TECHNICAL NOTES

"AN EDUCATED USER WILL HAVE BETTER CHANCE OF ORDERING THE PROPER EQUIPMENT FOR THE JOB" The refrigeration process requires work (electrical energy) to pump heat from the low temperature evaporator section that is rejected to the higher temperature ambient from the condenser section. A mechanical refrigerant cycle requires: working fluid (refrigerant), compressor, condenser, thermal expansion valve (TXV) and evaporator (chiller barrel). Additionally depending on the design, motor driven fans (blowers) and/or pumps will be required to accomplish heat transfer in the evaporator and condenser sections. Proper design requires an integrated approach to the selection of these components. The compressor must work with the condenser, TXV and evaporator, etc. Special constraints may require the inclusion of refrigerant storage devices (accumulators and/or receivers) and additional controls (valves) to meet performance requirements. Proper design of a Thermal Control System (TCS) requires identification of the system capacity & temperature control desired, ambient conditions (elevation & temperature) and space constraints. In the following paragraphs we shall briefly present the basic issues that must be addressed in designing a TCS. The objective is to present the reader with an introduction to the subject, rather than to serve as a design manual.

System Capacity and Temperature Control System capacity and desired temperature control must be addressed first in designing a TCS system. Specifying the cooling capacity required (Btu/hr), temperature level (evaporator) to be controlled and the allowable temperature variation is required to size a TCS system. In general, component size will increase directly with capacity and indirectly with temperature; i.e., for a given capacity, lowering the evaporator temperature will increase the size of components. A myriad of control devices is available to assist the system designer. In general, a good design should utilize only those components needed to satisfy specific design conditions. For example, evaporator temperature control can be accomplished through the use of mechanical or electronic valves depending on the allowable tolerance.

Ambient Conditions Elevation and temperature will affect the performance of motors and air breathing devices, including fans and engines. For example, although the air flow rate (in cfm) is the normal parameter used in specifying fan performance, the mass flow rate of air is actually required to accomplish the design objective. Higher elevations, therefore, necessitate the use of bigger fans. Also, specifying the design capacity needed without including the ambient temperature conditions is meaningless. For an air-cooled condenser, coil size will increase as the ambient temperature increases. For a given evaporator temperature, the compressor size will similarly increase directly \with ambient (head) temperature.

Space Constraints The physical space available can have a direct impact on TCS design and cost. Where space is not a primary concern, components can be selected primarily based on costs. In general, space constraints can be satisfied; e.g. a smaller (face area) condenser coil can be used, providing a larger condenser fan (>cfm) is employed. Each of these design choices is a tradeoff of various parameters; increasing the air flow rate (cfm) of a fan will increase the performance of a coil, at the expense of additional noise.

Section 1: Compressor Selection The compressor is the "heart" of the refrigeration system. It mechanically compresses the low temperature, low-pressure suction gas into high temperature, high pressure superheated gas. Saturated conditions exist when a gas and liquid are allowed to stabilize within a confined space at given ambient conditions. At each temperature, an equilibrium condition will be established between the pressure and temperature. Under saturated conditions, specifying either temperature or pressure, will establish the remaining condition for a known refrigerant. For example, specifying that the refrigerant is R22 at a saturated temperature of 70 degrees F, equates to a working pressure of approximately 122 psig. The correlation between saturated pressures and temperatures is presented in various sources (such as ASHRAE Fundamentals). A superheated vapor exists when the pressure at a given temperature is raised above saturated conditions. This occurs at the inlet of the compressor. The refrigerant will be evaporated to a superheated state to assure that liquid is not introduced into the compressor, as liquid slugging is a common cause of compressor failures. The compressor elevates the low-pressure suction gas, into high pressure superheated vapor. A refrigerant compressor is a pump designed to work with a gaseous media. Depending on the application, compressor designs may be either reciprocating or rotary and of hermetic, semi hermetic or open design. Reciprocating compressors contain cylinders and use pistons to compress the refrigerant gas. Rotary compressors use an "eccentric" cam type action to compress the refrigerant and push it from the low-pressure side of the cycle to the high-pressure side. Hermetic compressors contain both the electric motor and the mechanical components within a single sealed housing. Repairs are normally only accomplished at a factory equipped to open the shell and replace worn or damaged parts. The refrigerant flow through the compressor is used to cool the electric motor. Semihermetic compressors also contain both the electric motor and mechanical elements within a single housing, but permit access to major components, permitting minor field repairs. Major re-builds are generally accomplished off site at a facility

