International Journal of Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration

Vol. 26, No. 4 (2018) 1850035 (13 pages)

© World Scienti¯c Publishing Company
DOI: 10.1142/S2010132518500359

Characterization of Ammonia–Water Absorption Chiller

and Application
by UNIVERSITY OF AUCKLAND on 08/25/19. Re-use and distribution is strictly not permitted, except for Open Access articles.

Gopalakrishnan Anand*, Donald C. Erickson† and Ellen Makar‡

Energy Concepts Company
627 Ridgely Avenue, Annapolis MD 21401, USA
*ganand@energy-concepts.com
†enerconcep@aol.com
‡emakar@energy-concepts.com
Int. J. Air-Cond. Ref. 2018.26. Downloaded from www.worldscientific.com

Received 5 June 2018

Accepted 28 August 2018
Published 23 October 2018

Ammonia-absorption refrigeration units (AARUS) can supply subfreezing refrigeration for many
industrial applications. Such units are usually driven by waste heat or renewable energy at
relatively low temperatures. The performance of the chiller is highly dependent on the tem-
peratures of the driving heat, the chilling load, and the cooling water. In this paper, the perfor-
mance of an advanced industrial-scale ammonia-absorption unit is modeled over a representative
operating range. The performance is then characterized by a set of simple equations incorporating
the three external temperatures. This simple model helps to evaluate potential applications,
predict performance, and perform initial optimization. Case studies are presented highlighting the
application of the model.

Keywords: CHP; industrial refrigeration; ammonia–water absorption; absorption chilling;

characteristic-equation; waste heat; model; prediction.

1. Introduction heating demand but can bene¯t from chilling. In the

Industrial processes consume signi¯cant amounts of
energy and are responsible for 45% of global carbon-
dioxide emissions. Waste heat recovery and utiliza-
tion can help improve process e±ciencies and miti-
gate environmental impact. Thermally driven
absorption chillers have been identi¯ed as one of the
enabling technologies for e®ective utilization of low-
grade heat.1
Combined heat and power (CHP) is another
means of improving industrial plant e±ciency.
Many of these applications such as in food proces-
sing, cold storage, and chemicals have limited
U.S., the potential for CHP with absorption chillers
is estimated to be 15% of the 33 GW industrial CHP
market.2
Absorption chillers also have unique advantages
when powered by renewable energy such as solar,
biomass, or geothermal.3 New applications such as
in CO2 capture, bio-fuel production, marine CCHP,
LNG processing, industrial parks, etc., further
increase the potential for absorption chillers.
Most of the industrial chilling loads need sub-
freezing refrigeration. Subfreezing refrigeration is
a valuable utility. It is very electricity intensive,

*Corresponding author.

1850035-1
 G. Anand, D. C. Erickson & E. Makar
proportionate to how cold it is. It is also usually a
year-round demand, even 24/7 at many plants.
Thus, the absorption chiller can achieve a substan-
tial added value by displacing the associated electric
chiller demand.4
Ammonia-absorption refrigeration unit (AARU)
is a relatively old technology that has been used in
many industrial applications.5 They are the primary
means of supplying the heat-driven subfreezing re-
by UNIVERSITY OF AUCKLAND on 08/25/19. Re-use and distribution is strictly not permitted, except for Open Access articles.
frigeration required in these industrial applications.
They can be powered by low grade heat or renewable
energy resources.
The performance of an AARU is highly depen-
dent on three temperatures — the driving heat, the
chilling, and the heat rejection (ambient or cooling
water) temperatures. Moya et al.6 studied the
Int. J. Air-Cond. Ref. 2018.26. Downloaded from www.worldscientific.com
performance of a commercial air-cooled chiller
powered by an intermediate hot oil loop recovering
heat from the exhaust of a micro-turbine. They
showed the dependence of capacity and e±ciency of
the chiller on these three temperatures. Similar
dependence has also been reported by Bazzo et al.7
and Bulgan.8
Thus, special consideration is required for the
design of the AARU for low-temperature heat
driven applications. However, rigorous design of the
AARU is highly complex.9,10 Using such models
requires good understanding of the absorption cycle
and its components and is time consuming.
It is hence desirable that once the performance
data of such chillers are available through rigorous
modeling or performance testing, simpler models be
available for the general practitioner. This will help
rapid screening of potential applications, initial
equipment speci¯cation, energy e±ciency and per-
formance prediction/analysis, and even fault detec-
tion and diagnosis.
Several empirical-based models have been devel-
oped for absorption chillers. Labus et al.11 examined
four models as follows:
(i) Adapted Gordon–Ng model.12
(ii) Adapted characteristic equation model.13,14
(iii) Multivariate polynomial regression model.15
(iv) Arti¯cial neural networks model.16
The ¯rst two models are semi-empirical and are
based on parameters related to governing principles
of the absorption chiller. The othet two models
are purely empirical. The last three models were
found to be reasonable approaches to modeling the
absorption chillers.
1850035-2
Puig-Arnavat et al.17 examined the two versions
of the characteristic equations models.13,18 They
selected the adapted model of Kuhn and Ziegler18 as
the preferred model.
All the empirical models and studies cited in
these references were based on lithium-bromide
absorption chillers. No modeling of ammonia-
absorption chillers was reported. Sencan19 used
arti¯cial intelligence methods for thermodynamic
evaluation of ammonia-absorption chillers. Using
the data of Sun20 he developed mathematical for-
mulations for solution circulation ratio and COP.
The formulations were complex and were based
on cycle internal parameters that are di±cult for
general practitioners to use. Also, the data pre-
sented by Sun 20 were based on highly simplistic
model of the absorption system with unrealistic
performance.
In conclusion, literature studies indicate that
there are signi¯cant industrial opportunities for
utilization of the lower temperature heat from var-
ious sources. These applications usually require
subfreezing refrigeration that can be supplied by
AARUs. This paper presents the design and per-
formance of an industrial scale AARU powered by
low-temperature heat. An adapted characteristic
equations model is then developed to model the
performance of the AARU. Case studies are pre-
sented illustrating the application of the model for
several applications.
2. Absorption Chiller Design
An AARU was installed as part of a CHP installa-
tion at a vegetable processing plant in Santa Maria,
California. The overall system design and perfor-
mance was reported by Anand et al.21 The design of
this chiller, summarized below, was used to develop
the empirical model.
2.1. Design speci¯cations
The AARU (TC125) was designed to provide 125
RT (440 kW) of chilling to 20.2 L/s of 30% pro-
pylene glycol solution, cooling it from
1.1  C to

