REFRIGERATION AND

LIQUEFACTION
CH126P – Chemical Engineering Thermodynamics
arcaparanga / CBMES, Mapua University
REFRIGERATION
Refrigeration
• refers to the maintenance of a temperature below that of a
surroundings
• applications:
• air conditioning of buildings
• treatment, transportation, and preservation of food and beverages
• manufacture of ice
• dehydration of gases
• purification of lubricating oil
• low-temperature reactions
• separation of volatile hydrocarbons
Refrigeration
• continuous absorption of heat at a low temperature level
• by evaporation of a liquid in a steady-state flow process

• Vapor formed may be returned to its original state for re-evaporation.

• by compression and condensation (i.e., VAPOR COMPRESSION
REFRIGERATION), or
• by absorption by a liquid of low volatility followed by evaporation
at higher pressure (ABSORPTION REFRIGERATION)
THE CARNOT REFRIGERATOR
• Heat absorbed at low temperature is continuously rejected to the
surroundings at a higher temperature

• NOTE: A refrigeration cycle is a reversed heat-engine cycle.

THE CARNOT REFRIGERATOR

Carnot
refrigerator Reversed Carnot
cycle
THE CARNOT REFRIGERATOR
• The measure of the effectiveness of a refrigerator is its coefficient of
performance ( or COP).
QC QC W T T  TC
   H 1  H
W QH  QC QC TC TC

W QH  QC QH
  1
QC QC QC QC TC
 
W TH  TC
W QH  QC QH
  1
QC QC QC
Problem
1. The contents of the freezer in a home refrigerator are maintained at
-20 C. The kitchen temperature is 20 C. If heat leaks amount to
125,000 kJ/day and if electricity costs $0.08/kWh, estimate the
yearly cost of running the refrigerator. Assume a coefficient of
performance equal to 60% of the Carnot value?
Problem
2. A Carnot refrigerator has tetrafluoroethane as the working fluid.
The cycle is the same as shown by Fig 8.2, except the directions are
reversed. For TC = -12 C and TH = 38 C, determine the following:
a) pressures at state 1, 2, 3, and 4
b) quality at states 3 and 4
c) heat addition per kg of fluid
d) heat rejection per kg of fluid
e) mechanical power per kg of fluid for each of the four steps
f) coefficient of performance for the cycle
THE VAPOR COMPRESSION CYCLE
QC  H 2  H1

QH  H 3  H 4

W  H3  H 2

QCH 2  H1
 
W H3  H 2


QC
m
H 2  H1
Problem
3. A refrigerated space is maintained at -12 C, and cooling water is
available at 21 C. Refrigeration capacity is 35.2 kW. The evaporator
and condenser are of sufficient size that a 5.6 C minimum
temperature difference for heat transfer can be realized in each.
The refrigerant is tetrafluoroethane (HFC-134a), for which data are
given in Table 9.1 and Fig G.2 (App G).
a. What is the value of  for a Carnot refrigerator?
b. Calculate  and refrigerant circulation rate for the vapor-
compression cycle of Fig 9.1 if the compressor efficiency is 80%.
ABSORPTION REFRIGERATION
Most common system
• refrigerant – water
• absorbent – LiBr

• limited to refrigeration
temperatures above the
freezing point of water
THE HEAT PUMP

• reversed heat engine

• a device for heating houses and
commercial buildings during
winter and cooling during
summer
Problem
4. A house has a winter heating requirement of 30 kW and a summer
cooling requirement of 60 kW. Consider a heat pump installation to
maintain the house temperature of 20 C in winter and 25 C in
summer. This requires circulation of the refrigerant through interior
exchanger coils at 30 C in winter and 5 C in summer. Underground
coils provide the heat source in winter and the heat sink in summer.
For a year round temperature of 15 C, the heat-transfer
characteristics of the coils necessitate refrigerant temperatures of
10 C in winter and 25 C in summer. What are the minimum power
requirements for winter heating and summer cooling?
LIQUEFACTION
Liquefaction Processes
• Applications
• Liquid propane in cylinders
• Liquid oxygen carried in rockets
• LNG for ocean transport
• Liquid nitrogen for low-temperature refrigeration
• Separation of gas mixtures (liquefaction followed by distillation)
Liquefaction Processes
• Liquefaction results when a gas is cooled to a temperature in the two-
phase region. This may be accomplished in several ways:
1. By heat exchange at constant pressure
2. By an expansion process from which work is obtained
3. By a throttling process
Cooling processes on a TS diagram

3 3
2
T

S
Linde liquefaction process

Figure 9.6 Linde Liquefaction process

Claude liquefaction process

Figure 9.7 ClaudeLiquefaction process