Winter 2017‐2018

Week 7
METERING DEVICES
by Ulvi Fatullayev

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Table of Contents

• Operation
• Types of metering devices
• Fixed metering device
• Adjustable metering device

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Operation

• The refrigerant leaving the metering device is low pressure, low

temperature mixture of liquid and vapor.
• 2 main functions of metering device:
 Matches the rate of flow into evaporator to the rate of
vaporization
 Provides pressure drop which separates the high side from the
low
• Pressure drop occurs instantaneously. No enthalpy change.
• A portion of heat in the refrigerant is transformed from sensible to
latent heat
• Some of the liquid boils into vapor and becomes flash gas 
• Sensible heat loss from the liquid = latent heat gain by the vapor
• 80% sat. liquid and 20% sat. vapor at evaporator inlet

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Operation

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Metering Device Location

• Located between evaporator and 
condenser. 
• Typically connected to evaporator
• AC evaporator typically 
manufactured with the MD as an 
integral component
• Ductless mini‐split AC‐s are 
exceptions. Many of them have 
MDs located in the outdoor 
condensing unit
• When MD is outside, liquid lines 
must be insulated as liquid line 
carries cold, saturated liquid rather 
than warm, subcooled liquid

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Types of Metering Devices

• Fixed, non‐adjustable opening or orifice and those where the orifice

can be adjusted to accomodate the cooling load on the system
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Fixed metering device – Capillary Tube
• Simplest metering device with inside diameter 1/16 to 1/8 inch.
• The greater in length or smaller in diameter the cap tube is , the
greater pressure drop it creates
• Often coiled to conserve space and to protect it from damage
• d and l must be selected so that, at design load, flow capacity of
tube is equal to the capacity of compressor

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Fixed metering device – Capillary Tube
• Starved evaporator – too much liquid build up in the condenser, too
high head pressure, inadequate cooling capacity – same symptoms
when cap tube is partially plugged with debris
• Evaporator flooding – liquid slugging in compressor, too little liquid 
refrigerant in condenser, too low head pressure, too high suction
pressure, reduced cooling capacity

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Fixed metering device – Capillary Tube
• In household refrigerators, freezers, window units with fairly 
constant loads
• Very small in diameter, easily plugged by debris circulating with the 
refrigerant – a liquid line filter is used

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Fixed metering device – Capillary Tube ‐ Accumulators
• Unlike adjustable metering devices no 
means of stopping the liquid flow to evap. 
during the off cycle.
• When the compressor shuts off, pressures in 
low and high sides equalize. Liquid 
refrigerant flows through open cap tubes to 
evaporator
• The liquid in the evap. can get into the 
compressor at start‐up. This causes slugging.
• Sometimes liquid can migrate to compressor 
crankcase and mix with oil causing foaming 
and poor lubrication when the compressor 
restarts
• Suction Line accumulators are installed to 
capture liquid refrigerant and return it to the 
system as vapor.
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Fixed metering device – Fixed Orifice

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Fixed metering device – Fixed Orifice
• Orifice can be built into a check valve that allows reverse flow 
with less piping and parts than cap tube for heat pump usage
• Must be carefully selected, the system must be critically charged, 
accumulators needed
• No mechanical means to adjust the load
• Float with the load as compressors and evaporators

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Heat Pump – Cooling Cycle

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Heat Pump – Heating Cycle

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Fixed metering device – Fixed Orifice – Floating with Load

For average comfort air conditioning system of around 3 tons of 
cooling capacity or less, the system floating with the load works well
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Adjustable Metering Devices 

• Adjustable metering devices adjust the evaporator capacity to 
cooling load changes.
• They differ in their mechanism and how they control the cooling 
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load
Adjustable Metering Devices – Hand Operated Expansion Valve

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Adjustable Metering Devices – Lowside Float Valve