6.7  C. It is powered by 7.44 L/s of 10% ethylene
glycol solution from the CHP package at a temper-
ature of 105  C. Cooling tower water was available
at 20  C.
Figure 1 shows the entire installed CHP system.
The engine is containerized with separate containers

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Int. J. Air-Cond. Ref. 2018.26. Downloaded from www.worldscientific.com
Fig. 1.
for the exhaust heat exchanger and the emissions
treatment equipment. The cooling tower is mounted
above the absorption skid to conserve plot space.
Figure 2 is a simpli¯ed diagram of the TC125
interfaces with the other components.
Fig. 2. Schematic of ammonia-absorption system (TC125).
Characterization of AARU and Application
CHP system layout.
2.2. Absorption chiller design
The process °ow diagram of the ammonia-absorp-
tion refrigeration cycle is shown in Fig. 3. The hot
glycol from the engine circuit enters the generator
(GEN) and heats the ammonia–water solution,
1850035-3
 G. Anand, D. C. Erickson & E. Makar
by UNIVERSITY OF AUCKLAND on 08/25/19. Re-use and distribution is strictly not permitted, except for Open Access articles.
Int. J. Air-Cond. Ref. 2018.26. Downloaded from www.worldscientific.com
Fig. 3. Process °ow diagram of thermochiller AARU.
producing a two-phase stream. The mixture enters
the recti¯er (RECT). The recti¯er uses internal heat
and mass exchange (GHX-Generator Heat Ex-
changer; SCR-Solution Cooled Recti¯er) and puri-
¯es the vapor to 99% ammonia.
The recti¯ed high-pressure vapor °ows to the
condenser (COND), where it is cooled and condensed
to high-pressure liquid. The liquid °ows through a
refrigerant heat exchanger (RHX) and then the
chilled high-pressure liquid is expanded to low pres-
sure in an electronic expansion valve. The expanded
liquid °ows to the evaporator, where it refrigerates
the propylene glycol. The ammonia vapor from the
evaporator °ows back through the RHX into the
absorber (ABS). The absorber is supplied low-
concentration solution from the recti¯er (via the
solution heat exchanger, SHX, and let-down con-
trol). The solution absorbs the ammonia vapor. The
ammonia solution °ows out of the absorber into the
solution receiver. A solution spray provides addi-
tional mixing and cooling in the receiver to make sure
all refrigerant vapor goes into the solution. The LP
pump pumps some of the solution from the solution
receiver to the cooler which provides cooling for the
spray. Saturated solution is pumped back to high
pressure by the HP pump and then routed through
the SCR and SHX, thus completing the cycle.
1850035-4
The absorber, cooler, and condenser are cooled with
cooling water from the cooling tower.
The design of the waste-heat driven absorption
chiller builds on previous designs presented by
Anand and Erickson,22 Erickson,23 and Erickson
et al.24 The cycle performance is maximized by
specifying close-approach temperatures in the heat
exchangers and applying extensive heat integration
within the cycle. The condenser, SHX, cooler and
generator are brazed-plate heat exchangers. They
were speci¯ed by the vendor and vendor data was
also used in correlating their performances for other
design conditions. Many of the components have
highly nonlinear temperature pro¯les and the stan-
dard log mean temperature di®erence (LMTD)
methodology cannot be used to model them.25 The
heat and mass transfer processes have to be dis-
cretized and solved incrementally.
The absorber is shell and coil type and was
designed using a two-phase-multiplier model.26
The distillation column was thermodynamically
modeled using the Ponchon–Savarit method5 which
can accommodate the highly nonideal nature of the
ammonia–water mixture and the heat exchange in
the SCR and GHX trays. The column has sieve-
trays that were designed using model presented by
Anand and Erickson.27