set up for this operation. Open drive compressors separate the prime driver (electric motor, gas engine, etc.) from the compressor. A shaft connects the mechanical compressor components to the prime driver, which may be coupled directly or via belts. Semi hermetic and hermetic compressors contain an integral motor, while the open drive compressor simply contains the compressor mechanical components (e.g., cylinders, pistons and housing) and requires a shaft to connect to the prime driver. The shaft contains a seal that must be maintained in a "wet" state in order to avoid refrigerant leaks. It is normally required that an open drive system not be idle for an extended period of time to avoid drying out the seal and causing refrigerant leaks.

2. Condenser The hot, superheated gas exiting the compressor is condensed into a high-pressure liquid in the condenser section. This is accomplished either by an air cooled condenser finned tube coil, or a shell and tube barrel. In either, design, the coolant media (air, water or other fluid) extracts heat from the refrigerant, causing it to condense from a high pressure, high temperature superheated vapor into a high pressure, high temperature sub cooled liquid. The condenser rejects the evaporator load, the compressor heat of rejection and the condenser fan (motor load) in the case of a pusher system. In an air-cooled design, the ambient air is pushed (or pulled) through the coil. This is accomplished either via a propeller type fan or blower, depending on the flow rate and pressure drop; higher flow rates (cfm) and larger pressure drops require blowers rather than fans. Convective heat transfer and the associated laws drive the heat transfer from the hot refrigerant gas to the high temperature ambient. In a liquid cooled design, a pump is required to pump the cooling media (such as water) through the condenser heat exchanger. The system heat may ultimately be rejected via a cooling tower or chiller system. Coil sizes are directly effected by allowable airflow rates (cfm) and system pressure drops. Smaller face area coils are possible with larger flow rates (cfm), at the expense of larger pressure drops (requiring bigger fans or larger motors). Proper coil selection requires balancing the allowable face area of the coil (size) with the flow rate (cfm) and pressure drop allowable to achieve the desired performance.

3. Thermo Expansion Valve (TXV) The high temperature, high-pressure liquid must be expanded into a low pressure, low temperature fluid to perform the refrigeration effect. A thermal expansion device may be accomplished via a simple capillary type tube, or a TXV. Expansion of the liquid leaving the compressor can be accomplished simply by passing the refrigerant through a tube of restricted diameter (capillary tube). The added pressure drop causes the high temperature, high-pressure vapor to "flash to a low temperature low pressure fluid. The liquid/vapor refrigerant leaving the expansion device is a mixture, primarily composed of liquid. A capillary tube system is primarily used on smaller systems, where the refrigerant load is fairly constant. For better control and on larger systems, a TXV valve is normally used. The valve may be designed to sense both the pressure and temperature of the gas leaving the evaporator to assure that cooling is accomplished and that the compressor sees pure vapor.

4. Evaporator The refrigerant mixture is transformed into a superheated vapor in the evaporator. This may be accomplished either by an air-cooled finned tube coil, or a shell and tube barrel. In either, design, the coolant media (air, water or other fluid) the refrigerant extracts heat from the air, causing it to evaporate from a primarily liquid state into a superheated vapor. The evaporator absorbs the refrigerant load and in the case of a pusher type evaporator blower, the motor load. In an air-cooled design, the ambient air is pushed (or pulled) through the coil. This is usually accomplished via a blower, to provide adequate head to overcome the coil resistance and the system pressure drop. Convective heat transfer and the associated laws drive the heat transfer from the hot refrigerant gas to the high temperature ambient. In a liquid cooled design, a pump is required to pump the cooling media (such as water) through the evaporator heat exchanger (shell & tube, or chiller barrel). In an ideal system, the refrigerant would be transformed from a liquid vapor mixture into a saturated vapor at the exit of the evaporator. However, in order to assure complete evaporation and primarily to protect the compressor, the refrigerant is transformed into a superheated vapor at the exit of the evaporator. Coil sizes are directly affected by allowable airflow rates (cfm) and system pressure drops. Smaller face area coils are possible with larger flow rates (cfm), at the expense of larger pressure drops (requiring bigger fans or larger motors). Proper coil selection requires balancing the allowable face area of the coil (size) with the flow rate (cfm) and pressure drop allowable to achieve the desired performance.