UNIT- 1

AIR CONDITIONING:
BASIC REFRIGERATION PRINCIPLES
THERMODYNAMICS
Thermodynamics is derived from thermo, meaning heat, and dynamics, (literally “power”), and is used to describe the
move-ment or change of a process due to heat flow. Heat and temperature are often confused or used interchange-
ably.

Heat is the flow of energy from one object or system, to another object or system. Temperature is a measure of the
internal kinetic energy of an object. As an example, a frying pan has a high temperature because the molecules of
the metal are moving quickly. When an egg is cracked into the pan, heat flows from the pan to the egg. Although
not obvious, the temperature of the pan will drop slightly as it transfers heat to the egg.

Heat can move in three ways:

Convection is based on the movement of a fluid
1. conduction,
to transfer heat from one object or area to
2. convection, and
another.
3. radiation.
Weather is a convective process; hot air and
Conduction is the easiest and most familiar to anyone warm water move from the tropics toward the
who has burned themselves on a stove or a hot pot. poles.
It is the direct transfer of heat from one object to
another, when they are in contact.
Radiation is heat transferred directly from a source
Since heat is the flow of energy, and it is driven by to an object without using a medium like air or
the temperature difference between two objects, an water.
iron at 300˚ and a piece of dry ice at -110˚ will both
burn a finger because the temperature difference Heat radiated from the sun will melt snow on the
between the finger and the iron or dry ice is about the road, even on a cold day.
same.
The radiant energy warms the road surface without
In one case the flow of heat is into the finger, in the directly warming the air.
other the flow of heat is out of the finger, but in both
the heat flow is high
THREE LAWS OF THERMODYNAMICS

First Law — Energy cannot be created or destroyed, but can change form, and location. For instance, burning wood
changes the internal energy in the wood into heat and light energy.
THREE LAWS OF THERMODYNAMICS

Second Law — The Second Law is the most understandable and useful in real world applications, and makes heating,
air conditioning, and refrigeration possible. Energy must flow from a higher state to a lower state. That is, heat must
always flow from the warmer object to a cooler object and not from the cooler object to the warmer object.

Third Law — As a system approaches Absolute Zero, the entropy of the system approaches a minimum value. Absolute
Zero cannot be attained in a real system; it is only a theoretical limit.

LATENT HEAT is the heat released or absorbed by a body or a thermodynamic system during a constant-temperature
process. A typical example is a change of state of matter, meaning a phase transition such as the melting of ice or the
boiling of water.

LATENT HEAT OF FUSION

Latent heat is the energy involved when materials change their phase, meaning they go from one form of a solid,
liquid, or gas to another.

The latent heat of fusion is specifically the amount of energy in the form of heat is absorbed by a material when a
solid changes to a liquid.

In order to melt 1 gram of ice into water, it takes 334 Joules of energy. There is no temperature change during this
transition – the 0°C ice becomes 0°C water after absorbing all of that heat. Keep in mind it takes about 4.2 Joules to
heat a gram of water by 1C°. It is pretty easy to see that it takes nearly 80 times the energy to melt water as it does to
then heat it by 1C°. Or to put it another way, the energy it takes to melt ice could heat a mass  equivalent of water by
nearly 80C°.

TEMPERATURE IN REFRIGRATION
A refrigerator maintains a temperature a few degrees above the freezing point of water. Optimum temperature range
for perishable food storage is 3 to 5 °C (37 to 41 °F). A similar device that maintains a temperature below the freezing
point of water is called a freezer. The refrigerator replaced the icebox, which was a common household appliance for
almost a century and a half prior. For this reason, a refrigerator is sometimes referred to as an icebox.

Freezer units are used in households and in industry and commerce. Food stored at or below −18 °C (−0  °F) is safe
indefinitely. Most household freezers maintain temperatures from -23 to -18 °C (-9 to -0 °F), although some freezer-
only units can achieve −34 °C (−29 °F) and lower.
REFRIGRATION & AIRCONDITIONING

Refrigeration and air conditioning is used to cool products or a building environment. The refrigeration or air
conditioning system (R) transfers heat from a cooler low-energy reservoir to a warmer high-energy reservoir

Heat Transfer Loop in Refrigeration System

There are several heat transfer loops in a refrigeration system as shown in Figure , Thermal energy moves from left to
right as it is extracted from the space and expelled into the outdoors through five loops of heat transfer:

Indoor air loop. In the left loop, indoor air is driven by the supply air fan through a cooling coil, where it transfers its
heat to chilled water. The cool air then cools the building space.