A computerized equation solver EES28 interfaced
with the ammonia–water property routines,29 was
used to model the AARU. The model incorporated:
(i) the thermodynamic equations for the compo-
nents using mass, energy, and concentration
balance,
(ii) individual component models to calculate
transfer coe±cients and pressure drops,
(iii) discretized heat and mass transfer analysis of
by UNIVERSITY OF AUCKLAND on 08/25/19. Re-use and distribution is strictly not permitted, except for Open Access articles.
components with nonlinear pro¯les,
(iv) Ponchon–Savarit recti¯er column analysis,
(v) Pump curves, including VFD control, to cal-
culate °ow rates,
(vi) control valve characteristics.
The design was based on the following assumptions.
Int. J. Air-Cond. Ref. 2018.26. Downloaded from www.worldscientific.com
(i) Saturated ammonia–water vapor °owing from
the recti¯er to the condenser,
(ii) Saturated ammonia–water solution °owing
from recti¯er to GHX
(iii) Saturated ammonia–water solution °owing
from receiver to the pumps
(iv) Negligible heat losses to the environment.
Fig. 4. Vapor–liquid equilibrium diagram (Gibbs diagram).
1850035-5
Characterization of AARU and Application
(v) Superheat control of refrigerant °ow to
evaporator.
Figure 4 presents the absorption cycle design con-
ditions on a vapor–liquid equilibrium diagram
(Gibbs diagram). The horizontal coordinate is the
solution temperature and the vertical coordinate is
the Gibbs free energy (R*T *ln(P )). The isobars plot
as straight lines fanning out from absolute zero. The
contours of constant solution concentration plot as
nearly straight diagonal lines on these coordinates.
This ¯gure helps interpret the cycle °ow diagram
(Fig. 3) and shows at a glance the thermodynamic
conditions at all key state points.
The design e±ciency (COP) of the cycle is 0.62 at
the rated capacity of 125 RT (440 kW).
2.3. Parametric analysis of AARU
The performance of the AARU is highly dependent
on the temperatures of the driving heat, the chilling
load, and the cooling water. To characterize the
AARU, the unit performance was modeled using
the design EES program described above and by
 G. Anand, D. C. Erickson & E. Makar

parametrically varying these temperatures (input
conditions). The °ow rates of chilled water, cooling
water, and hot water were held constant.
Over 100 data points were created covering a
range of input conditions. The use of a large dataset
helps with the development of robust and statisti-
cally reliable predictive model.11
Table 1 summarizes the AARU parameters with
the inlet hot water and cooling water temperatures
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held constant and the chilled water temperature was
varied from
6.67  C (20  F) to 4.44  C (40  F).
Table 2 summarizes the AARU parameters with
the inlet hot water and chill water temperatures
held constant and the cooling water temperature
was varied from 15.56  C (60  F) to 26.67  C (80  F).
Table 3 summarizes the AARU parameters with
the inlet chill water and cooling water temperatures
held constant and the hot water temperature was

Table 1. AARU performance with chill water temperature.

THW in THW out TCW in TCW out TChW in TChW out Qgen Qevap
Run COP RT (C) (C) (C) (C) (C) (C) (kW) (kW)

1 0.602 110.1 108.67 87.11 20.00 26.67
6.67
11.34 643.3 387.2
Int. J. Air-Cond. Ref. 2018.26. Downloaded from www.worldscientific.com

2 0.603 111.1 108.67 86.96 20.00 26.72
6.39
11.11 647.9 390.7
3 0.605 112.2 108.67 86.81 20.00 26.77
6.11
10.87 652.4 394.6
4 0.606 113.2 108.67 86.65 20.00 26.83
5.83
10.64 657 398.1
5 0.607 114.3 108.67 86.50 20.00 26.88
5.56
10.41 661.5 402.0
6 0.609 115.3 108.67 86.35 20.00 26.93
5.28
10.17 666 405.5
7 0.610 116.4 108.67 86.21 20.00 26.98
5.00
9.94 670.6 409.4
8 0.612 117.4 108.67 86.06 20.00 27.04
4.72
9.71 675.1 412.9
9 0.613 118.5 108.67 85.91 20.00 27.09
4.44
9.47 679.5 416.8
10 0.614 119.5 108.67 85.76 20.00 27.14
4.17
9.23 684 420.3
11 0.616 120.6 108.67 85.61 20.00 27.19
3.89
9.00 688.5 424.2
12 0.617 121.6 108.67 85.46 20.00 27.24
3.61
8.77 692.9 427.7
13 0.619 122.7 108.67 85.32 20.00 27.30
3.33
8.53 697.4 431.5
14 0.620 123.7 108.67 85.17 20.00 27.35
3.06
8.30 701.8 435.1
15 0.621 124.8 108.67 85.02 20.00 27.41
2.78
8.07 706.2 438.9
16 0.623 125.8 108.67 84.88 20.00 27.46
2.50
7.83 710.6 442.4
17 0.624 126.9 108.67 84.73 20.00 27.51
2.22
7.60 715 446.3
18 0.625 127.9 108.67 84.58 20.00 27.56
1.94
7.37 719.4 449.8
19 0.627 129 108.67 84.44 20.00 27.61
1.67
7.13 723.8 453.7
20 0.628 130 108.67 84.29 20.00 27.67
1.39
6.90 728.2 457.2
21 0.629 131.1 108.67 84.15 20.00 27.72
1.11
6.67 732.6 461.1
22 0.631 132.2 108.67 84.01 20.00 27.77
0.83
6.43 736.9 464.9
23 0.632 133.2 108.67 83.86 20.00 27.82
0.56
6.20 741.3 468.5
24 0.633 134.3 108.67 83.72 20.00 27.87
0.28
5.97 745.7 472.3
25 0.635 135.3 108.67 83.58 20.00 27.93 0.00
5.73 750 475.9
26 0.636 136.4 108.67 83.43 20.00 27.98 0.28
5.50 754.4 479.7
27 0.637 137.5 108.67 83.29 20.00 28.03 0.56
5.27 758.7 483.6
28 0.639 138.5 108.67 83.14 20.00 28.08 0.83
5.03 763 487.1
29 0.640 139.6 108.67 83.01 20.00 28.13 1.11
4.80 767.3 491.0
30 0.641 140.7 108.67 82.86 20.00 28.19 1.39
4.57 771.7 494.8
31 0.642 141.8 108.67 82.72 20.00 28.24 1.67
4.33 776 498.7
32 0.644 142.8 108.67 82.58 20.00 28.29 1.94
4.10 780.3 502.2
33 0.645 143.9 108.67 82.43 20.00 28.34 2.22
3.87 784.6 506.1
34 0.646 145 108.67 82.29 20.00 28.39 2.50
3.63 788.9 510.0
35 0.648 146.1 108.67 82.15 20.00 28.45 2.78
3.40 793.2 513.8
36 0.649 147.1 108.67 82.01 20.00 28.50 3.06
3.17 797.5 517.4
37 0.650 148.2 108.67 81.87 20.00 28.56 3.33
2.93 801.8 521.2
38 0.651 149.3 108.67 81.72 20.00 28.61 3.61
2.70 806.1 525.1
39 0.653 150.4 108.67 81.58 20.00 28.66 3.89
2.47 810.4 529.0
40 0.654 151.5 108.67 81.44 20.00 28.71 4.17
2.24 814.7 532.8
41 0.655 152.6 108.67 81.30 20.00 28.76 4.44
2.01 819 536.7