• Cooling load rises, more liquid boiled, liquid level drops, valve 
opens
• Cooling load drops, less liquid boiled, liquid level increases, valve 
closes
• The best metering device for flooded evaporators
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Adjustable Metering Devices – Highside  Float Valve

• Cooling load rises, more liquid boiled and condensed, liquid level rises, 
valve opens
• Cooling load drops, less liquid boiled and condensed, liquid level drops, 
valve closes
• When compressor stops, the vapor in the evaporator is not sent to 
condenser, liquid level in the highside chamber drops, the valve closes
• The most common application – flooded cooler of centrifugal chiller
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Adjustable Metering Devices – Automatic Expansion Valve

• Designed to maintain constant evaporator pressure
• Interaction of forces between evaporator pressure underneath the 
diaphragm and the spring pressure above it
• A difference between the two causes the diaphragm to bend, moving 
the needle in or out of its seat
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Adjustable Metering Devices – Automatic Expansion Valve

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Adjustable Metering Devices – Automatic Expansion Valve

• The automatic expansion valve is used on small capacity 
equipment with relatively constant loads.
• Small capacity equipment with relatively constant load, domestic 
refrigerators and freezers

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Adjustable Metering Devices – Thermal Expansion Valve

• Adjustment spring below diaphragm

• Pressure underside the diaphragm = Evaporator pressure + Spring 
pressure
• Pressure on top of the diaphragm = Pressure in the remote sensing bulb
• This bulb is charged with refrigerant which increases pressure on the
top of the bellows as the temperature of the suction line to which it is
firmly connected increases 23
Adjustable Metering Devices – Thermal Expansion Valve

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Adjustable Metering Devices – Thermal Expansion Valve

• Most valves are set for 7‐10 °F (4‐6 °C)

• Internally equalized TXV
• The pressures above and below diaphragms are equal, the needle stays
right where it is

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 Adjustable Metering Devices – Thermal Expansion Valve

• As cooling load decreases, the refrigerant in the evaporator is superheated

less (Superheat drops to 4 °F, Suction line and sensing bulb temperature
will be 44 °F)
• The pressure on the top of diaphragm is lower than the pressure below the
diaphragm
• The diaphragm bends upward, valve closes, until 10 °F superheat is attained
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 Adjustable Metering Devices – Thermal Expansion Valve

• As cooling load increaes, the refrigerant in the evaporator is superheated

more (Superheat rises to 16 °F, Suction line and sensing bulb temperature
will be 56 °F)
• Pressure above diaphragm is more than the pressure below
• Diaphragm bends downward, valve opens, until 10 °F superheat is attained

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Adjustable Metering Devices – Externally Equalized TXV
• Internally Equalized valve – the pressure on the bottom of the diaphragm is
the pressure at the evaporator inlet
• Resistance to flow in the evaporator, pressure drop accordingly
• Significant pressure drop – difficult to maintain the desired superheat T

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Adjustable Metering Devices – Externally Equalized TXV

• Seals off the evaporator inlet from the bottom and pipes in evaporator

outlet pressure
• Allows superheat to be accurately maintained regardless of pressure drop
• Allows use of entire evaporator surface improving heat transfer efficiency
• Equalizer penetrates the suction line 6 ‐8 inches downstream the sensing
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bulb
Adjustable Metering Devices – Externally Equalized TXV

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Adjustable Metering Devices – Chiller TXV – SOCAR TOWER

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Adjustable Metering Devices – Electric XVs.
• Activated by electronically‐controlled stepper motor
• The motor shaft moves in and out in tiny steps
• When the sleeve attached to the shaft moves upward, it exposes more
metering slots
• When it moves downward, it covers the slots, reducing flow and cooling
capacity
• Designed to maintain constant superheat
• Stepper motor gets ist signal from electronic control panel that is attached
to electonic sensor measuring the superheat
• Controlled independently of pressure, safe startup, safe shutdown, stable
operation and high energy efficiency

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