MEC351

REFRIGRATION AND AIR-CONDITIONING

LABORATORY SHEET

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 Table of Contents

List of Figures………………………………………………………………………………………… 3

1.0 INTRODUCTION……………………………………….………………………………… 3

2.0 GENERAL DESCRIPTION

2.1 Unit Construction...…………………………………………………………………. 4
2.2 Specifications…..…………………………………………………………………… 5
2.3 Overall Dimension…..………………………………………………….………… 5
2.4 General Requirements…..…………………………………………….………… 5

3.0 SUMMARY OF THEORY

3.1 Vapor Compression Refrigeration System Principles...…….………………… 6
3.2 Coefficient of Performance……………………………………………………….. 6

4.0 EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE

4.1 General Start-up procedure………………………………….…………………… 8
4.2 General Shut-down procedure……………………..…………………………… 8
4.3 Experiment 1: Effect of Cooling Water Flowrate on the Refrigeration Process 8

5.0 REFERENCES…………………………………………………………………………..... 8

APPENDIX A: EXPERIMENTAL DATA SHEETS

APPENDIX B: SAMPLE RESULTS AND CALCULATION

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 List of Figures

Page

Figure 1 Unit Construction for refrigeration Laboratory Unit (Model: RF 01) 4

Figure 2 Vapor Compression Refrigeration Cycle 6

1.0 INTRODUCTION

The Refrigeration Laboratory Unit has been designed to help students to study the performance of a
vapour compression cycle under various conditions of evaporator load and condenser pressure.
Electronic sensors are installed so that when the unit is interfaced to a data acquisition system, student
will be able to monitor and control the unit just as they are controlling and monitoring an industrial
refrigeration and air conditioning plant.

This is a floor standing unit consist of an open-type compressor, plate condenser, electrical variable
load evaporator and standard accessories of a complete refrigeration system. Temperature, pressure
and flow values are conveniently displayed on digital indicators. The unit is also protected against
excessive pressure and overheating. At the same time, a circuit breaker is installed to protect the unit
from any possible current leakage.

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2.0 GENERAL DESCRIPTION

2.1 Unit Construction

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7

8
9

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10
4 11

Figure 1: Unit Construction FOR Refrigeration Laboratory Unit (Model: RF 01)

1. Evaporator 7. Expansion Valve

2. Pressure Transmitter 8. Indicators and Switches
3. Pressure Switch 9. Sight Glass
4. Water Flowmeter 10. Plate Condenser
5. Temperature Sensor 11. Filter Drier
6. Compressor

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2.2 Specifications

a) Open Type Compressor

Refrigerant : R-134a
Bore : 40 mm
Stroke : 30 mm
No. of Cylinders : 2
Swept Volume : 4.52 m3/hr 1000 RPM
Pulley Size : 180 mm

b) AC Motor
Rated Power : 1 HP
Rated Speed : 1500 RPM
Pulley Size : 60 mm

c) Expansion Valve
Refrigerant : R-134a
Type : Thermostatically controlled
Orifice : No. 01

d) Evaporator
Variable Load Heater : Max. 1500 Watt
No. of Heaters : 2 unit

e) Condenser
Type : Plate Heat Exchanger
Nominal Surface : 0.2 m2
Plate Material : 316L stainless steel/copper brazed

f) Instruments
Electronic sensors for condenser and evaporator pressures, refrigerant and cooling water
flowrates, evaporator and motor power input, motor speed and temperatures at various
locations
The motor torque is determined by means of a load cell

2.3 Overall Dimensions

Height : 2.00 m
Width : 1.50 m
Depth : 0.75 m

2.4 General Requirements

Electrical : 415VAC/50Hz (3 phase)

Cooling water : Laboratory tap water, 20 LPM @ 20 m head
Drainage point

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3.0 SUMMARY OF THEORY

3.1 Vapor Compression Refrigeration System Principles

Figure 2: Vapor Compression Refrigeration Cycle

The labeled components are:

1. Condenser
2. Compressor
3. Expansion Valve
4. Evaporator

Four basic processes or changes in the condition of the refrigerant occur in a Vapor
Compression Refrigeration Cycle. These four processes shall be illustrated in the most
simplistic way with the aid of above schematic sketch.

3.2 Coefficient of Performance

The Coefficient of Performance, (COPRF) of a refrigerating cycle is an expression of the Cycle

efficiency and is stated as the ratio of the heat absorbed in the refrigerated space to the heat
energy equivalent of the energy supplied to the Compressor.

COPRF = Heat absorbed from Refrigerated Space / Heat energy equivalent of the energy
supplied to the Compressor.