1850035-6
 Characterization of AARU and Application

Table 2. AARU performance with cooling water temperature.

THW in THW out TCW in TCW out TChW in TChW out Qgen Qevap
Run COP RT (C) (C) (C) (C) (C) (C) (kW) (kW)

42 0.629 153.5 108.67 80.01 15.56 24.58
1.11
7.62 858 539.9
43 0.629 152.1 108.67 80.26 15.83 24.78
1.11
7.56 850.5 534.9
44 0.629 150.8 108.67 80.51 16.11 24.98
1.11
7.50 842.9 530.4
45 0.629 149.4 108.67 80.77 16.39 25.18
1.11
7.44 835.2 525.4
46 0.629 148 108.67 81.02 16.67 25.38
1.11
7.38 827.6 520.5
47 0.629 146.6 108.67 81.27 16.94 25.57
1.11
7.32 819.9 515.6

1.11
7.27
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48 0.629 145.3 108.67 81.53 17.22 25.77 812.1 511.0

49 0.629 143.9 108.67 81.78 17.50 25.97
1.11
7.21 804.4 506.1
50 0.629 142.5 108.67 82.04 17.78 26.16
1.11
7.15 796.6 501.2
51 0.629 141.1 108.67 82.30 18.06 26.36
1.11
7.09 788.7 496.2
52 0.629 139.7 108.67 82.56 18.33 26.56
1.11
7.03 780.8 491.3
53 0.629 138.2 108.67 82.82 18.61 26.75
1.11
6.97 772.9 486.0
54 0.629 136.8 108.67 83.08 18.89 26.94
1.11
6.91 764.9 481.1
55 0.629 135.4 108.67 83.35 19.17 27.14
1.11
6.85 756.9 476.2

1.11
6.79
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56 0.629 134 108.67 83.62 19.44 27.33 748.8 471.3

57 0.629 132.5 108.67 83.88 19.72 27.53
1.11
6.73 740.7 466.0
58 0.629 131.1 108.67 84.15 20.00 27.72
1.11
6.67 732.6 461.1
59 0.629 129.6 108.67 84.42 20.28 27.91
1.11
6.61 724.4 455.8
60 0.630 128.2 108.67 84.69 20.56 28.10
1.11
6.54 716.1 450.9
61 0.630 126.7 108.67 84.97 20.83 28.29
1.11
6.48 707.8 445.6
62 0.630 125.3 108.67 85.24 21.11 28.48
1.11
6.42 699.5 440.7
63 0.630 123.8 108.67 85.52 21.39 28.68
1.11
6.36 691.1 435.4
64 0.630 122.3 108.67 85.81 21.67 28.87
1.11
6.29 682.6 430.1
65 0.630 120.8 108.67 86.08 21.94 29.06
1.11
6.23 674.1 424.9
66 0.630 119.3 108.67 86.37 22.22 29.24
1.11
6.17 665.6 419.6
67 0.631 117.8 108.67 86.66 22.50 29.43
1.11
6.10 656.9 414.3
68 0.631 116.3 108.67 86.94 22.78 29.62
1.11
6.03 648.2 409.0
69 0.631 114.7 108.67 87.23 23.06 29.81
1.11
5.97 639.5 403.4
70 0.631 113.2 108.67 87.52 23.33 29.99
1.11
5.91 630.7 398.1
71 0.631 111.6 108.67 87.82 23.61 30.18
1.11
5.84 621.8 392.5
72 0.632 110.1 108.67 88.12 23.89 30.36
1.11
5.77 612.8 387.2
73 0.632 108.5 108.67 88.42 24.17 30.54
1.11
5.71 603.8 381.6
74 0.632 106.9 108.67 88.72 24.44 30.73
1.11
5.64 594.7 376.0
75 0.633 105.3 108.67 89.02 24.72 30.91
1.11
5.57 585.5 370.3
76 0.633 103.7 108.67 89.33 25.00 31.09
1.11
5.51 576.2 364.7
77 0.634 102.1 108.67 89.64 25.28 31.28
1.11
5.44 566.9 359.1
78 0.634 100.5 108.67 89.96 25.56 31.46
1.11
5.37 557.4 353.5
79 0.634 98.84 108.67 90.27 25.83 31.63
1.11
5.30 547.9 347.6
80 0.635 97.18 108.67 90.59 26.11 31.81
1.11
5.23 538.3 341.8
81 0.636 95.51 108.67 90.92 26.39 31.99
1.11
5.16 528.5 335.9
82 0.636 93.82 108.67 91.24 26.67 32.17
1.11
5.08 518.7 330.0

