EXPERIMENT NO.

1
TESTING OF A VAPOR-COMPRESSION REFRIGERATION SYSTEM

NAME(S) 1. DATE PERFORMED: SCORE:

2. January 29, 2024
3. DATE SUBMITTED:
4. February 05, 2024
INSTRUCTOR:
SECTION 57052
Engr. Dexter Lyndon Q. Sabusap
GROUP #

I. OBJECTIVE:

The activity aims to understand the working principle, characteristics, and performances of
different configurations of a vapor-compression refrigeration system.

II. LEARNING OUTCOME:

The students shall be able to:

1. Demonstrate the operation of a refrigeration system.
2. Interpret data and relate results to governing scientific principles.
3. Develop professional work ethics, including precision, neatness, safety, and ability to
follow instructions.

III. THEORY:
Refrigeration is the process of cooling substances or spaces, and a device that does this is called a
refrigerator. The basis of a refrigeration system is a thermodynamic cycle that operates between two
different temperature reservoirs: high-temperature and low-temperature regions. In order for heat to move
from the low-temperature region to the high-temperature region, work has to be done on the refrigerator in
accordance with the Second Law of Thermodynamics, specifically the Clausius statement of the Second
Law.
A vapor-compression refrigeration system (VCRS) is a form of mechanical refrigeration wherein a
substance with low-boiling temperature called a refrigerant is used as the working medium. Figure 1 shows
a schematic of a VCRS. The main components of a VCRS are the compressor, condenser, evaporator, and
expansion valve.
 Figure 1. General schematic of a vapor-compression refrigeration system.
Main Components of a VCRS
Evaporator
The heat exchanger that is inside a refrigerator compartment is called the evaporator. Inside the
evaporator, liquid-vapor refrigerant exchanges heat with the air inside the refrigerant compartment, thus
converting it into saturated vapor refrigerant or a superheated vapor refrigerant.
Compressor
The purpose of the refrigerant compressor is to raise the pressure of the superheated vapor from
the evaporator thereby increasing the refrigerant temperature above the ambient air temperature that is
surrounding the refrigerator.
Condenser
The high-pressure and high-temperature superheated refrigerant from the compressor enters the
condenser. The purpose of the condenser is to condense the refrigerant back to its liquid state.
Expansion Valve
By allowing the liquid refrigerant to pass through a small orifice inside the expansion valve, the
pressure of the refrigerant goes down as well as its temperature. The temperature of now a liquid-vapor
refrigerant is much lower than the air temperature inside the refrigerant compartment, thus heat is
transferred from the air to the refrigerant which restarts the cycle.
Ideal Vapor-Compression Refrigeration Cycle
An ideal vapor-compression refrigeration cycle follows the processes indicated in the P-h diagram
shown in Figure 2. The processes included are:
1–2: reversible adiabatic compression from saturated vapor to the condenser pressure.
2–3: reversible rejection of heat at constant pressure de-superheating and condensation.
 3–4: irreversible expansion at constant enthalpy from saturated liquid to the evaporator pressure.
4–1: reversible addition of heat at constant pressure in evaporation to saturated vapor

Figure 2. P-h diagram of an ideal vapor-compression refrigeration cycle.

Actual Vapor-Compression Refrigeration Cycle
In an actual vapor-compression refrigeration cycle, such as shown in Figure 3, the refrigerant
leaving the evaporator is superheated to ensure no liquid could enter the compressor. Liquid droplets of
refrigerant not only can negatively affect the compressor performance, but it can also accelerate the wear
of the compressor. Also, in actual vapor-compression refrigeration cycle, the refrigerant leaving the
condenser gets subcooled, such as shown in Figure 3. In our experiment, we will assume that the actual
vapor-compression resembles that shown in Figure 3. We will ignore the pressure drops in the heat
exchangers, i.e. evaporator and condenser.
Figure 3. Comparison between an ideal (solid line) and actual (dotted line) vapor-compression refrigeration
cycle.

 Refrigerating Capacity per unit mass, Q A – amount of heat absorbed out of the refrigerated space per
unit mass of the refrigerant.
Q A =h1−h4

 Heat Rejected per unit mass, Q R – amount of heat rejected in the condenser per unit mass of
refrigerant.
Q R=h 2−h3

where it is assumed that h 4=h 3.

 Compressor Work per unit mass, W – the amount of work by the compressor to increase the
refrigerant pressure to the condensing pressure.
W =h2−h1

 Coefficient of Performance, COP

COP=Q A /W

 Compressor Power Input, EP

EP=I ×V
where I is the electrical current, and V is the rated voltage.

