Experimental study of melting ice cylinders in a warm air cross-flow

An experimental study is reported which investigates the melting of ice cylinders transverse to a warm humid flow, under controlled conditions in an air-conditioned wind tunnel. This work was initiated prior to a more general study of warm air defrosting of a complete heat pump evaporator. Tests were conducted with air at various temperatures, relative humidities and velocities. Similarly, the temperature of the core tube, on which the ice cylinders were mounted, was varied by alteration of the water-glycol mixture flowing through it. Two diameters of ice cylinder, 20 and 27 mm, were used. For core temperatures below the melting point of ice, the melting rate was shown to be a strong function of air humidity and temperature. With the core temperature above 0°C, the melting process was dominated by this factor so that air conditions were relatively unimportant.     

间冷冰箱回风道的优化除霜设计

间冷冰箱蒸发器霜层分布对除霜加热器除霜热量分布的不一致性会导致除霜时间增加和除霜效率的降低,因此,本文提出一种间冷式冰箱回风道的优化除霜设计方法。首先通过实验测量除霜加热器表面温度分布,确定除霜加热器除霜热量分布,进而确定与除霜热量相匹配的蒸发器结霜分布;然后基于蒸发器结霜分布确定回风道出口的最优风量分布;最后基于最优的风量分布设计回风道,使蒸发器上霜层分布与除霜加热器除霜热量分布相一致,达到优化除霜的目的。通过某间冷冰箱回风道的优化设计案例表明,优化后的回风道可实现出口风量分布与除霜加热器除霜热量分布相匹配,除霜时间缩短了38.9%,同时使冰箱的制冷量增加了3.43%。     

Refrigerant flow instability as a means to predict the need for defrosting the evaporator in a retail display freezer cabinet

For refrigerated display cabinets to perform their function of keeping food cold, there must be free movement of air through the evaporator. The moisture in the ambient air entrained in the cabinet forms frost on the evaporator. It is traditional for heat to be applied to the evaporator at regular intervals to melt this frost. The frequency, typically 3–4 times per day, is enough to avoid the frost becoming excessive even in extreme conditions. For much of the time defrosting is not always necessary. A large portion of the energy used during a defrost is an overhead – heating and then cooling the metal and the food rather than melting the frost. The effect of this is examined in the paper along with the results from testing an algorithm that detects the need for a defrost from the pattern of refrigerant flow (or evaporator exit superheat). The algorithm allows the number of defrosts to be reduced without excessively raising the temperature of food stored in the cabinet. The reduction in energy and carbon dioxide emission were examined and were shown to be substantial.     

Improving defrosting performance by controlling frost distribution to match defrosting heat distribution in frost-free household refrigerators

In the defrosting process of most of existing frost-free refrigerators, major part of the heat generated by electric heater cannot be absorbed by the frost, resulting in the raise of the energy consumption. The objective of this study is to present a new method to improve the energy efficiency in the defrosting process. Based on the idea of making the frost absorb most of the heat generated by electric heater, a new method of defrosting is proposed, and its principle is to make the defrosting process at different locations complete simultaneously by optimizing the frost mass distribution on the evaporator. In this method, the defrosting heat distribution on evaporator surface, the required frost mass distribution, the required air flow distribution and the structure of return air duct are determined, respectively. Application of this method in an actual household refrigerator shows that the defrosting efficiency is improved by 29.8%.     

带储液气液分离器的空气源热泵除霜系统研究

空气源热泵在冬季供热时室外蒸发器表面容易结霜,逆循环除霜作为最常用的一种除霜方法存在除霜带液和除霜时间长的问题.为提升逆循环除霜的空气源热泵系统性能,本文提出一种耦合储液气液分离器的空气源热泵除霜系统,该系统相比于传统的空气源热泵系统能够有效延缓结霜和缩短除霜时间.本文通过实验对比研究了6个工况下该系统和传统空气源热泵...     

