of heat transfer for
evaporator: UE (W/m2 K)
 PART 3
Table 7. Data on the demonstration of the vapor compression refrigeration or heat pump cycle
Test number 1 2 3 4 5 6
Water flow: Q2 (1/min)
Relative pressure: PC (bar)
Absolute pressure: PC (bar)
Water flow: Q1 (1/min)
Relative pressure: PE (bar)
Absolute pressure: PE (bar)
Compressor power: (W)

VI. REFERENCES
Dincer, I. (2017). Refrigeration Systems and Applications (109-142nd ed.). Hoboken, NJ:
John Wiley & Sons.

Edibon. (2016). TCRC/TCRB:Practical Exercises Manual. Madrid,Spain:Edibon

Smith, J. M., Ness, H. C., & Abbott, M. M. (2001). Introduction to Chemical Engineering
Thermodynamics (6th ed., pp. 294-310). New York City, NY: McGraw-Hill Science
Engineering.

Wang, S. K. (2000). Handbook of Air Conditioning and Refrigeration (2nd ed., pp. 428-432).
New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Education.

Yeh, R. (n.d.). 2.972 How A Compression Refrigeration System Works. Retrieved March 6,
2019, from
http://web.mit.edu/2.972/www/reports/compression_refrigeration_system/compressio
n_refrigeration_system.html