Mondragon, Allan Cristian M.

AT 19 Auto Air-Conditioning

BSAT- 3A 2

Output No. 3

1. Discuss the operation/principle of AC system. (30 points)

The operation or principle of an air-conditioning system is to remove the heat from the interior
of a vehicle or a room and displace it with the cooled dry air while the collected hot air is blown
outside. All air-conditioning system has a compressor within it. This component performs the
compression and pumping of the refrigerant gas. This compression of the refrigerant produces
heat. This heat should be cleared out, and to make it happen, the compressed refrigerant is
pumped to the condenser where a fan blows the heat outside. The refrigerant gas takes the
liquid form throughout the said process of the system. Then, this liquid refrigerant is pumped
towards the expansion valve. The expansion valve releases the appropriate amount of
refrigerant to the evaporator where liquefied refrigerant takes gaseous form. Changing from
liquid to gaseous state due to expansion produces chillness because energy is absorbed from
the surrounding. Air when passes through fins (attached to coils) gets cooled and blown to the
room. The refrigerant in cooling coils then enters the compressor and gets compressed once
again. All of these and the whole cycle will continue, unless the compressor is shut down.

2. Discuss the different types of auto AC system. (10 points)

 A/C System with Expansion Valve, Parallel Flow Condenser, Plate and Fin Evaporator.
(Expansion valve air-conditioning system)

An expansion valve air-conditioning system. To start, a compressor receives and draws the low-
pressure refrigerant from the evaporator into it, and compresses it into a high-pressure
refrigerant vapour. Then, pumps it out by the discharge side of the compressor and sent on to
the condenser. The high-pressure refrigerant vapour that the compressor has heated and
pressurized enters the tap of the condenser and forces down through the tubes of it, then exits
as a high-pressure liquid refrigerant with a low temperature. A filter drier receiver collects and
filters, and dries the liquid refrigerant. It also absorbs small amounts of moisture that may
contaminate the refrigerant. As the liquid refrigerant arrives from the filter drier receiver, a
certain quantity is allowed to enter the evaporator. An expansion valve controls the
temperature of the refrigerant vapour that is exiting the evaporator and meters the amount of
liquid refrigerant entering the evaporator in order to ensure complete evaporation of the
refrigerant. The evaporator is where the refrigerant enters as a liquid and exits as a gas absorbs
the heat from the interior of the automobile. After causing the air to be cooled and blown into
the automobile interior. The cold low-pressure refrigerant as a vapour leaves the evaporator
and returns to the compressor for another cycle.

 A/C System with Orifice Tube, Accumulator, Parallel Flow Condenser Plate, and Fin
Evaporator. ( Fixed orifice tube air-conditioning system)

This type of air-conditioning system operates in exactly the same way as the expansion valve
air-conditioning system, aside from one component. Instead of the expansion valve, this type of
air-conditioning system has got a fixed orifice tube. The orifice tube is a pressure control device
that will spray liquid refrigerant into the evaporator. The orifice tube allows for a higher flow of
refrigerant during times when more cooling is needed, and a smaller flow of refrigerant when
less cooling is needed. This balance of cooling flow is critical for the A/C to operate effectively.
Too much refrigerant flow results in the evaporator running too cold, which causes moisture to
freeze on the evaporator coils. This freezing restricts airflow through the coils and eventually
results in a loss of cooling for the vehicle. The evaporator and refrigerant lines should be cold to
the touch when running properly, but they should not be frozen. The tube also acts as a filter to
prevent contaminants from circulating in the system and possibly damage the compressor. A
fine gauze filter is located at the intent and outlet sides of the orifice tube to filter any
contaminants from passing into the evaporator. The hoses and tubes circulate the refrigerant in
the system. These are made of rubber, steel, or aluminum. An accumulator is also present in
this system, it absorbs moisture and lubricates the compressor. But, it must be replaced
whenever the system has been open for a long period of time or when the compressor is
replaced.