varied from 103.11  C (217.6  F) to 111.44  C 3. AARU Characterizarion

(232.6  F).
In Table 4, the inlet chill water and hot water
temperatures were held constant and the cooling
water temperature was varied from 26.99  C
(67.5  F) to 14.44  C (58  F). Also, the inlet hot
water temperature was 103.11  C, colder than the
108.67  C in Table 2.
Thus, 133 data points were generated with cool-
ing capacity ranging from 330 kW to 540 kW (94 to
154 RT) and COP ranging from 0.6 to 0.66.
To characterize the performance of the AARU as
shown in Tables 1–4, the adapted characteristic
equations model was used. Ziegler et al.14 originally
proposed using the \characteristic temperature dif-
ference,

t" to correlate both the cooling capacity
and the driving heat input of the chiller. The char-
acteristic temperature di®erence was used to repre-
sent the heat duties as linear functions of the
external °uid temperatures. Kuhn and Ziegler18

1850035-7
 G. Anand, D. C. Erickson & E. Makar

Table 3. AARU performance with hot water temperature.

THW in THW out TCW in TCW out TChW in TChW out Qgen Qevap
Run COP RT (C) (C) (C) (C) (C) (C) (kW) (kW)

83 0.638 123 103.11 80.43 20.00 27.18
1.11
6.32 678.4 432.6
84 0.637 123.4 103.39 80.62 20.00 27.21
1.11
6.34 681.2 434.0
85 0.637 123.9 103.67 80.80 20.00 27.24
1.11
6.36 684 435.8
86 0.636 124.3 103.94 80.98 20.00 27.27
1.11
6.38 686.8 437.2
87 0.636 124.7 104.22 81.17 20.00 27.29
1.11
6.39 689.6 438.6
88 0.636 125.1 104.50 81.35 20.00 27.32
1.11
6.41 692.3 440.0

1.11
6.43
by UNIVERSITY OF AUCKLAND on 08/25/19. Re-use and distribution is strictly not permitted, except for Open Access articles.

89 0.635 125.5 104.78 81.53 20.00 27.35 695.1 441.4

90 0.635 125.9 105.06 81.72 20.00 27.38
1.11
6.44 697.8 442.8
91 0.634 126.3 105.33 81.91 20.00 27.41
1.11
6.46 700.5 444.2
92 0.634 126.8 105.61 82.09 20.00 27.43
1.11
6.48 703.3 446.0
93 0.633 127.2 105.89 82.28 20.00 27.46
1.11
6.50 706 447.4
94 0.633 127.6 106.17 82.46 20.00 27.48
1.11
6.52 708.7 448.8
95 0.633 128 106.44 82.65 20.00 27.51
1.11
6.53 711.4 450.2
96 0.632 128.4 106.72 82.83 20.00 27.54
1.11
6.55 714.1 451.6
97 0.632 128.8 107.00 83.02 20.00 27.56
1.11
6.57 716.7 453.0
Int. J. Air-Cond. Ref. 2018.26. Downloaded from www.worldscientific.com

98 0.631 129.2 107.28 83.21 20.00 27.59
1.11
6.58 719.4 454.4
99 0.631 129.5 107.56 83.40 20.00 27.62
1.11
6.60 722.1 455.5
100 0.631 129.9 107.83 83.58 20.00 27.64
1.11
6.62 724.7 456.9
101 0.630 130.3 108.11 83.77 20.00 27.67
1.11
6.63 727.3 458.3
102 0.630 130.7 108.39 83.96 20.00 27.69
1.11
6.65 730 459.7
103 0.629 131.1 108.67 84.15 20.00 27.72
1.11
6.67 732.6 461.1
104 0.629 131.5 108.94 84.34 20.00 27.74
1.11
6.68 735.2 462.5
105 0.629 131.9 109.22 84.53 20.00 27.77
1.11
6.69 737.8 463.9
106 0.628 132.2 109.50 84.72 20.00 27.79
1.11
6.71 740.4 464.9
107 0.628 132.6 109.78 84.91 20.00 27.82
1.11
6.73 742.9 466.4
108 0.627 133 110.06 85.10 20.00 27.84
1.11
6.74 745.5 467.8
109 0.627 133.3 110.33 85.29 20.00 27.87
1.11
6.76 748.1 468.8
110 0.626 133.7 110.61 85.48 20.00 27.89
1.11
6.78 750.6 470.2
111 0.626 134.1 110.89 85.67 20.00 27.92
1.11
6.79 753.1 471.6
112 0.626 134.4 111.17 85.87 20.00 27.94
1.11
6.81 755.7 472.7
113 0.625 134.8 111.44 86.06 20.00 27.97
1.11
6.82 758.2 474.1

Table 4. AARU performance with colder hot water and cooling water temperatures.

