Condensation heat transfer and two-phase frictional pressure drop in a single minichannel with R1234ze(E) and other refrigerants

R1234ze(E), trans-1, 3, 3, 3-tetrafluoropropene, is a fluorinated propene isomer which may be a substitute of R134a for refrigeration applications. R1234ze(E) has a much lower GWP_100-years than that of R134a. In this paper, the local heat transfer coefficient during condensation of R1234ze(E) is investigated in a single minichannel, horizontally arranged, with hydraulic diameter equal to 0.96 mm. Since the saturation temperature drop directly affects the heat transfer rate, the pressure drop during adiabatic two phase flow of R1234ze(E) is also measured. Predictive models are assessed both for condensation heat transfer and pressure drop. A comparative analysis is carried out among several fluids (R1234ze(E), R32, R134a and R1234yf) starting from experimental data collected at the same conditions and using the Performance Evaluation Criteria (PEC) named Penalty Factor (PF) and Total Temperature Penalization (TTP) to rank the tested refrigerants in forced convective condensation.     

R1234ze(E) flow boiling inside a 3.4 mm ID microfin tube

R1234ze(E) has a GWP<1 and a normal boiling temperature approximately 7.3 °C lower than that of R134a; it represents an interesting candidate for its replacement as working fluid in refrigerating machines. The refrigerant charge minimization in refrigerating and air conditioning equipment is a key issue for the new environmental challenges. Mini microfin tubes represent an optimal solution for both heat transfer enhancement and charge minimization tasks. This paper presents an experimental study of R1234ze(E) flow boiling inside a mini microfin tube with internal diameter at the fin tip of 3.4 mm. The experimental measurements were carried out at constant saturation temperature of 30 °C, by varying the refrigerant mass velocity between 190 kg m⁻² s⁻¹ and 940 kg m⁻² s⁻¹, the vapour quality from 0.2 to 0.99 at three different heat fluxes: 10, 25, and 50 kW m⁻². The experimental results are then compared with those obtained for the more traditional R134a.     

Surface tension of low GWP refrigerants R1243zf,R1234ze(Z), and R1233zd(E)

The surface tension of R1243zf, R1234ze(Z), and R1233zd(E) were measured at temperatures from 270 K to 360 K by an experimental apparatus based on the differential capillary rise method. The deviation between the measured surface tension of R134a and R245fa and the calculated surface tension with REFPROP 9.1 (Lemmon et al., 2013) was ±0.13 mN m⁻¹, which is less than the estimated propagated uncertainty in surface tension of ±0.2 mN m⁻¹. Eleven points, thirteen points, and ten points of surface tension data were provided for R1243zf, R1234ze(Z), and R1233zd(E), respectively, in this paper. The measured data and the estimated surface tension using the methods of Miller, 1963, Miqueu et al., 2000, and Di Nicola et al. (2011) agree within the standard deviation of ±0.43 mN m⁻¹. The empirical correlations that represent the measured data within ±0.14 mN m⁻¹ were proposed for each refrigerant.     

Flow boiling of non-azeotropic mixture R32/R1234ze(E) in horizontal microfin tubes

Flow boiling of a potential refrigerant R32/R1234ze(E) in a horizontal microfin tube of 5.21 mm inner diameter is experimentally investigated. The heat transfer coefficient (HTC) and pressure drop are measured at a saturation temperature of 10 °C, heat fluxes of 10 and 15 kW m^?2, and mass velocities from 150 to 400 kg m^?2 s^?1. The HTC of R1234ze(E) is lower than that of R32. Degradation in the HTC of the R32/R1234ze(E) mixture is significant; the HTC is even lower than that of R1234ze(E). The HTC is minimized at the composition 0.2/0.8 by mass, where the temperature glide and the mass fraction distribution are maximized. A predicting correlation based on Momoki et al. (1995) associated with the correction methods of Thome (1981) to consider the mass transfer resistance and Stephan (1992) to consider the additionally required sensible heat is proposed and validated with the experimental results.     

