REFRIGERATION SYSTEMS

RUIZ DELGADO LUIS FERNANDO 17151402

REFRIGERATION AND AIR CONDITIONING

ENGINEER ISRAEL DE JESÚS GÓMEZ CARMONA

16:00 - 17:00 HRS

02/12/2021
Introduction

Refrigeration is a process which consists of eliminating or maintaining the temperature of production

processes, spaces or even materials with respect to the temperature of the surrounding environment.

Nowadays refrigeration has a wide variety of applications and is involved in a series of industrial
processes ranging from the food sector, construction, chemistry, medicine and even metal treatment,
thus becoming an indispensable process within the productive sector.

With the passing of time and the constant improvement of refrigeration systems, two main types of
refrigeration were established: compression refrigeration and absorption refrigeration.
Compression refrigeration system.
The compression cycle is characteristic of each refrigerant. It is based on the changes of state (liquid-
gas and gas-liquid) of the refrigerant fluid at different temperatures as a function of pressure. An
example of this cycle is shown in the H-P thermodynamic diagram; H for enthalpy (energy level) and
P for pressure:

This system consists of four components:

 Evaporator
 Compressor
 Condenser
 Expansion valve
Operation of each component in the system.
Evaporator.
The refrigerant fluid that is in a liquid state begins to evaporate by "absorbing" the heat of the external
fluid. In a second stage, the gas obtained is further heated by the external fluid, is the superheating
phase that ensures that the refrigerant enters in a gaseous state to the compressor.

Compressor.
The compressor will "suck" the refrigerant gas at low temperature and low pressure. The mechanical
energy of the compressor allows to increase the pressure and consequently the temperature of the
refrigerant gas. It results in an increase in enthalpy.

Condenser.
The hot refrigerant gas coming from the compressor will give up its heat to the external fluid. The gas
begins to cool (desuperheating) before the appearance of the first drops of liquid. Then, it starts the
condensation of refrigerant until the disappearance of the last bubble of gas. The last stage is to cool a
few degrees more (subcooling) the liquid before leaving the condenser.
Expansion valve.
The pressure difference between the condenser and the evaporator implies integrating a device to
reduce the pressure in the circuit. This is the role of the expansion valve. The refrigerant fluid is
partially evaporated to lower its temperature.
Absorption refrigeration system.
The thermodynamic cycle of absorption cooling is similar to compression. They are based on the
principle of condensation and evaporation of a refrigerant to obtain cold or heat.
The main difference between these cycles is how the refrigerant is transferred from the low pressure
zone to the high pressure zone. In mechanical compression cycles, the transfer is performed by a
compressor, but in the case of an absorption machine, the process is more complex. The vaporized
refrigerant in the low pressure zone is captured by a solution (absorbent) that has physical-chemical
affinity towards it. The mixture is pumped to the high pressure zone, and the absorber-refrigerant
separation is produced by heat input.
It consists of the following parts:
 Generator
 Condenser
 Expansion valve
 Evaporator
 Absorber
 Exchanger
Operation of each component in the system.
Generator.
Through the contribution of thermal energy (may be by heat exchange with water heated by a boiler)
evaporation of part of the refrigerant from the refrigerant-absorber solution occurs, concentrating the
solution. The refrigerant vapor is directed to the condenser, while the concentrated solution is directed
to the absorber.

Condenser.
As for compression machines, the refrigerant gas gives up its latent heat and condenses. Normally the
condensation of the refrigerant is carried out by a water circuit that is cooled in turn by a cooling
tower.

Expansion valve.
As in the compression cycle, the refrigerant passes through the expansion valve to reduce its pressure
before entering the evaporator.
Evaporator.
At low pressure, the refrigerant reaches the evaporator. The refrigerant evaporates taking the
necessary energy from another circuit (usually water), producing the cooling effect.

Absorber.
Once the refrigerant has left the evaporator, it goes to the absorber to close the cycle. To do this, the
refrigerant and the concentrated solution coming from the generator are put in contact. The
concentrated solution absorbs the refrigerant diluting the solution, returning to the starting conditions.

Exchanger.
Finally, before reaching the generator, the solution passes through a heat exchanger where it comes
into contact with the concentrated solution coming from the generator and is directed to the absorber,
lowering its temperature and increasing its own. This reduces the cooling needs of the absorber and
also the energy input required by the generator.
Absorption cooling circuit.
Conclusion
With the completion of this document it was obtained that to understand the operation of refrigeration
systems, you must take into account the process where it is required to apply it, since each system has
special features, limitations, advantages and disadvantages depending on the process. Also if we want
to understand the applications of refrigeration systems, it is necessary to understand the cycle and the
principle of operation of the system either compression or absorption.
That is why the compression refrigeration system has superior performance in the production of lower
temperatures because it has a constant energy source such as electrical energy. While absorption
refrigeration systems have the advantage of taking advantage of alternative energies which are
environmentally friendly, but its implementation is more expensive and its performance is lower.

Bibliography
[1] Tecener SA de CV. (2015, julio). Sistemas de Refrigeración Tutorial para el trabajo en
campo. Recuperado 11 de febrero de 2021, de
https://energypedia.info/images/2/27/GIZ_Tutorial_Refrigeraci%C3%B3n_ 2015.pdf