Thus, for the Theoretical Simple Cycle, this may be written as:

Re frigerating Effect
COPRF =
Heat of Compression

=
h1  h 4
h 2  h1

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Coefficient of Performance for shaft, COPSHAFT

Heat Re moved from the Condenser

COPSHAFT =
Shaft Power

Where Shaft Power, Ps

2    N T
Ps =
60

T = Torque (Nm)
N = Rotational Speed (RPM)
Electrical Coefficient of Performance, COPE

Heat Re moved from the Condenser

COPE =
Motor Electrical Power

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4.0 EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURES

4.1 General Start-up Procedures

1. Place unit on the floor, lock its wheel.

2. Connect water Inlet of the condenser to tap water and water outlet to the drain.
3. Check that the equipment and instruments are in proper condition.
4. Connect the power cable to the nearest power supply 415V AC/50Hz/3 phase, and then
switch on the power supply and main power switch.
5. Turn on the tap water to set the cooling water flowrate, FT1 3.00 LPM using valve, V1.
6. You are now ready to conduct experiments in this manual.

4.2 General Shut-down Procedures

1. Switch off the heater and follows by the motor.

2. Close valve, V1 and the tap water supply.
3. Switch off the main power switch and power supply.
4. Wipe off any water droplet on the equipment.

4.3 Experiment 1: Effect of Cooling Water Flowrate on the Refrigeration Process

Objective: To study the effect of varying cooling water flow on the refrigeration system

Procedure:

1. Use the control valve to set the water flowrate at about 3.00 LPM as indicated on the
flowmeter, FT1.
2. Start the motor by pressing the run button and set to the 1000RPM.
3. Set the heater input to evaporator at about 1000 Watt by adjusting the potentiometer.
4. Allow the system to run for 10 minutes to stabilize.
5. Records all the readings on the experimental data sheet.
6. Repeat steps 1 to 5 with water flowrate at 2.00 LPM and 4.00 LPM.
7. Compare these 3 sets of data.

Assignments:

1. Calculate the heat transfer at the evaporator and the condenser.

2. Calculate the Coefficient of Performance for the refrigeration system, the motor
shaft and motor power.
3. Calculate the volumetric efficiency of the compressor.

5.0 REFERENCES

Michael, J.M. and Howard, N.S., “Fundamentals of Engineering Thermodynamics”, 3rd Edition,
John Wiley & Sons, 1996.

Perry, R.H., Green, D.W. and Maloney, J.O., “Perry’s Chemical Engineering Handbook”, 6th
Edition, McGraw Hill, 1984.

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 Appendix A
Experimental Data Sheets

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Experiment 2: Effect of Cooling Water Flowrate on the Refrigeration Process

Cooling Water Flowrate (LPM) 2.00 3.00 4.00

Motor Power PWR1 (Watt)
Heater Power PWR2 (Watt)
Motor Speed SP1 (RPM)
Torque TQ1 (Nm)
Refrigerant Pressure (Low) PT1 (Bar)
Refrigerant Pressure (High) PT2 (Bar)
Refrigerant Temperature 1 TT1 (degC)
Refrigerant Temperature 2 TT2 (degC)
Refrigerant Temperature 3 TT3 (degC)
Refrigerant Temperature 4 TT4 (degC)
Cooling Water Outlet Temperature TT5 (degC)
Cooling Water Inlet Temperature TT6 (degC)
Cooling Water Flowrate FT1 (LPM)
Refrigerant Flowrate FT2 (LPM)
Enthalpy at Point 1 h1 (kJ/kg)
Enthalpy at Point 2 h2 (kJ/kg)
Enthalpy at Point 3 h3 (kJ/kg)
Enthalpy at Point 4 h4 (kJ/kg)
Specific Volume of Liquid R-134a L (m3/kg)
Specific Volume of Vapour R-134a v (m3/kg)
Compressor Speed SP2 (RPM)
Mass Flowrate of Liquid R-134-a mL (kg/s)
Volumetric Flowrate of Vapour R-134a V1 (m3/s)
Shaft Power Ps (kW)
Heat Transferred to Cooling Water Qw (kW)
Heat Removed from Condenser Qr1 (kW)
Heater Power PWR1 (kW)
Heat Absorbed from Evaporator Qr2 (kW)
Coefficient of Performance for
COPRF
Refrigeration
Coefficient of Performance for Shaft COPSHAFT
Electrical Coefficient of Performance COPE
Volumetric Flowrate of Vapour R-134a V1 (m3/s)
Swept Volume of Compressor Vs (m3/s)
Volumetric Efficiency  (%)