风速对不同流程数CO2蒸发器性能的影响

为研究迎面风速对不同流路数CO₂翅片管蒸发器性能的影响,本文建立分布参数模型对蒸发温度为-25℃,风速为0.5～4 m/s条件下5种流路数CO₂翅片管蒸发器的制冷剂压降、换热量、温度分布及传热系数的变化进行分析,并通过实验验证了蒸发器模型的可靠性。蒸发器模型的换热量、制冷剂压降和风侧压降等参数模拟值与相同工况下实验值的误差均在±4%以内。结果表明:同一流路数蒸发器的换热量、制冷剂压降及传热系数均随风速的增大而增大,而其涨幅随风速增大而减小,综合考虑换热效果和能耗可得最佳风速范围为2.5～3.5 m/s;在一定风速条件下,蒸发器设计时在合理范围内选择较多流路数可有效提升蒸发器换热性能并增强换热均匀性,本次实验中24流路蒸发器为最佳设计方案。     

不同空气侧风速下微通道蒸发器换热特性实验研究

搭建微通道蒸发器性能实验台,采用控制变量法研究不同空气侧风速下微通道蒸发器表面温度分布、制冷剂进出口压力的变化规律,计算换热量和换热系数,从而分析空气侧风速对微通道蒸发器的流量分配特性和换热效果的影响。结果表明,随着风速增大,微通道蒸发器制冷剂流量分配不均匀性增大,进出口压力波动振幅和周期增加,压降增大,风速2 m/s时微通道蒸发器换热效果最佳。     

The impact of fouling on the performance of filter–evaporator combinations

This paper presents results of experiments performed on different combinations of five types of filters of varying efficiencies (MERV4, 6, 8, 11, and 14) and four types of evaporator coils with depths and fin geometries under clean and fouled conditions. The fouled conditions were obtained after injection of 600 g (1612 g/m² of coil face area) of dust upstream of the filter–coil combination, which was meant to simulate a year of operation in the field. The air-side pressure drops of the coils and filters and air-side effective heat transfer coefficients of the coils were determined from the measurements under the clean and fouled conditions. Depending upon the filter and coil, the coil pressure drops increased in the range of 6–30% for an air velocity of 2.54 m/s. The impact was significantly greater for tests performed without an upstream filter (the coil pressure drops increased from 43% to 200%). The largest relative effect of fouling on pressure drop occurs for coils with fewer rows, primarily due to higher fin densities. The impact of fouling on air-side effective heat transfer coefficients was found to be relatively small, which ranged from −14% to 4%. In some cases, heat transfer was actually enhanced due to additional turbulence caused by the presence of dust. However, with large dust deposits, heat transfer is degraded because the dust also acts as insulation and creates an uneven air velocity.     

Air-side performance of a wavy-finned-tube direct expansion cooling and dehumidifying air coil

Airside heat and mass transfer and fluid flow characteristics of a wavy-finned-tube direct expansion air coil under cooling and dehumidifying condition have been experimentally investigated. Experiments were carried out to study the effects of operating conditions such as: air temperature, air relative humidity, air face velocity, and evaporator pressure on the airside performance (cooling capacity, dehumidification capacity, pressure drop, and heat transfer coefficient) of the coil. Charts for coil wet conditions, partially wet or totally wet, were conducted to identify the coil wet conditions in terms of the operating conditions. Two techniques, enthalpy potential method and equivalent dry-bulb temperature method, were used to analyze the data and to deduce correlations for Colburn factors for the different coil wet conditions. Comparison between the correlations predictions of the two techniques was presented.     