THW in THW out TCW in TCW out TChW in TChW out Qgen Qevap
Run COP RT (C) (C) (C) (C) (C) (C) (kW) (kW)

114 0.638 124.4 103.11 80.17 19.72 26.99
1.11
6.38 686.3 437.5
115 0.638 125.9 103.11 79.91 19.44 26.79
1.11
6.44 694.2 442.8
116 0.638 127.3 103.11 79.65 19.17 26.60
1.11
6.51 702 447.7
117 0.638 128.7 103.11 79.39 18.89 26.41
1.11
6.57 709.8 452.6
118 0.638 130.1 103.11 79.14 18.61 26.21
1.11
6.62 717.6 457.6
119 0.638 131.6 103.11 78.88 18.33 26.01
1.11
6.68 725.3 462.8
120 0.638 133 103.11 78.63 18.06 25.82
1.11
6.74 733 467.8
121 0.638 134.4 103.11 78.38 17.78 25.62
1.11
6.81 740.7 472.7
122 0.638 135.8 103.11 78.12 17.50 25.42
1.11
6.86 748.3 477.6
123 0.638 137.2 103.11 77.87 17.22 25.22
1.11
6.92 755.9 482.5
124 0.638 138.5 103.11 77.62 16.94 25.03
1.11
6.98 763.5 487.1
125 0.638 139.9 103.11 77.38 16.67 24.83
1.11
7.04 771 492.0
126 0.638 141.3 103.11 77.13 16.39 24.63
1.11
7.10 778.6 497.0
127 0.638 142.7 103.11 76.88 16.11 24.43
1.11
7.16 786 501.9
128 0.638 144.1 103.11 76.63 15.83 24.23
1.11
7.22 793.5 506.8
129 0.639 145.4 103.11 76.39 15.56 24.03
1.11
7.27 800.9 511.4

1850035-8
 Characterization of AARU and Application

Table 4. (Continued )

THW in THW out TCW in TCW out TChW in TChW out Qgen Qevap
Run COP RT (C) (C) (C) (C) (C) (C) (kW) (kW)

130 0.639 146.8 103.11 76.15 15.28 23.83
1.11
7.33 808.3 516.3
131 0.639 148.2 103.11 75.91 15.00 23.63
1.11
7.39 815.7 521.2
132 0.639 149.5 103.11 75.66 14.72 23.43
1.11
7.44 823 525.8
133 0.639 150.9 103.11 75.42 14.44 23.23
1.11
7.51 830.4 530.7
by UNIVERSITY OF AUCKLAND on 08/25/19. Re-use and distribution is strictly not permitted, except for Open Access articles.

proposed an adapted characteristic equation model

to better ¯t chiller performance over a wider oper-
ating range. The characteristic equations for the
generator and evaporator heat duties are then
represented by the following equations:


t 0G ¼ tHW
aG  tCW þ eG  tChW ; ð1Þ
Int. J. Air-Cond. Ref. 2018.26. Downloaded from www.worldscientific.com

QGen ¼ s0G 

t 0G þ rG ; ð2Þ

t 0E ¼ tHW
aE  tCW þ eE  tChW ; ð3Þ
QEvap ¼ s0E 

t 0E þ rE : ð4Þ
The temperatures used in the above equations are
the arithmetic mean temperatures of the hot water,
cooling water, and chill water streams. However,
this creates an implicit set of equations requiring an
iterative solution. To simplify modeling, the fol-
lowing temperatures were used:
tHW ¼ tHW;in ; ð5Þ
Fig. 5. Comparison between modeled and correlated evapo-
tCW ¼ tCW; in ; ð6Þ rator and generator heat duties.
tChW ¼ tChW; out : ð7Þ
The empirical parameters were then estimated to The other AARU performance parameters can
¯t the performance data in Tables 1–4. These then be calculated as
parameters are tabulated in Table 5. Qgen
The evaporator and generator heat duties calcu- tHW;out ¼ tHW; in
; ð8Þ
lated from the characteristic performance correla- 29:9
tions are plotted against the cycle model data in Qevap
tChW;in ¼ tChW; out þ ; ð9Þ
Fig. 5. For both heat duties, the correlated data 83:0
were mostly within 1% of the model data. The QCW ¼ Qgen þ Qevap ; ð10Þ
coe±cient of determination for both correlations
were greater than 0.997. QCW
tCW;out ¼ tCW;in þ ; ð11Þ
154:7
Qevap
COP ¼ : ð12Þ
Table 5. AARU characteristic performance Qgen
parameters.