Chilled water loop. Driven by the chilled water pump, water returns from the cooling coil to the chiller’s evaporator to
be re-cooled.

Refrigerant loop. Using a phase-change refrigerant, the chiller’s compressor pumps heat from the chilled water to the
condenser water.

Condenser water loop. Water absorbs heat from the chiller’s condenser, and the condenser water pump sends it to the
cooling tower.

Cooling tower loop. The cooling tower’s fan drives air across an open flow of the hot condenser water, transferring the
heat to the outdoors.
Basic Refrigeration Cycle
Principles of Refrigeration
 Liquids absorb heat when changed from
liquid to gas ,
 Gases give off heat when changed from gas
to liquid.
For an air conditioning system to operate with economy, the
refrigerant must be used repeatedly. For this reason, all air
conditioners use the same cycle of compression,
condensation, expansion, and evaporation in a closed circuit.
The same refrigerant is used to move the heat from one area,
to cool this area, and to expel this heat in another area.
 The refrigerant comes into the compressor as a low-
pressure gas, it is compressed and then moves out of the
compressor as a high-pressure gas.
 The gas then flows to the condenser. Here the gas
condenses to a liquid, and gives off its heat to the outside
air.
The liquid then moves to the expansion valve under
high pressure. This valve restricts the flow of the fluid,
and lowers its pressure as it leaves the expansion
valve.
The low-pressure liquid then moves to the evaporator,
where heat from the inside air is absorbed and changes
it from a liquid to a gas.
As a hot low-pressure gas, the refrigerant moves to
the compressor where the entire cycle is repeated.
Note that the four-part cycle is divided at the center
into a high side and a low side This refers to the
pressures of the refrigerant in each side of the system
Vapor Compression Refrigeration Cycle

Compression refrigeration cycles take

advantage of the fact that highly compressed
fluids at a certain temperature tend to get
colder when they are allowed to expand.

If the pressure change is high enough, then

the compressed gas will be hotter than our
source of cooling(outside air, for instance) and
the expanded gas will be cooler than our
desired cold temperature.

 In this case, fluid is used to cool a low

temperature environment and reject the heat to
a high temperature environment.

Vapour compression refrigeration cycles

have two advantages. First, a large amount of
thermal energy is required to change a liquid to
a vapor, and therefore a lot of heat can be
removed from the air-conditioned space.
Second, the isothermal nature of the
vaporization allows extraction of heat without
raising the temperature of the working fluid to
the temperature of whatever is being cooled.
The refrigeration cycle is shown in Figure and can be broken
down into the following stages:
1 – 2. Low-pressure liquid refrigerant in the evaporator absorbs
heat from its surroundings, usually air, water or some other
process liquid. During this process it changes its state from a
liquid to a gas, and at the evaporator exit is slightly
superheated.

This means that the heat transfer rate remains
high , because the closer the working fluid
temperature approaches that of the
surroundings, the lower the rate of heat
transfer.
2 – 3. The superheated vapour enters the compressor where its
pressure is raised. The temperature will also increase, because
a proportion of the energy put into the compression process is
transferred to the refrigerant.
3 – 4. The high pressure superheated gas passes from the
compressor into the condenser. The initial part of the cooling
process (3-3a) de-superheats the gas before it is then turned
Vapor Compression Refrigeration Cycle

The refrigeration cycle is shown in Figure and can be

broken down into the following stages:

4 – 5. The high pressure superheated gas passes from the

compressor into the condenser. The initial part of the
cooling process (3-4) de-superheats the gas before it is then
turned back into liquid (4-5).

The cooling for this process is usually achieved by using air

or water. A further reduction in temperature happens in the
pipe work and liquid receiver (4 - 5), so that the refrigerant
liquid is sub-cooled as it enters the expansion device.

5 - 1 The high-pressure sub-cooled liquid passes through

the expansion device, which both reduces its pressure and
controls the flow into the evaporator.

Evaporation
During this stage, the refrigerant travels through a
device called an evaporator that has a large surface
area and typically consists of a coiled tube surrounded
by aluminum fins. The cold fluid is a mixture of liquid
and vapor refrigerant as it begins this stage. While
flowing through the evaporator, all the liquid
Evaporates and absorbs heat from the enclosed space.