In-situ study of frosting and defrosting processes in tube-fin evaporators of household refrigerating appliances

The present paper advances an in-situ study of frosting and defrosting processes in tube-fin evaporators of household refrigerators and freezers. Frost growth experiments were carried out using a purpose-built test facility comprised of a refrigerated cabinet placed inside a climatized chamber, and a vapor compression refrigeration loop that controls both the evaporating temperature and the evaporator superheating. A first-principles two-dimensional simulation model was put forward to predict the evaporator blocking over time, and also the heat and mass transfer rates. The model validation exercise has shown that the model follows well the experimental trends of pressure drop, frost mass, cooling capacity and air flow rate, with all predictions falling inside ±10% error bounds. The model was then used to assess the impact of several design parameters on both the evaporator blockage and defrost efficiency. It was found that a nearly ideal defrost efficiency is achieved when the defrosting process is performed by two simultaneous heaters.     

A novel defrosting control method based on the degree of refrigerant superheat for air source heat pumps

When an air source heat pump (ASHP) unit operates for space heating at a frosting environment, periodic defrosting is necessary to maintain a high system performance. To defrost efficiently, it is necessary to find an effective defrosting control method. In this paper, an experiment was carried out on an ASHP unit with a capillary tube as a throttle device, under simulated frosting and defrosting conditions using time control defrosting method, and the experimental results are firstly presented. Secondly, a novel defrosting control method based on the degree of refrigerant superheat (DS) is reported. To validate the novel defrosting control method, a further experiment was conducted on another ASHP unit with an electronic expansion valve (EEV) as a throttle device, under simulated frosting and defrosting conditions. The experimental results demonstrated that when applying the novel defrosting control method, defrosting was initiated before the operating performances of ASHP unit rapidly deteriorated, which was more reasonable.     

陈列柜蒸发器结霜对其风幕性能影响及融霜周期的实验研究

本文实验研究了陈列柜蒸发器结霜对其风幕送风速度的影响.实验结果表明蒸发器结霜大大降低风幕的送风速度.因此,蒸发器必须定期融霜.本文设定不同的融霜周期考察融霜周期、融霜时间和柜温回升三者之间的关系,为确定最佳的融霜周期提供实验性依据.     

恒温恒湿系统最佳除霜时刻控制的研究

针对于恒温恒湿系统的除霜最佳时刻的研究,本文提出了在户外温湿度恒定,室内温湿度变化状况下,当蒸发器表面上所结的霜的面积达到蒸发器总换热面积的75%时,利用此时的冷凝压力与蒸发压力的比值作为对机组除霜指令发出的基准.经实验的验证此方法还是可行的,能够运用于实际的工业恒温恒湿机组的最佳除霜时刻控制.     

空气源热泵结霜机理及除霜/抑霜技术研究进展

结霜导致蒸发器的热阻增加,传热系数降低,系统COP减小,制约了空气源热泵的推广应用。本文在表面结霜机理研究现状的基础上,总结了影响结霜的各种因素相应除霜/抑霜技术,综述了逆循环、热气旁通和电加热三种常用除霜方法的研究进展,概括了改变空气参数、表面温度和换热器结构的抑霜效果,以及表面改性抑霜技术的研究现状。指出霜导热系数模型的局限性及除霜/抑霜技术存在的问题,提出今后应结合多种措施着重探索对水蒸气凝结、冷凝水冻结、霜层回融和塌陷等阶段均有较强抑制作用的抑霜技术。     

Field test study of a novel defrosting control method for air-source heat pumps by applying tube encircled photoelectric sensors

To improve the defrosting accuracy of air source heat pumps (ASHPs), this paper proposes a novel defrosting control method by applying tube encircled photoelectric sensors (TEPSs). A field test was conducted for two heating seasons in Beijing, China, to verify the feasibility and practicality of the novel TEPS method. The test results revealed that irrespective of the environmental conditions, the TEPS method can initiate defrosting in similar situations: most of the heat exchanger surface had been covered by frost; the compressor suction temperature decreased by ~9 °C; the compressor discharge temperature increased by ~16 °C; and the heating capacity decreased by ~30%. Furthermore, the TEPS method was verified to make more accurate and more reasonable defrosting decisions than the traditional T-T method under both frosting and non-frosting conditions. The results indicate that the TEPS method is a competitive defrosting control method that can be used for ASHPs.     

