Performance evaluation of a vapor injection refrigeration system using mixture refrigerant R290/R600a

Author(s)

Hallak d'Angelo, Jose Vicente ^[1] ; Aute, Vikrant ^[2] ; Radermacher, Reinhard ^[2]

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Estadual Campinas, Sch Chem Engn, Dept Chem Syst Engn, Ave Albert Einstein 500, Bloco A, BR-13083852 Campinas, SP - Brazil

^[2] Univ Maryland, Ctr Environm Energy Engn, 4164 Glenn L Martin Hall Bldg, College Pk, MD 20742 - USA

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF REFRIGERATION-REVUE INTERNATIONALE DU FROID; v. 65, p. 194-208, MAY 2016.
• Web of Science Citations: 14

Abstract

This work presents a performance evaluation of a vapor injection refrigeration system using a mixture refrigerant R290/R600a, through steady-state simulations used to accomplish a parametric analysis considering the influence of the refrigerant composition over the following parameters: COP; compressor power; refrigerant mass flow rate; refrigerant temperature glide; mass flow ratio between vapor and feed streams in the flash tank; liquid and vapor composition of flash tank outlet streams and compression ratio. Two cases, denominated A and B, considering different fixed temperatures at the refrigeration system were studied and their performances were compared with the one of a basic vapor compression cycle. A maximum COP was obtained for a mixture containing 40 wt% of R290. COP of vapor injection refrigeration cycle is 16-32% greater than the one of a vapor compression cycle, depending on the composition of the mixture refrigerant and pressure drop at the cycle upper-stage expansion valve. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd and IIR. All rights reserved. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 14/15400-7 - Development of software and underlying solvers and algorithms for the dynamic simulation of refrigeration systems
• Grantee: José Vicente Hallak d´Angelo
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research