ME‐403 

Refrigeration and Air Conditioning 
Course Code: ME‐403
Course: Refrigeration and Air Conditioning
Knowledge Area:  Core Breadth
Credit Hours: 3+1
T.E. (Mechanical) Batch 2017-18
Pre‐requisite(s): ME‐112 Thermodynamics
ME‐204 Fluid Mechanics ‐ I

Text Book:
Refrigeration & Air Conditioning (2nd ed.) by W. F. Stoecker & J. W. Jones, McGraw‐Hill 
Book Co., Singapore 

Reference Book(s):
ASHRAE Handbooks: Fundamentals, HVAC Applications, Refrigeration, HVAC Systems & 
Equipment
Course Teachers:
1. S. M. Rizwan Azeem
2. Dr. Muhammd Ehteshamul Haque

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Course Learning Outcome
No. CLO PLO
Apply the concepts of thermodynamics to 
1 PLO‐2
refrigeration cycles
Carry out psychrometric calculations and air 
2 PLO‐2
conditioning cooling load estimation.
Analyze types of air conditioning systems and air 
3 PLO‐2
distribution systems. 
Determine the performance of refrigeration and 
4 air conditioning  systems by conducting  PLO‐4
experiments.  

Course Contents:
CLO 1
Refrigeration cycles 
Reversed Carnot cycle, Vapour‐compression and vapour absorption cycles, gas 
refrigeration cycle, Multiple evaporator and compressor systems

Compressor, Condenser, Evaporator, Expansion devices, cooling tower

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Refrigerants 
Desirable properties of a refrigerant, Classification of refrigerants and their comparison, 
designation systems, secondary refrigerants (brine), Defrosting air circulation systems 

Application of Refrigeration 
Domestic refrigerators, Water cooler, Cold storage, Ice making plants, Heat pump and 
Dairy industries applications

CLO 2
Psychrometry
Use of psychrometric chart, Relative humidity, Humidity ratio, Dry bulb, Wet bulb and 
Dew point temperatures, Psychrometric processes and cycles

Cooling Load Calculations 
Indoor and outdoor design conditions of air conditioning, heating and cooling load 
calculation, Air conditioning requirements for comfort and industrial processes
CLO 3
Air distributing systems, Design and sizing of ducts, prevention of noise and vibration. 

Humidifier, Dehumidifier, Fan, Pump, Blower, grills and registers, cooling tower, 
Automatic temperature and humidity control systems, Pneumatic, electric and 
hydraulic systems.  3
Refrigeration: The process of removing heat (heat is transferred from a region of lower 
temperature of to a region of higher temperature.

Air Conditioning:  In enclosed spaces, combined treatment of the air to  control, as 
specified,  temperature, relative humidity, velocity of motion, and radiant heat energy 
level, including consideration of the of the need for removal of airborne particles and 
contaminant gases. (ASHRAE Handbook)

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Refrigerators & Heat Pumps

Refrigerator: A cyclic device which transfers heat from a

low-temperature region to a high temperature. The working
fluids used in the refrigeration cycles are called refrigerants.

QL is the magnitude of the heat removed from the

refrigerated space at temperature TL, QH is the magnitude of
the heat rejected to the warm space at temperature TH, and
Wnet,in is the net work input to the refrigerator.

The efficiency of a refrigerator is expressed in terms

of the coefficient of performance, denoted by
COPR.
Desired output QL QL
COPR   
Required input Wnet ,in QH  QL

Notice that the value of COPR can be greater than unity. That is, the amount of heat 
removed from the refrigerated space can be greater than the amount of work input. This is 
in contrast to the thermal efficiency, which can never be greater than 1. In fact, one reason 
for expressing the efficiency of a refrigerator by another term—the coefficient of 
performance—is the desire to avoid the oddity of having efficiencies greater than unity.

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Heat pump: Essentially the same as a refrigerator; only
the objective is to maintain a heated space at a high
temperature. This is accomplished by absorbing heat
from a low-temperature source, such as well water or
cold outside air in winter, and supplying this heat to a
warmer medium such as a house.
Desired output Q QH
COPHP   H 
Required input Wnet ,in QH  QL
 COPHP  COPR  1

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The Carnot Refrigeration Cycle

 Completely reversible cycle operating between a constant 
temperature heat source and sink.
 Used as reference against which the real cycles are 
compared.

Four reversible processes: 
 1‐2 Isentropic compression;
 2‐3 Isothermal rejection of heat; 
 3‐4 Isentropic expansion; 
 4‐1 Isothermal addition of heat
The COP of refrigerators and heat pumps operating on such a cycle can be expressed as:

TL TH
COPR,Carnot  and  COPHP,Carnot 
TH  TL TH  TL

These are the highest coefficients of performance that a refrigerator or a heat pump 
operating between the temperature limits of TL and TH can have. All actual refrigerators or 
heat pumps operating between these temperature limits have lower coefficients of 
performance.

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 High COP achieved with TL high & TH low, 
within imposed temperature requirements i.e. 
TL must be below temperature of refrigerated 
space and TH above that of heat sink (e.g. 
atmosphere) temperature.

 Try to keep t small but that is also restricted 
by equipment size & cost.

Achieving Carnot cycle performance using (a) gas (b) vapour as a refrigerant:

(a) gas 
(a) Cycle differs from Carnot cycle operating 
b/w the same two temperatures by the 
addition of areas x (increasing the work 
required) and y (increasing the work required 
and decreasing the refrigeration effect). That 
is, its COP will be less than that of a Carnot 
refrigeration cycle under the same 
temperature limits.