The energy absorbed is used to change the state of the

refrigerant from liquid to vapor. This lowers the
temperature of the space, along with whatever food or
beverages are stored in it. The refrigerant exits this
stage as a saturated vapor.
Vapor Compression Refrigeration Cycle
Compression
The heat that was absorbed in the Evaporation stage must be released into the surroundings,
but this will not happen unless the temperature of the refrigerant is higher than the outside air.
This is the purpose of the Compression stage. A device, predictably called a compressor,
raises the pressure of the refrigerant vapor.

Due to basic thermodynamic principles, this causes the temperature of the refrigerant to rise,
leaving the stage as a superheated vapor. Energy is needed to power the compressor, which is
why electricity is required to operate a refrigerator.

Condensation
Increasing the temperature of the refrigerant above that of the surroundings, we can dissipate
the heat necessary to continue the process. This is accomplished with a device very similar
to the evaporator. It also uses a coiled tube with aluminum fins, but may have different
dimensions than the evaporator to accommodate the different state of the refrigerant.

As the hot vapor flows through the condenser, the outside air removes energy And the
refrigerant becomes a saturated liquid. At this point the slightest drop in pressure will initiate
evaporation, which is the basis for the final stage of the process.

Expansion
To begin a new cycle, A lowering of the refrigeration temperature to below that of the enclosure.
This is the key to the entire cycle, can utilize the auto refrigeration effect.

When a saturated liquid experiences a sudden drop in pressure, a small amount of liquid is
instantly vaporized and the temperature of the mixture is drastically reduced.

This cold liquid-vapor mixture can now begin a new cycle. The pressure drop is accomplished by
the simplest, yet most important, part of the system –a simple flow restriction. This part is
commonly called a throttle or expansion valve.
VAPOUR ABSORPTION REFRIGERATION SYSTEM

The vapour absorption refrigeration system consists

of:

Absorber: Absorption of refrigerant vapour by a

suitable absorbent or adsorbent, forming a strong or
rich solution of the refrigerant in the absorbent/
adsorbent.

Pump: Pumping of the rich solution and raising its

pressure to the pressure of the condenser.

 Generator: Distillation of the vapour from the rich

solution leaving the poor solution for
recycling

The absorption chiller is a machine, which produces chilled water by using heat such as steam, hot water, gas, oil
etc. Chilled water is produced based on the principle that liquid (i.e. refrigerant , which evaporates at a low
temperature) absorbs heat from its surroundings when it evaporates. Pure water is used as refrigerant and
lithium bromide solution is used as absorbent.

Heat for the vapour absorption refrigeration system can be provided by waste heat extracted from the process,
diesel generator sets etc. In that case absorption systems require electricity for running pumps only. Depending on
the temperature required and the power cost, it may even be economical to generate heat / steam to operate the
absorption system.
VAPOUR ABSORPTION REFRIGERATION SYSTEM

Evaporator
The refrigerant (water) evaporates at around 4C under a high vacuum
condition of 754 mm Hg in the evaporator.

Chilled water goes through heat exchanger tubes in the evaporator

and transfers heat to the evaporated refrigerant.

The evaporated refrigerant (vapor)turns into liquid again, while the

latent heat from this vaporization process cools the chilled water (in
the diagram from 12C to 7C). The chilled water is then used for cooling
purposes.

Absorber

In order to keep evaporating, the refrigerant vapor must be discharged

from the evaporator and refrigerant (water) must be supplied.

The refrigerant vapor is absorbed into lithium bromide solution, which

is convenient to absorb the refrigerant vapor in the absorber.

The heat generated in the absorption process is continuously removed

from the system by cooling water. The absorption also maintains the
vacuum inside the evaporator.
VAPOUR ABSORPTION REFRIGERATION SYSTEM

High Pressure Generator

As lithium bromide solution is diluted, the ability to absorb the refrigerant
vapor reduces. In order to keep the absorption process going, the diluted
lithium bromide solution must be concentrated again.

An absorption chiller is provided with a solution concentrating system,

called a generator. Heating media such as steam, hot water, gas or oil
perform the function of concentrating solutions.

The concentrated solution is returned to the absorber to absorb refrigerant

vapor again.

Condenser
To complete the refrigeration cycle, and thereby ensuring the
refrigeration takes place continuously, the following two functions are
required

1. To concentrate and liquefy the evaporated refrigerant vapor,

which is generated in the high pressure generator.