a e s0 r
4. Application of Model
Qgen 3.01 1.62 11.521 297.43
Qevap 3.54 2.49 6.369 324.58 The characteristic equations help model the very
complicated AARU performance with a set of very

1850035-9
 G. Anand, D. C. Erickson & E. Makar
simple equations. However, input parameters have
to be selected carefully. In particular, the AARU
needs a minimum hot water temperature to operate
and the hot water outlet temperature needs to be
higher than that. This minimum temperature
(tHW;min ) mainly varies with the chilling tempera-
ture and the cooling water temperature. Using cycle
analysis data, this minimum temperature correlates
as
by UNIVERSITY OF AUCKLAND on 08/25/19. Re-use and distribution is strictly not permitted, except for Open Access articles.
tHW;min ¼ 49 þ 1:264  tCW;in
0:937  tChW;out ;
ð13Þ
tHW;min  tHW;out : ð14Þ
Figure 6 is a plot of the hot-water outlet tempera-
tures from Tables 1–4 and the minimum tempera-
Int. J. Air-Cond. Ref. 2018.26. Downloaded from www.worldscientific.com
ture calculated using Eq. (13).
It is also important to note that the characteristic
equations model a particular AARU (TC125). The
design chilling capacity for this AARU was 125 RT
(440 kW). As shown in Tables 1–4, as the hot water,
cooling water, and chill water temperatures are
varied, the AARU capacity varies. A higher chilling
capacity indicates more favorable conditions for the
AARU. On the other hand, signi¯cantly lower
chilling capacity indicates challenging conditions
with potentially low economic returns. To emphasis
this fact, a chilling-capacity factor is added to the
model.
QEvap
FCap ¼ ; ð15Þ
440
where QEvap is the evaporator heat duty evaluated
from Eq. (4). Project economics will also depend
Fig. 6. Minimum hot water temperature.
1850035-10
on several site-speci¯c factors such as annual utili-
zation and operating conditions, utility rates, and
incentives.
The application of the characteristic equation
model to potential AARU applications starts with
basic site-speci¯c data on the chill-water outlet
temperature, inlet cooling water temperature, and
hot water inlet temperature. Using these data in
Eqs. (1)–(15) will yield the other performance
parameters speci¯c to the AARU modeled above
(TC125). If the calculated hot water temperature is
lower than the minimum hot water temperature or if
the capacity factor is much lower than 1, then the
input parameters should be adjusted if possible.
To customize AARU for the site requirements,
additional relationships are needed. If the site
chilling load requirement (QEvap;1 ), hot water °ow
rate (VHW1 ) and heat (QGen1 ) are known, then the
following parameters are evaluated:
QEvap1
FQE ¼ ; ð16Þ
QEvap
QGen1
FQG ¼ ; ð17Þ
QGen
VHW1
FVHW ¼ : ð18Þ
7:44
The minimum ratio is then evaluated to determine
the factor limiting the AARU size.
Fmin ¼ minðFQE ; FQG ; FVHW Þ : ð19Þ
If FQE is the smallest factor, it implies that the site-
chilling load is the limiting factor. If FQG is the
smallest factor, then the available driving heat is the
limiting factor. If FVHW is the smallest factor, then it
indicates that some of the driving heat is at a tem-
perature lower than what the AARU can utilize.
This can be addressed by changing the generator
design by modifying the hot water speci¯cations but
is not recommended for a general practitioner. If
only one of the three parameters is speci¯ed, then
Fmin is set equal to that parameter.
With the evaluation of Fmin , other site-speci¯c
information regarding heat duties and °ow rates can
be evaluated.
QEvap2 ¼ Fmin  QEvap ; ð20Þ
QGen2 ¼ Fmin  QGen ; ð21Þ
QCW2 ¼ QGen2 þ QEvap2 ; ð22Þ
 Characterization of AARU and Application

VHW2 ¼ Fmin  7:44 ; ð23Þ Table 6. Summary of characteristic performance parameters for
case studies.
VChW2 ¼ Fmin  20:2 ; ð24Þ
Case 1
VCW ¼ Fmin  36 : ð25Þ
Option 1 Option 2 Option 3 Case 2 Case 3 Case 4
Fmin can be considered as a scaling parameter, used
to scale the TC125 performance predicted by the thwin 110.00 108.33 105.00 97.78 100.56 115.56
characteristic equations to the site requirements. thwo1 69.44 71.11 79.44
This implicitly assumes that all the heat exchanger thwo2 85.0 84.0 82.0 77.2 81.6 97.3
tcwin 20.00 20.00 20.00 23.89 29.44 30.00
areas and °ows can be proportionately varied. For
by UNIVERSITY OF AUCKLAND on 08/25/19. Re-use and distribution is strictly not permitted, except for Open Access articles.