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 Appendix B
Sample Results and Calculation

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Experiment 2: Effect of Cooling Water Flowrate on the Refrigeration Process

Cooling Water Flowrate (LPM) 2.00 3.00 4.00

Motor Power PWR1 (Watt) 506 506 505
Heater Power PWR2 (Watt) 1017 1028 1020
Motor Speed SP1 (RPM) 993 1000 1004
Torque TQ1 (Nm) 3.0 2.7 2.6
Refrigerant Pressure (Low) PT1 (Bar) 4.6 4.5 4.4
Refrigerant Pressure (High) PT2 (Bar) 14.8 12.9 12.0
Refrigerant Temperature 1 TT1 (degC) 27.0 19.5 17.7
Refrigerant Temperature 2 TT2 (degC) 65.2 59.8 57.4
Refrigerant Temperature 3 TT3 (degC) 31.5 30.9 30.8
Refrigerant Temperature 4 TT4 (degC) 15.6 15.1 14.0
Cooling Water Outlet Temperature TT5 (degC) 38.9 36.4 35.0
Cooling Water Inlet Temperature TT6 (degC) 30.6 30.5 30.5
Cooling Water Flowrate (0-10LPM) FT1 (%) 19.9 30.7 40.5
Refrigerant Flowrate (0-0.8LPM) FT2 (%) 43.0 45.0 44.0
Enthalpy at Point 1 h1 (kJ/kg) 419.11 412.88 413.69
Enthalpy at Point 2 h2 (kJ/kg) 437.96 435.57 436.45
Enthalpy at Point 3 h3 (kJ/kg) 243.89 243.02 242.87
Enthalpy at Point 4 h4 (kJ/kg) 243.89 243.02 242.87
Specific Volume of Liquid R-134a L (m3/kg) 8.20E-4 8.20E-4 8.20E-4
Specific Volume of Vapour R-134a v (m3/kg) 1.36E-2 1.36E-2 1.36E-2
Compressor Speed SP2 (RPM) 332.67 333.33 334.67
Mass Flowrate of Liquid R-134-a mL (kg/s) 5.59E-3 5.63E-3 5.51E-3
Volumetric Flowrate of Vapour R-134a V1 (m3/s) 7.59E-5 7.65E-5 7.48E-5
Shaft Power Ps (kW) 0.312 0.283 0.273
Heat Transferred to Cooling Water Qw (kW) 11.51 12.62 12.70
Heat Removed from Condenser Qr1 (kW) 1.09 1.08 1.07
Heater Power PWR1 (kW) 0.506 0.506 0.505
Heat Absorbed from Evaporator Qr2 (kW) 0.98 0.96 0.94
Coefficient of Performance for
COPRF 9.29 7.49 7.51
Refrigeration
Coefficient of Performance for Shaft COPSHAFT 3.48 3.82 3.92
Electrical Coefficient of Performance COPE 2.15 2.13 2.12
Volumetric Flowrate of Vapour R-134a V1 (m3/s) 7.59E-5 7.65E-5 7.48E-5
Swept Volume of Compressor Vs (m3/s) 2.09E-4 2.09E-4 2.10E-4
Volumetric Efficiency η (%) 36.32 36.60 35.62
Sample Calculation:

Compressor Speed, SP2:

Motor Pulley Size: 90.0 mm

Compressor Pulley Size: 270.0 mm

Compressor Speed is reduced to,

Mass Flowrate of Liquid R-134a, mL:

FT 2
mL 
v L  1000  60

Volumetric Flowrate of Vapour R-134a, V1:

V1  mL  vV

Shaft Power, Ps:

2    N T
Ps 
60
Heat Transferred to Cooling Water, Qw:

Qw  m w  Cp  T

Heat Removed from the Condenser, Qr1:

Qr 1  mL  h 2  h3

Heat Absorbed from the Evaporator, Qr2:

Qr 2  mL  h1  h 4

Coefficient of Performance for Refrigerant, COPRF

Re frigerating Effect
COPRF =
Heat of Compression

=
h1  h 4
h 2  h1

= 9.30
Coefficient of Performance for Shaft, COPSHAFT

Heat Re moved from the Condenser

COPSHAFT =
Shaft Power

= 3.48

Electrical Coefficient of Performance, COPE

Heat Re moved from the Condenser

COPE =
Motor Electrical Power

= 2.145

Swept Volume of Compressor, Vs:

m3 SP2 hr
VS  2.26  
hr 1000 RPM 3600s

Volumetric Efficiency, η

V1
  100%
Vs