2. To supply the condensed water to the evaporator as refrigerant

(water)For these two functions a condenser is installed.

Absorption refrigeration systems that use Li-Br-water as a refrigerant have a Coefficient of Performance (COP) in the
range of 0.65 - 0.70 and can provide chilled water at 6.7C with a cooling water temperature of 30C.

Systems capable of providing chilled water at 3C are also available. Ammonia based systems operate at above
atmospheric pressures and are capable of low temperature operation (below 0C).

Absorption machines are available with capacities in the range of 10-1500 tons. Although the initial cost of an
absorption system is higher than that of a compression system, operational costs are much lower if waste heat is
used.
AIR HANDLING UNITS ( AHU)
 An air handler, or air handling unit (often
abbreviated to AHU), is a device used to condition
and circulate air as part of a heating, ventilating,
and air-conditioning (HVAC) system.
controls temperature,
controls humidity,
controls pressure & air exchange

Air handling components

An air handling unit; air flow is from the
right to left in this case. Some AHU
components shown are
1 – Supply duct
2 – Fan compartment
3 – Vibration isolator ('flex joint')
4 – Heating and/or cooling coil
5 – Filter compartment
6 – Mixed (recirculated + outside) air duct

Controls
Controls are necessary to regulate every aspect of an air handler, such as: flow rate of air, supply air temperature,
mixed air temperature, humidity, air quality. They may be as simple as an off/on thermostat or as complex as a building
automation system using BACnet or LonWorks, for example.

Common control components include temperature sensors, humidity sensors, sail switches, actuators, motors, and
controllers.

Filters
Air filtration is almost always present in order to provide clean dust-free air to the building occupants
Air handling components

Supply duct
Supply Ducts are used in heating, ventilation,
and air conditioning (HVAC) to deliver and
remove air.

These needed airflows include, for example,

supply air, return air, and exhaust air.

Ducts also deliver, most commonly as part of

the supply air, ventilation air.

As such, air ducts are one method of

ensuring acceptable indoor air quality as well
as thermal comfort.

Vibration isolators

The blowers in an air handler can create substantial vibration and the large area of the duct system would transmit this
noise and vibration to the occupants of the building.

To avoid this, vibration isolators (flexible sections) are normally inserted into the duct immediately before and after the
air handler and often also between the fan compartment and the rest of the AHU.

 The rubberized canvas-like material of these sections allows the air handler components to vibrate without
transmitting this motion to the attached ducts.
Air handling components

Mixed ( recirculated + outside) air duct

The outside air is drawn through a duct which is usually located on the roof of the building, and the return air is
delivered to the supply fan by the return or exhaust fan.

The return air fan exhausts air from the inside room through return air vents into the space above the drop ceiling
(called the return air plenum). This return air then goes through a return duct to the fan room. The return air can then be
exhausted to the outside and/or recirculated.

The return air moving through the plenum above the drop ceiling often comes in contact with pollutant sources,
including fibrous glass insulation on the ducts or in sprayed on fire proofing, asbestos insulation on pipes or in fire
proofing, and chemicals off-gassing from the ceiling tiles. ( " Indoor Air Quality".)

The amounts of return air and outside air mixed together is controlled by dampers in the return and outside air ducts.
Each damper can move to any position from fully closed to fully open.

The return air, exhaust air, and outside air dampers all work together so that when the outside air damper is fully open,
the return air damper is closed and the exhaust air damper is open. On the other hand, when the outside air damper is
closed, the return air damper is fully open and the exhaust damper is closed. In this mode the ventilation system would
be entirely recirculating office air.

Indoor air quality problems usually occur when the outside air dampers are not open enough to provide adequate
amounts of outside air. The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE)
normally recommends that a ventilation system should deliver at least 15 to 20 cubic feet per minute (cfm) of outside
air per occupant.
Heating and/or cooling elements

Air handlers may need to provide heating, cooling, or both to change the supply air temperature, and humidity level
depending on the location and the application. Such conditioning is provided by heat exchanger coil(s) within the air
handling unit air stream, such coils may be direct or indirect in relation to the medium providing the heating or cooling
effect.

Direct heat exchangers include those for gas-fired fuel-burning heaters or a refrigeration evaporator, placed directly in
the air stream. Electric resistance heaters and heat pumps can be used as well. Evaporative cooling is possible in dry
climates.