R1234ze(E)在多元醇脂油中溶解度的实验研究

R1234ze(E)(1,1,1,3-四氟丙烯)是当下具有较强替代潜能的环保制冷剂之一。本文搭建了溶解度测试实验系统,对R1234ze(E)在两种多元醇脂油中的溶解度进行测试,测试的温度范围为40～80℃,压力范围为0.123～0.360 MPa。采用PR状态方程和MHV2混合规则及NRTL活度系数模型对实验结果进行关联计算,得到不同温度下的交互系数及计算值与实验值的平均相对误差。结果表明:R1234ze(E)在两种多元醇脂油中的溶解度均随着温度的升高而降低,且R1234ze(E)在两种多元醇脂油中的平衡压力与溶解度之间存在立方函数关系。在两种多元醇酯油中,计算值与实验值的平均相对误差分别为1.68%和1.11%,可较好的描述R1234ze(E)在两种多元醇酯油中的相平衡行为。     

新型制冷剂R1234ze(E)及其混合工质研究进展

低GWP值制冷剂R1234ze(E)(trans-1,3,3,3-tetrafluoropropene)作为R134a较为理想的替代品而被关注,但其单一成分的热力学性能和传输特性并不理想,在R1234ze(E)中混入R32成分可以有效改善其热力学性能。本文概述了低GWP值工质R1234ze(E)及其与R32混合物的热物性特征、传输特性及系统运行性能方面的研究现状,并与目前常用的制冷工质进行比较分析,指出R1234ze(E)与R32混合工质有望成为新型低GWP值替代工质。     

Thermodynamic assessment of high-temperature heat pumps using Low-GWP HFO refrigerants for heat recovery

Reducing energy consumption by utilizing heat recovery systems has become increasingly important in industry. This paper presents an exploratory assessment of heat pump type heat recovery systems using environmentally friendly refrigerants. The coefficient of performance (COP) of 4 cycle configurations used to raise the temperature of heat media to 160 °C with a waste heat at 80 °C is calculated and compared for refrigerants R717, R365mfc, R1234ze(E), and R1234ze(Z). A multiple-stage “extraction” cycle drastically reduces the throttling loss and exergy loss in the condensers, resulting in the highest COP for R1234ze(Z). A cascade cycle using R1234ze(Z) and R365mfc has a relatively high COP and provides practical benefits. Even under adverse conditions, the primary energy efficiency is greater than 1.3 when the transmission end efficiency of the electric power generation is 0.37. The assessment demonstrated that high-temperature heat pumps are a promising approach for reducing primary energy consumption for industrial applications.     

Condensation of refrigerants in a multiport tube with rectangular minichannels

This study investigated the condensation heat transfer and pressure drop characteristics of refrigerants R134a, R32, R1234ze(E), and R410A in a horizontal multiport tube with rectangular minichannels, in the mass velocity range of 100–400 kg m⁻² s⁻¹ and saturation temperature set at 40 and 60 °C. The effect of mass velocity, vapor quality, saturation temperature, refrigerant properties, and hydraulic diameter of rectangular channels on condensation characteristics is clarified. A new correlation is proposed for predicting the frictional pressure drop for condensation flow in minichannels. A heat transfer model for condensation heat transfer in rectangular minichannels is developed considering the flow patterns and effects of vapor shear stress and surface tension. Then, based on this model, a new heat transfer correlation is proposed. The proposed correlations successfully predict the experimental frictional pressure drop and heat transfer coefficients of the test refrigerants in horizontal rectangular minichannels.     

Development and validation of a micro-fin tubes evaporator model using R134a and R1234yf as working fluids

This paper presents a model of shell and tube evaporator with micro-fin tubes using R1234yf and R134a. The model developed for this evaporator uses the ε-NTU method to predict the evaporating pressure, the refrigerant outlet enthalpy and the outlet temperature of the secondary fluid. The model accuracy is evaluated using different two-phase flow boiling correlations for micro-fin tubes and comparing predicted and experimental data. The experimental tests were carried out for a wide range of operating conditions using R134a and R1234yf as working fluids. The predicted parameter with maximum deviations, between the predicted and experimental data, is the evaporating pressure. The correlation of Akhavan– Behabadi et al. was used to predict flow boiling heat transfer, with an error on cooling capacity prediction below 5%. Simulations, carried out with this validated model, show that the overall heat transfer coefficient of R1234yf has a maximum decrease of 10% compared with R134a.     

Theoretical energy performance evaluation of different single stage vapour compression refrigeration configurations using R1234yf and R1234ze(E) as working fluids

R1234yf and R1234ze(E) have been proposed as alternatives for R134a in order to work with low GWP refrigerants, but this replacement results generally in a decrease of the performance. For this reason, it is interesting to explore ways to improve the system performance using these refrigerants. In this paper, a comparative study in terms of energy performance of different single stage vapour compression configurations using R1234yf and R1234ze(E) as working fluids has been carried out. The most efficient configuration is the one which uses an expander or an ejector as expansion device. On the other hand, using an internal heat exchanger in a cycle which replaces the expansion valve by an expander or an ejector could produce a detrimental effect on the COP. However, for all the configurations the introduction of an internal heat exchanger produces a significant increment on the cooling capacity.     