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(b) vapour as a refrigerant:
(b) Theoretically possible, using a vapour which
evaporates at TL and condenses at TH. However,
modifications based on practical considerations are
required.
(i) Wet compression can damage the compressor, so
dry compression is required.

(ii) Economics of power recovery and an

expansion engine driven by a two-phase fluid
mixture do not justify the use of an expansion
engine (turbine); it is replaced by a throttling
device, which essentially leads to an isenthalpic
expansion process.

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The Standard (or Ideal) Vapour Compression Cycle
1‐2 Isentropic compression of saturated 
vapour

2‐3 Heat rejection at const. pressure 
(refrigerant desuperheated and condensed)

3‐4 Isenthalpic expansion of saturated liquid

4‐1 Isothermal addition of heat at constant 
pressure

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Comparison with Carnot Refrigeration Cycle

The standard vapour compression refrigeration 
cycle introduces irreversibilities due to:

(i) non‐isothermal heat rejection (process 2‐3)

(ii) isenthalpic throttling (process 3‐4). 

Consequently, the cooling effect reduces and 
work input increases, thus reducing the system 
COP.

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 Refrigeration effect = h1  h4
 Refrigeration capacity = m (h1  h4)

Q L m  h1  h4  h1  h4
COPR   
QH  QL m  h2  h1  h2  h1
 
 Power (in kW) per kW of refrigeration = Inverse of COPR

 Refrigerating efficiency = COPR/COPR,Carnot

 Ton of Refrigeration (TR): Originally 1 TR was defined as the rate of heat transfer
required to make 1 short ton (2000 lbs) of ice per day from water (latent heat of fusion =
144 Btu/lb) at 0oC. 1 TR = 200 Btu/min or 211 kJ/min.

 Relevant refrigerant properties available either in tabulated or graphical form

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 Relevant refrigerant properties available either in tabulated or graphical
form. Refer to the Tables and Figures Annexure.

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 Actual Vapour‐Compression Cycle
Non‐isentropic compression
‐ Pressure drop in evaporator
‐ Subcooling of liquid refrigerant
‐ Pressure drop in evaporator
‐ Superheating of vapour in evaporator

‐ Additional effects include pressure drops 
across compressor suction and discharge 
valves, pressure drops and heat gains in 
connecting piping etc.

 The pressure drop in the evaporator, in the suction line and across the suction valve has 
a significant effect on system performance.

 It increases specific volume at suction, compression ratio (hence volumetric efficiency) 
and discharge temperature.

 All these effects lead to reduction in system capacity, increase in power input and also 
affect the life of the compressor due to higher discharge temperature.

 Compared to the vapour lines, the system is less sensitive to pressure drop in the 
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condenser and liquid lines. However, this also should be kept as low as possible.
Example: A plant using R134a evaporates at 0C and condenses at 35C. The
refrigeration capacity of the plant is 352 kW and it operates on the ideal vapour
compression cycle. Determine the following: (a) the dryness fraction at entry to the
evaporator, (b) the refrigeration effect (c) the mass flow rate of refrigerant, (d) the
volumetric flow rate at the suction state, (e) the compressor power, (f) the rate of heat
rejection at the condenser, (g) COP of the plant and its refrigerating efficiency.

Solution:

(a) h4 = hf + x(hg – hf) at 0˚C

p
From property table for R134a, we find
hf = 200 kJ/kg, hg = 398.60 kJ/kg
At t3 = 35˚C: p3 = (0.86263 + 0.91185)/2
= 0.88724 MPa
h3 = hf at 35˚C = (247.54 + 250.48)/2
= 249.01 kJ/kg

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 Since h4 = h3  x = 0.25 using the values and expressions given above
(b) h1 = hg at 0˚C = 398.60 kJ/kg; Ref. effect = h1 – h4 = 149.59 kJ/kg

(c) Ref. capacity Q L  m  h1  h4  where Q L  352 kW  m  2.353 kg/s

(d) Suction is inlet to compressor, that is state 1 where

v1  vg at 0˚C = 0.06931 m3/kg  Volume flow rate V1  mv
 1  0.1631 m3/s

(e) Compressor power W  m  h2  h1  and state 2 lies in the superheated region

For isentropic compression s2 = s1 = sg at 0˚C = 1.7271 kJ/kgꞏK

p2 = p3 = 0.88724 MPa. The values in superheated table are at higher or lower pressures.
Double interpolation is therefore required to find h2 using tables.

p = 1.000 MPa p = 0.800 MPa

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 First interpolation:
p = 1.000 MPa p = 0.800 MPa Second interpolation:
s h s h p s H
1.7139 419.99 1.7144 415.58 1.000 1.7271 424.19
1.7271 424.19 1.7271 419.49 0.88724 1.7271 421.54
1.7482 430.91 1.7437 424.61 0.800 1.7271 419.49

Thus h2 = 421.54 kJ/kg  Wc  m  h2  h1  = 54 kW

Alternatively we can use the p-h chart. Draw a constant entropy line from state 1 and state 2
lies where it intersects the p = 0.88724 MPa line. Read the value h2 from the chart.

(f) Q H  m  h2  h3  = 406 kW

Q L TL 273
(g) COPR =  = 6.52 and COPR,Carnot =  = 7.80
Wc TH  TL 308  273

COPR
Ref. efficiency = = 0.836 or 83.6%
COPR,Carnot

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End of Vapor compression refrigeration cycle for online lecture 

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