tcwo 27.85 27.66 27.28 30.63 35.79 35.79

plate heat exchangers, this could be accomplished to tchwin
1.02
1.15
1.40 6.25 12.11 1.99
some degree by changing the number of plates. In tchwo
6.67
6.67
6.67 1.11 7.11
2.22
actual design, these heat exchangers would be op- tgo min 81.2 81.2 81.2 78.9 80.3 89.7
timized based on cost and availability. Hence, ¯nal Fcap 1.07 1.04 0.99 0.97 0.94 0.79
design performance could be little di®erent from fqe 2.06 1.20 0.75
that modeled by the characteristic equations. fqg 1.16 1.19 1.11 0.50
fvh 0.71 0.78 1.00
Application of the model is illustrated with the
Int. J. Air-Cond. Ref. 2018.26. Downloaded from www.worldscientific.com

fmin 0.71 0.78 1.00 2.06 0.50 0.75

following case studies which are based on actual
qg1 864.1 864.1 762.1
projects. qe2 334.1 355.8 435.9 878.6 206.1 263.4
qg2 531.7 564.4 686.8 1267.8 282.0 411.7
qcw 865.8 920.2 1122.7 2146.4 488.1 675.1
COP 0.628 0.63 0.635 0.693 0.731 0.640
4.1. Case 1
vh 5.30 5.78 7.42 15.32 3.70 5.61
In a CHP application, the engine packager stated vchw 14.39 15.68 20.15 41.58 10.04 15.22
that hot water could be provided in three di®erent vcw 25.65 27.95 35.91 74.10 17.89 27.13
options as follows:
(i) 864 kW in the range of 110–69.44  C, 5.3 L/s,
(ii) 864 kW in the range of 108.33–71.11  C, available at 97.78  C. Water (10% propylene glycol)
5.78 L/s, had to be chilled to 1.11  C with a chilling load of
(iii) 762 kW in the range of 105–79.44  C, 7.42 L/s. 879 kW, and cooling water was available at 23.89  C.
How much driving heat would be needed?
Which of these three options would be best? The various parameters for Case 2 are also sum-
Cooling water was available at 20  C and chilling marized in Table 6 and input parameters are
water was needed at
6.67  C. highlighted. The capacity factor FCap is close to 1.
The various parameters for the three options are The hot water outlet temperature calculated
summarized in Table 6. The input parameters are from the characteristic equations was a little lower
highlighted. For all three options, FCap is close to 1 than the suggested minimum hot water temperature.
and calculated hot water outlet temperatures are Only the chilling load was speci¯ed and used to cal-
higher than the suggested minimum temperature. culate Fmin . The generator design was modi¯ed, with
Customizing for site data, it can be seen that FVHW a hot water outlet temperature of 84.72  C and higher
is the limiting factor, and some of the available heat hot water °ow. The actual optimized design based on
is not utilized. Option 3 provides the highest chilling ¯nal heat exchanger selection had a COP of 0.65.
capacity of 436 kW with COP of 0.635 and was se-
lected as the design basis.
Case 1 illustrates the usefulness of the charac- 4.3. Case 3
teristic equation model in helping to specify and In a solar thermal chilling application in Arizona,
optimize the system parameters. hot glycol solution is supplied at 105.6  C to power
an AARU. The solar heat input is 282 kW. Cooling
is provided at 7.1  C. Cooling water is available at
4.2. Case 2 29.4  C.
In another CHP application in a cheese plant, waste Various parameters are tabulated in Table 6. the
heat captured from bio-gas powered engine was capacity factor FCap is good. The hot water outlet

1850035-11
 G. Anand, D. C. Erickson & E. Makar
temperature calculated from the characteristic
equations is higher than the suggested minimum hot
water temperature. The driving heat input was the
limiting factor resulting in a Fmin of 0.5. The pre-
dicted chilling capacity is 206 kW and the cycle
COP of 0.73 compared to actual design conditions of
211 kW and 0748.
4.4. Case 4
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Waste heat is recovered from the exhaust of a
commercial bakery supplying the AARU with
115.56  C 35% propylene glycol stream. The chilling
load is 75 tons (263 kW), chilling 40% propylene
glycol to
2.22  C. Cooling water (35% propylene
glycol) is available at 30  C.
Int. J. Air-Cond. Ref. 2018.26. Downloaded from www.worldscientific.com
Various parameters are tabulated in Table 6. The
high cooling water temperature results in a lower
capacity factor for this application. Propylene glycol
properties also adversely a®ect heat transfer and
pressure drop in the heat exchangers. These factors
are not factored into the characteristic equations
model. The ¯nal design based on heat exchanger
selections had a hot water outlet temperature of
104.4  C and a COP of 0.55 for the rated chilling
capacity.
5. Conclusions
Ammonia–water absorption refrigeration system
powered by low-temperature waste heat can deliver
subfreezing refrigeration for many industrial appli-
cations such as food processing, cold storage,
ice-making, pulp and paper, and chemicals. The
performance of the absorption refrigeration system
is highly dependent on the temperatures of the
driving heat, the chilling load, and the cooling
water. However, the complex ammonia–water
property-routines, binary-°uid interactions, and
unique heat and mass transfer component, make it
di±cult to easily evaluate these e®ects and identify
promising applications.
In this paper, the performance of an advanced
industrial-scale ammonia-absorption unit was mod-
eled in detail over a representative operating range.
The adapted characteristic equations model was
then used to model the system performance with a
set of simple equations incorporating the three ex-
ternal temperatures. The model was then extended
to enable evaluation of chiller performance for
varying site conditions.
1850035-12
This simple model helps evaluate potential
applications, predict performance, and perform ini-
tial optimization. Case studies are presented
highlighting the application of the model to several
di®erent applications. Good agreement between
model prediction and actual design was observed.
However, when the interfacing °uids are quite dif-
ferent from those used in the base design, perfor-
mance can deviate from those predicted.
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