Indirect coils use hot water or steam for heating, and chilled water for cooling (prime energy for heating and cooling is
provided by central plant elsewhere in the building). Coils are typically manufactured from copper for the tubes, with
copper or aluminium fins to aid heat transfer.

Cooling coils will also employ eliminator plates to remove and drain condensate. The hot water or steam is provided
by a central boiler, and the chilled water is provided by a central chiller. Downstream temperature sensors are typically
used to monitor and control "off coil" temperatures, in conjunction with an appropriate motorized control valve prior to
the coil.

If dehumidification is required, then the cooling coil is employed to over-cool so that the dew point is reached and
condensation occurs. A heater coil placed after the cooling coil re-heats the air (therefore known as a re-heat coil) to
the desired supply temperature. This has the effect of reducing the relative humidity level of the supply air.

In colder climates, where winter temperatures regularly drop below freezing, then frost coils or pre-heat coils are often
employed as a first stage of air treatment to ensure that downstream filters or chilled water coils are protected against
freezing. The control of the frost coil is such that if a certain off-coil air temperature is not reached then the entire air
handler is shut down for protection.
COOLING TOWER

Cooling towers are heat removal devices used to transfer heat to the atmosphere. Cooling
towers use the evaporation of water to remove process heat and cool the working fluid. Common
applications include cooling the circulating water used in oil refineries, chemical plants, power stations
and building cooling. The towers vary in size from small roof-top units to very large structures.
CLASSIFICATION BY USE
•HVAC
•INDUSTRIAL COOLING TOWERS

HEAT TRANSFER METHODS

With respect to the heat transfer mechanism employed, the main types are:
•Wet cooling towers or simply cooling towers operate on the principle of evaporation. The working fluid
and the evaporated fluid (usually H 2O) are one and the same.
•Dry coolers operate by heat transfer through a surface that separates the working fluid from ambient air,
such as in a heat exchanger, utilizing convective heat transfer. They do not use evaporation.
•Fluid coolers are hybrids that pass the working fluid through a tube bundle, upon which clean water is
sprayed and a fan-induced draft applied. The resulting heat transfer performance is much closer to that
of a wet cooling tower, with the advantage provided by a dry cooler of protecting the working fluid from
environmental exposure.
AIR FLOW GENENATION METHOD

With respect to drawing air through the tower, there are three types of cooling towers:
•NATURAL DRAFT, which utilizes buoyancy via a tall chimney. Warm, moist air naturally rises due to the
density differential to the dry, cooler outside air. Warm moist air is less dense than drier air at the same
pressure. This moist air buoyancy produces a current of air through the tower.
•MECHANICAL DRAFT, which uses power driven fan motors to force or draw air through the tower.
• INDUCED DRAFT:
A mechanical draft tower with a fan at the discharge which pulls air through tower. The fan
induces hot moist air out the discharge. This produces low entering and high exiting air velocities,
reducing the possibility of recirculation in which discharged air flows back into the air intake. This
fan/fill arrangement is also known as draw-through.
• FORCED DRAFT:
A mechanical draft tower with a blower type fan at the intake. The fan forces air into the tower,
creating high entering and low exiting air velocities. The low exiting velocity is much more
susceptible to recirculation. With the fan on the air intake, the fan is more susceptible to
complications due to freezing conditions. Another disadvantage is that a forced draft design
typically requires more motor horsepower than an equivalent induced draft design. The forced draft
benefit is its ability to work with high static pressure. They can be installed in more confined spaces
and even in some indoor situations. This fan/fill geometry is also known as blow-through. (see
Image 4)
•FAN ASSISTED NATURAL DRAFT. A hybrid type that appears like a natural draft though airflow is assisted
by a fan.
CATEGORIZATION BY AIR TO WATER FLOW

Cross flow
Crossflow is a design in which the air flow is directly perpendicular to the water flow . Air flow enters one or more
vertical faces of the cooling tower to meet the fill material. Water flows (perpendicular to the air) through the fill by gravity. The
air continues through the fill and thus pass the water flow into an open plenum area. A distribution or hot water basin
consisting of a deep pan with holes or nozzles in the bottom is utilized in a crossflow tower. Gravity distributes the water
through the nozzles uniformly across the fill material.
Counter flow

In a counterflow design the air flow is directly opposite to the water flow. Air flow first enters an
open area beneath the fill media and is then drawn up vertically. The water is sprayed through pressurized
nozzles and flows downward through the fill, opposite to the air flow.