Refrigeration Trainor Unit (RTU)

The equipment that will be used in this experiment is a vapor-compression refrigerator that uses
R134A as the refrigerant. In this equipment, four (4) of configurations of the system can be tested by
selecting one of the four shut-off valves. Each shut-off valve connects to a specific kind expansion valve.
The shut-off valves are labelled “A”, “B”, “C”, and “D”. One of the objectives of this experiment is to
compare the performance of the system at different configurations at the same target refrigerated space
temperature.
Shut-off Valve “A”: Long Capillary Tube with Liquid-to-Suction Heat Exchanger
Shut-off Valve “B”: Long Capillary Tube
Shut-off Valve “C”: Short Capillary Tube
Shut-off Valve “D”: Thermostatic Expansion Valve
IV. PROCEDURE:
1. Plug the RTU to a 230-V, 60-Hz power supply.
2. Start the RTU by turning on the circuit breaker.
3. Open the refrigerator cabinet and take note of the ambient air temperature indicated on the
temperature control unit (TCU). The TCU has a temperature sensor located inside the cabinet that
measures the air temperature.
4. Close the cabinet completely.
5. Turn on the evaporator fan and the condenser fan.
6. For the first part of the experiment, open shut-off valve “A”, and make sure the other shut-off valves are
closed.
7. Check the pressure gauges. Make sure both gauges have the same reading and are stable.
8. Set the desired air temperature in the cabinet to the target refrigerated space temperature using the
TCU.
9. Turn on the temperature monitor (press and hold for 3 seconds).
10. Once the pressure is stable (Step 7), turn on the compressor.
11. Once the target refrigerated space temperature is achieve, record the following data:
 Current, A
 Voltage, V
 High and Low Side Pressures, psi
 Evaporator Exit Temperature, °C
 Compressor Exit Temperature, °C
 Condenser Exit Temperature, °C
SUGGESTION: Use your camera to quickly record all the measurements.
12. Before performing the experiments with the other configurations, turn off first the compressor, and then
turn off the fans.
13. Open the cabinet to allow the air temperature to return to room air temperature.
14. Open first valve “B”, and then close valve “A”.
15. Repeat Steps 4 through 11 to test the other configurations.
16. After performing all of the experiments, turn off first the compressor, and then turn off the fans.
17. Turn off the circuit breaker and unplug the RTU from the power supply.

SAFETY PRECAUTIONS AND REMINDERS:

 When the emergency light is on, press the emergency stop button.
 Make sure that not all the shut-off valves are closed. This could lead to the system getting
overpressure on the condenser side.
 Do not poke the evaporator fan or the condenser fan.
 Do not touch any other valves in the RTU other than the shut-off valves for selection of system
configuration.
 Always follow the proper procedure for turning on and turning off of the RTU.
 Avoid damaging any parts of the RTU. Report to the instructor or the lab coordinator any faults or
problems of the equipment.
 Call the attention of the instructor should there be any unusual behavior when operating the RTU.
 Always unplug the RTU from the power supply when you are done with the experiments.
V. MATERIALS AND EQUIPMENT:
(Insert here a picture of the RTU with proper labels of each of its components. Put a proper figure caption
below the picture.)

(Also, insert here a picture of your group performing the experiment. Put a proper figure caption below the
picture.)
VI. DATA AND RESULT:

Ambient Air Temperature: ______°C

Refrigerated Space Temperature: ______°C

Refrigerant Temperature [°C] Absolute Pressure [psi] Electrical Power Supply

Configuration
Evap. Exit (T1) Comp. Exit (T2) Cond. Exit (T3) Low (P1, P4) High (P2, P3) Current [A] Voltage [V]
A
B
C
D

Refrigerant Enthalpy [kJ/kg] Refrigerating Compressor Heat

Capacity Work Rejected
Configuration Evap. Exit Comp. Exit Cond. Exit COP EP [W]
[kJ/kg] [kJ/kg] [kJ/kg]
(h1) (h2) (h3) (h4 – h1) (h2 – h1) (h2 – h3)
A
B
C
D
 COMPUTATIONS
(Aside from showing all your computations, draw the corresponding schematic diagrams and P-h diagrams
for each system configuration in the experiment.)

VII. DISCUSSION OF RESULTS:

(Provide possible explanations to your observations, such as similarities, differences, trends, etc. Do the
results make sense? Are the values reasonable? Are you observations in line with what the theory says?)

VIII. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION:

(Summarize here what you learned in doing the experiment. Revisit the objectives of the experiment.
Recommendations should be about what other aspects of the system of other kinds of scientific questions
you think can be explored that you have not done in the experiment.)