冷冻冷藏用制冷剂R404A的替代品对比分析

基于现有的R404A涡旋式压缩机,模拟分别采用R404A,R407A,R407F,R134a和R1234ze制冷剂时的压缩机性能,计算5种制冷剂系统的理论循环COP,并对各典型工况进行对比分析。计算结果表明,R407A和R407F可直接应用于R404A压缩机,而R134a和R1234ze替代R404A时压缩机设计变更较大,4种制冷剂系统能效均较R404A系统有较大提高。     

Comparative experimental study of low GWP alternative for R134a in a walk-in cold room

The environmental problems induced by the ongoing increase in the global worming potential (GWP) pose a significant interest among researchers. It was found that, the currently used refrigerants are with high GWP (National Refrigerants Inc., 2004), so that it becomes necessary to search for alternatives to these refrigerants that can properly operate on the same systems but with low GWP. Therefore a walk-in cold room working with vapor compression cycle is constructed and tested in this paper. The performance of R134a refrigerant with high GWP is compared to another low GWP refrigerant R1234ze in a trail to provide a solution of the problem of high GWP of refrigerants currently used in cold rooms. The results obtained in this study have shown that, the cooling capacity of R1234ze was lower than that of R134a by 2% to 13%. The lowest evaporating temperature that could be reached for R1234ze is −13 °C while the lowest temperature of R134a is −30 °C. Regarding the power consumption, R1234ze has lower power consumption than R134a by about 9% to 15% therefore it can be concluded that R 1234ze can be recommended to be used at high and medium evaporating temperature after carrying out the suitable modifications on the refrigeration cycle.     

Condensation heat transfer coefficients of R1234yf on plain, low fin, and Turbo-C tubes

In this study, external condensation heat transfer coefficients (HTCs) of HFC134a and R1234yf are measured on a plain, low fin, and Turbo-C tubes at the saturated vapor temperature of 39 °C with the wall subcooling of 3-8 °C. R1234yf is a new alternative refrigerant of low greenhouse warming potential for replacing HFC134a, one of the greenhouse gases in Kyoto protocol, used extensively in automobile air conditioners and other refrigeration systems. Test results show that the condensation HTCs of R1234yf are very similar to those of HFC134a for all three surfaces tested. For the development of heat transfer correlations, thorough property measurements are needed for R1234yf in the near future.     

Two-phase frictional pressure drop in horizontal micro-scale channels: Experimental data analysis and prediction method development

An investigation was conducted on the effects of fluid refrigerant and channel geometry on the frictional pressure drop during two-phase flow inside microchannels. Experimental results for two-phase frictional pressure drop were obtained for the refrigerants R134a, R1234ze(E), R1234yf and R600a in a circular channel and for R134a in square and triangular channels. The experiments were performed for mass velocities from 100 to 1600 kg m⁻² s⁻¹, saturation temperatures of 31 and 41 °C, and vapor qualities from 0.05 to 0.95. The experimental data have been analyzed focusing on the effects of the geometry and fluid on the two-phase pressure drop. Then, the data were compared with the most quoted predictive methods from the literature. Based on the broad database obtained, a new method for prediction of the two-phase frictional pressure drop was proposed. The new method provided accurate predictions of the database, predicting 89% of the results within an error band of ±20%.     

Measurement of vapor viscosity of R1234yf and its binary mixtures with R32, R125

The vapor viscosities of the new refrigerant R1234yf and its binary mixtures, R32+R1234yf, R125+R1234yf, were measured at atmospheric pressure with a falling-ball-type viscometer. The combined expanded uncertainty of the measurement apparatus was less than 1.5%. The binary mixtures consisted of 20.0, 30.0, 40.0, and 50.0 wt% R32 for R32+R1234yf and of 20.0, 35.0, 50.0, and 70.0 wt% R125 for R125+R1234yf. The viscosities of R1234yf were correlated with the Chapman–Enskog gas kinetic theory and those of binary mixtures were correlated with the Wilke mixture rule. The average absolute deviation (AAD) is 0.189% for R32+R1234yf and 1.169% for R125+R1234yf. The deviations of experimental viscosities of the binary mixtures from data calculated using RefProp v9.1 were also obtained. The AAD is 0.555% for R32+R1234yf and 1.479% for R125+R1234yf.     

