BASIC CONCEPTS OF REFRIGERATION

REFRIGERATION
Is

the science of producing and maintaining temperatures below that of the surrounding atmosphere. This means the removal of the heat from a substance to be cooled.

Before refrigeration
To

cool a warm object before refrigeration was invented, humans placed material to be cooled near a cold object like a block of natural ice, or in a cool well, pond, or lake.

iceman

Major uses

The largest application of refrigeration, which is the process of cooling, is for air conditioning. Refrigeration embraces industrial refrigeration, including the processing and preservation of food; Removing heat from substances in chemical, petroleum, and petrochemical plants; and Numerous special applications such as those in the manufacturing and construction industries.

Specific applications

Air conditioning of medium-sized and large buildings. Industrial air conditioning

Spot heating and cooling Environmental laboratories Printing Textiles Precision parts and clean rooms Photographic products Computer rooms Power plants

Specific applications
Residential

air conditioning Air conditioning of vehicles Food storage and distribution Food processing

Dairy products Beverages

Chemical

and process industries

Special applications of refrigeration

Drinking

fountains Dehumidifiers Ice makers Ice-skating rinks Construction Desalting of seawater

Construction refrigeration

Refrigeration is sometimes used to freeze soil to facilitate excavations. A further use of refrigeration is in cooling huge masses of concrete (the chemical reaction which occurs during the hardening gives off heat, which must be removed so that it cannot cause expansion and stress the concrete). Concrete may be cooled by chilling the sand, gravel, water, and cement before mixing, and by embedding chilled-water pipes in the concrete.

Concrete cooling system

Vapor compression refrigeration system (Reversed Carnot Cycle)

Recall: A cycle needs four factors:

Working substance Hot reservoir / heat source Cold reservoir / heat sink Engine / heat pump

Schematic of heat engine

Schematic of heat pump

Parts of Basic Vapor Compression Cycle

Compressor

Condenser
Evaporator Expansion

valve

Parts of refrigeration
Compressor

A machine used for increasing the pressure of a gas or vapor.

The compressor does work on the system increasing the pressure from the existing evaporator and to that existing in the condenser.

parts
Condenser-

A heat transfer device that reduces a thermodynamic fluid from its vapor phase to its liquid phases.

the high pressure, high temperature vapor that enters the condenser has heat removed from it and as a results it is condensed back in a liquid phase. It is where the refrigerant is liquefied and discharges its heat to the environment.

Parts (cont)
Evaporator

any of many devices in which liquid is changed to the vapor state by the addition of heat, for example, distiller, still, dryer, water purifier, or refrigeration system element where evaporation proceeds at low pressure and consequent low temperature.

heat is absorbed to boil the liquid at a low temperature, therefore a low pressure must be maintained in this section.

parts
Throttle

valve a choking device to regulate flow of a liquid, for example, in a pipeline, to an engine or turbine, from a pump or compressor.

the high pressure liquid from the condenser is expanded through this valve, allowing its pressure to drop to that existing in the evaporator.

Schematic diagram

Actual set-up

Household refrigerator

refrigerants
Is

the substance used for heat transfer in a refrigerating system. It pucks up heat by evaporating at a low temperature and pressure and gives up this heat by condensing at a higher temperature and pressure.

What is freon?
Is

a group of organic compounds used as refrigerants. Freon is DuPonts trade name for its chlorofluorocarbon and hydrochlorofluorocarbon refrigerants, used in air conditioning and refrigeration systems. It is a brand name!!! duPont refrigerants!

DuPont

DuPont pioneered much of the science that makes air conditioning and refrigeration possible. With over 75 years of proven leadership in refrigerants science and technology we offer the broadest range of refrigerant solutions for new and existing equipment, and we are committed to leveraging The Science of Cool to lead the search for new cooling solutions that improve comfort and enhance the quality of life around the world.

History of freon

Refrigerators from the late 1800s until 1929 used the toxic gases, ammonia (NH3), methyl chloride (CH3Cl), and sulfur dioxide (SO2), as refrigerants. Several fatal accidents occurred in the 1920s because of methyl chloride leakage from refrigerator. People started leaving their refrigerators in their backyards. A collaborative effort began between three American corporations, Frigidaire, General Motors and DuPont to search for a less dangerous method of refrigeration.

In 1928, Thomas Midgley, Jr. aided by Charles Franklin Kettering invented a "miracle compound" called Freon. Freon represents several different chlorofluorocarbons, or CFCs, which are used in commerce and industry. The CFCs are a group of aliphatic organic compounds containing the elements carbon and fluorine, and, in many cases, other halogens (especially chlorine) and hydrogen. Freons are colorless, odorless, nonflammable, noncorrosive gases or liquids.

One ton of refrigeration

(standard commercial ton of refrigeration)

The

American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE): is the transfer of 200 Btu/min, or 12,000 Btu/hr. It is the basis of all refrigeration calculations, whether for cold storage, air conditioning, ice making, or ice-cream manufacture.

Another definition
Is

the equivalent to the amount of heat it takes to melt one ton of ice in 24 hrs. thus, which the latent heat of ice equal to 144 Btu/lb, this requires 288,000 Btu in 24 hr. or 12,000 Btu/hr or 200 Btu/min.

Horsepower per ton

Horsepower

per ton is the mechanical input in horsepower divided by the number of tons of refrigerating effect produced by the unit.