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RAC Case Study
RAC Case Study
OF ENGINEERING
Department Of Mechanical Engineering
Case study on
Propane as a Refrigerant
PRESENTED BY
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INDEX
Chapter No. Topics Page No.
01 1.1 Introduction 3
1.2 Objective
1.3 Problem statement 4
1.4 Case study
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1.5 Phase change material
(PCM)
02 2.1 Experimental setup 6
2.2 Experimental procedure 7
2.3 Energy consumption of
Compressor
2.4 Result and Discussion 8
03 Conclusion 10
04 References 11
2
Chapter 01
1.1 INTRODUCTION
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1.2 OBJECTIVE
➢ The objective of this paper is to tackle the problem by developing a domestic
refrigerator system capable of maintaining the cooling effect for more than 15 hours
without energy input and being compact as well as cost-effective.
➢ The second objective was to reduce the global warming potential caused by HCFC
refrigerant. Taking into account the very needs of an average rural household in India,
the required cooling load is estimated.
➢ R134a is having zero ozone depletion potential (ODP) and almost same
thermodynamic properties as R12(Chloroflurocarbon refrigerant), but it has a high
Global Warming Potential (GWP) of 1300.
➢ R134a swells the rubber components in the refrigeration system and causes leaks.
➢ Limited heat pump performance also the cost of refrigerant is very high
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1.4 CASE STUDY
The system was designed and analyzed using R290 (Propane) as a refrigerant by
replacing R134a. The theoretical and experimental analysis of 45 liter domestic
refrigerators using R290 as a refrigerant is carried out. The R290 is a replacement for
R134a and R22 refrigerants. The Phase change material (PCM) is located in the newly
designed evaporator in order to improve its efficiency and provide a storage capacity
allowing a number of hours of refrigeration without energy supply. The system has been
tested with Ethylene Glycol as a PCM with and without thermal load. Results show that
the refrigerant R290 have a slightly lower coefficient of performance than R134a for the
condensation temperature of 35°C to 43°C and evaporating temperatures range between
−5°C to 5°C. Depending on the load in the refrigerator with PCM the average
compressor running time per cycle is reduced significantly and it is in the range of 17%
to 20% as compared with refrigerator without PCM. The coefficient of performance of
refrigeration systems with R290 as refrigerant is comparable with R134a as a refrigerant
and starting torque of compressor reduces which leads to improvement in a life span of
the compressor.
Phase Change Material is a substance who has high heat of fusion. During melting
and solidifying at a certain temperature large amount of energy get stored or release by
PCM . The experiments be carried on refrigerator to evaluate the energy performance and
the cool storage capacity of the refrigerator with and without PCM. The use of phase
change materials (PCMs) to accumulate thermal energy in domestic refrigerators is a new
solution. The cooling capacity stored in the PCM can be used to stabilize the temperature
in the compartment.
Gobin D et al [5] have previously tested a domestic refrigerator with 5mm and 10 mm
ice slabs in get in touch with with the evaporator. Their result shows that the refrigerator
autonomy increased from 5 to 10 hours depending on the thermal load. It was observed
that the ice slab of 10 mm slab was never completely freeze, probably because of low
thermal conductivity of the PCM and low cooling capacity of the 5 × 10-6 m3 (i.e. 5 cm3
) swept volume compressor employed. During experimentation in domestic refrigerator
Ethylene glycol was used as a PCM [6].
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Chapter 02
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Fig. 1. Line diagram of experimental setup
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2.3 ENERGY CONSUMPTION OF COMPRESSOR
The energy consumption by the compressor during experimentation was measured
and stored in a computer. The test was carried out at 23°C and 28°C room temperatures. The
refrigerator consumes more energy at 28°C ambient temperature than at 23°C ambient
temperatures for all refrigerants. The compressor consumes 3% less energy with R290 at
28°C condenser temperature.