R1234yf热泵技术综述与潜力分析

为了满足逐步严苛的环保法规要求,R1234yf成为车用热泵制冷剂R134a的热门替代制冷剂之一。本文对R1234yf热泵技术的研究进行了综述与分析,其GWP<1,各方面性质均符合车用热泵系统的工作需求。在传热效果上,R1234yf的沸腾传热性能略优于R134a,且冷凝过程压降比R134a低5%～10%,优于R134a系统。在诸多R1234yf和R134a系统的仿真和实验研究中,R1234yf热泵性能略低于R134a,但可以通过优化零部件、强化补气、改善工况等方式使其与R134a十分接近甚至超越。R1234yf低压饱和压力比R134a高约15%,可以适配更高的压缩机转速,低温下制热性能比R134a更好,且较低的压缩机排气温度使系统工作更为稳定,强化补气的效果也优于R134a。因此,R1234yf在车用热泵中具有较好的工作性能和发展前景,可以作为R134a的替代制冷剂。     

R1234ze/HCs非共沸混合工质热泵系统循环性能分析

在热泵热水器名义工况下,本文建立了热泵系统循环热力学模型,利用EES程序对混合工质R1234ze/HCs及对应的纯工质热泵系统循环性能进行了对比分析。结果表明:R1234ze/R600在质量分数(20/80)和R1234ze/R600a在质量分数(40/60)存在最优配比,对应的最大制热COP_h分别为3. 41和3. 32,而R1234ze/R290则呈现单调下降趋势。R1234ze/R600(20/80)系统的制热COP_h比R1234ze/R600a(40/60)、R1234ze、R290、R600、R600a系统分别高2. 7%、17%、0. 09%、16. 3%和17. 8%,排气温度为76. 9℃,冷凝压力为0. 711 MPa,压比为6. 32,有望成为新型替代工质。     

Nucleate boiling heat transfer coefficients of HFO1234yf on various enhanced surfaces

In this study, nucleate boiling heat transfer coefficients (HTCs) of HFO1234yf HFC134a are measured on a flat plain, Turbo-B, Turbo-C, and Thermoexcel-E surfaces. All data are taken at the liquid pool temperature of 7 °C on small flat horizontal square copper plates (9.53 mm × 9.53 mm) at heat fluxes from 10 kW m⁻² to 200 kW m⁻² with an interval of 10 kW m⁻². Test results show that nucleate boiling HTCs of HFO1234yf on all four surfaces are similar to those of HFC134a at all heat fluxes tested in this study. At heat fluxes below 150 kW m⁻², Thermoexcel-E surface shows the highest heat transfer performance and hence is the best surface for the manufacture of the evaporators in refrigeration and air-conditioning equipment. On the other hand, at high heat fluxes above 150 kW m⁻², Turbo-B and Turbo-C show better heat transfer performance than Thermoexcel-E and hence are good for electronic cooling applications. Overall, HFO1234yf is a good long term candidate with excellent environmental properties to replace successfully HFC134a from the view point of pool boiling heat transfer. Hence HFO1234yf can be readily applied to the conventional evaporators designed for HFC134a.     

R1234yf/R290/R134a系气液相平衡的模拟

本文从理论方面研究了混合制冷剂的相平衡特性,基于Peng-Robinson(PR)状态方程与Wong-Sandler(WS)混合法则,结合Predictive Soave Redlich Kwong(PSRK)方程中使用的UNIFAC基团贡献法,构建了混合物气液相平衡预测模型(PRWS-UNIFAC-PSRK)。结果表明:二元混合物R32/R1234yf的压力及气相质量分数的模拟结果与实验值偏差分别在±2.5%和±0.02内;三元混合物R134a/R1234yf/R600a的压力及气相组分质量分数计算值与实验数据的偏差基本在±3%和±0.04内;建立了R1234yf/R290/R134a系的三元相平衡图,当质量分数在0.25/0.70/0.05左右时存在共沸点。通过采用多参数状态方程,改进活度系数模型,获取更为准确的二元相互作用系数,可进一步提高模型的预测精度。     

Experimental two-phase heat transfer coefficient and frictional pressure drop inside mini-channels during condensation with R1234yf and R134a

The present paper reports condensing two-phase flow pressure drop gradient and heat transfer coefficient (HTC) inside a mini-channel multiport tube with R1234yf and R134a. Several models available in the literature are used to compare predictions of these two fluids. Experimental data are analysed to get the influence of saturation temperature, mass flux, vapour quality and fluid properties. HTC values of R1234yf seem to be lower than R134a under similar conditions. Two-phase flow pressure drops are also lower in the case of the new refrigerant R1234yf.