低温冷风机结霜特性的研究及其融霜方法的改进

以华中地区某禽类加工厂冻结间的冷风机为研究对象,建立数学模型,对结霜工况下冷风机运行特性进行了理论分析。模型和实验测得的霜层厚度的平均偏差8．99％,吻合较好。阐述了随着霜层的生长,空气冷却器的传热面积、传热系数以及空气侧压降的变化规律。进一步分析了冻结间内空气相对湿度、冷风机进口空气干球温度以及迎面风速等对霜层生长的影响。并遵循尽量减少初投资、节能、实用为选择改进的原则,结合企业生产工序及冻结间运行的实际情况,对原融霜方式提出改进方案。     

A numerical simulation model for plate-type, roll-bond evaporators

This study presents a first-principles mathematical model developed to investigate the thermal behavior of a plate-type, roll-bond evaporator. The refrigerated cabinet was also taken into account in order to supply the proper boundary conditions to the evaporator model. The mathematical model was based on the mass, momentum and energy conservation principles applied to each of the following domains: (i) refrigerant flow through the evaporator channels; (ii) heat diffusion in the evaporator plate; and (iii) heat transmission to the refrigerated cabinet. Empirical correlations were also required to estimate the shear stresses, and the internal and external heat transfer rates. The governing partial differential equations were discretized through the finite-volume approach and the resulting set of algebraic equations was solved by successive iterations. Validation of the model against experimental steady-state data showed a reasonable level of agreement: the cabinet air temperature and the evaporator cooling capacity were predicted within error bands of ±1.5 °C and ±6%, respectively.     

不均匀风速分布下翅片管换热器的优化分析与实验

风速分布对翅片管换热器性能影响较大。本文在换热器结构尺寸、空气进口状态一定的条件下,对三种典型风速分布时翅片管换热器的流程布置形式进行了仿真优化与实验研究。结果表明:在上三角和中三角两种风速分布形式下,优化后制冷量分别提高了10.3%、3%;对于上三角优化形式,高风速区是改善换热效果的重点区域;在制冷量相同的情况下,上三角优化形式使系统COP提高8%左右。搭建实验台对仿真结果进行了验证,表明模拟值和实验值相对误差均控制在5%以内。     

空气源热泵自然冷源过冷制热性能实验研究

冬季我国北方室外环境蕴含大量天然冷源,热力学分析表明热泵工质过冷释放的热量可以在蒸发器的等温吸热过程中获得补偿。为了研究大气自然冷源对热泵制热性能的影响,增设室外过冷器,搭建利用自然冷源过冷的空气源热泵实验装置。实验结果表明：当室外环境温度大于0 ℃,冷凝温度小于45 ℃的条件下,自然冷源过冷对热泵制热量与制热COP影响均较小,系统制热量维持在6.22 ~ 6.70 kW,制热COP维持在3.03,压缩机排气温度维持在103 ℃以下;当室外环境温度小于 -10 ℃,冷凝温度大于50 ℃时,随过冷度的增加,压缩机功率增加、排气温度显著增高,系统制热量呈先缓慢增加后减小趋势,制热COP降至2.3。基于上述研究提出一种空气源热泵过冷融霜新型除霜方式,融霜同时不停止制热。     

空气源热泵热水器冬季性能实验研究

空气源热泵热水器是一种新型的热水器，具有安全、节能、环保等特点，但是它也存在着许多缺点：受环境温度影响较大，尤其是在冬季环境温度很低的北方，系统效率不是很高，表现不够稳定，针对这些情况，本文对其冬季性能作了研究，分别在环境温度为0℃、-5℃、-20℃，三种工况下做了开机时间与水温的变化、开机时间与系统COP的变化，和融霜等实验，通过实验找到了影响空气源热泵热水器冬季性能的因素，为其系统优化和空气侧换热器的除霜提供了依据。