✓ PCM solidification Time: The ratio of melting time to solidification time is 9 that
significantly show that the melting process almost 9 times slower than
solidification directly produces cooling effect for more than 7 hrs. During a test at -
10°C PCM temperature the power supply to the compressor was cut off. The
temperature deviation in the cabin was kept within 3°C it will give a great
advantage over conventional domestic refrigerator for vegetable preservations
✓ Variation of PCM and refrigerator cabin temperature without load: without energy
input to compressor PCM material maintains cabin temperature below 10°C for 8
hours and below 15°C for 14 hrs. PCM provides uniform cabin temperature,
though all cycle. The figure 3 shows that the cabin temperature was maintained
below 15°C for 14 hours it gives a great advantage over conventional domestic
refrigerator for vegetable preservation during a power failure.
✓ Temperature reduction in a cabin by using PCM has indicated by blue line, that
shows reduction of 1°C for one-hour duration as shown in figure number 3.
Depending on the load on the refrigerator with PCM the average compressor
running time per cycle is reduced considerably and it found that 17% to 20%
reduction as compared with conventional refrigerator without PCM. Graph shows
power requirement is increased by 7.12% for the temperature variation from 20°C
to 45°C. The refrigerant charge for same refrigeration system with R290 as
refrigerant is reduced by 40% as compared with R134a for the same operating
conditions.
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Fig. 3. Variation of temperature with respect to time with PCM
The sudden temperature rises or spikes in the graph shown by blue colour indicate the
time at which by intention of door was opened and the temperature rise is because of the
ingress of heat through atmospheric air getting inside when the load is added cabin
temperature increases by around 7°C. The instant at which PCM start melting graph shows a
large difference between inside cabin and PCM temperature
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Chapter 03
CONCLUSION
1. The Investigation shows that PCM is useful to maintain the refrigerator cabin
temperature below 100 C for 16 hours as compared to a conventional refrigerator
that maintains cabin temperature for 4 hours without power supply.
2. PCM is also used to maintain the temperature variation inside cabin within 2°C to
3°C that helps to increase the life of perishable food products as compared with
conventional one where the temperature variation is 6°C to 8°C.
3. The compressor running time per cycle is reduced significantly and it found that
reduction about 17% to 20% as compared with conventional refrigerator without
PCM.
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Chapter 04
REFERENCES
[1]. UNEP, Montreal protocol on substances that deplete the ozone layer, United
Nations environment programme (UNEP); 1987.
[2]. Kyoto protocol to the United Nations framework convention on climate change,
United Nations (UN), New York, USA; 1997.
[3]. Azzouz, K., Leducq, D. and Gobin, D. Enhancing the performance of household
refrigerators with latent heat storage: an experimental investigation, International Journal
of Refrigeration, 32: 1634- 1644, 2009.
[5]. Azzouz, K., Leducq, D., Guilpart, J., Gobin, D., 2005. Improving the energy
efficiency of a vapor compression system using a phase change material. In: Proceedings
2nd Conference on Phase Change Material & Slurry, Yverdon les Bains, Switzerland, 15
– 17 June 2005.
[6]. Azzouz, K., Leducq, D., Gobin, D., 2008. Performance enhancement of a household
refrigerator by an addition of latent heat storage. International Journal of Refrigeration 31
(5), 892–901.
[7]. Marques, C., Davies, G., Maidment, G., Evans, J. A. “Application of phase change
materials to domestic refrigerators.” 9th International Conference on Phase-Change
Materials and Slurries for Refrigeration and Air Conditioning, 2010.
[8]. Joseph Sekhar S, Mohan Lal D, Renganarayanan S. Improved energy efficiency for
CFC domestic refrigerators retrofitted with ozone friendly HFC134a/HC refrigerant
mixture. International Journal of Thermal Science 2004; 43(3):307–14.
[9]. Improved energy efficiency for CFC domestic refrigerators retrofitted with ozone-
friendly HFC134a/HC refrigerant mixture (2004) International Journal of Thermal
Sciences, 43 (3), pp. 307- 314.
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