Transient heat pump behaviour: a theoretical investigationComportement de la pompe à chaleur en régime transitoire: recherche théorique

A detailed mathematical model of vapour compression heat pumps is described. Model equations of the various heat pump components are given. The component models include the condenser, evaporator, accumulator, expansion device, and compressor. A brief discussion of the modelling techniques is presented, as is the solution methodology. Preliminary simulation results are also illustrated. The model developed predicts the spatial values of temperature and enthalpy as functions of time for the two heat exchangers. The temperatures and enthalpies in the accumulator, compressor and expansion device are modelled in lumped-parameter fashion. Pressure responses are determined by using continuity satisfying models for both the condenser and evaporator. The summary provides a list of future work anticipated in the area of dynamic heat pump modelling.     

制冷系统变工况性能数值模拟

采用分布参数法建立制冷系统数学模型,在建立冷凝器和蒸发器两相区模型时采用分相流模型,并考虑流型变化对制冷剂流动换热过程的影响。利用所建模型,分析电子膨胀阀开度、压缩机转速、冷凝器风速等参数变化对系统性能的影响,为控制规律的研究提供依据。     

An NTU-ε model for alternative refrigerants: Un modèle NTU-ε pour les frigorigènes de remplacement

This paper presents a steady state simulation model to predict the performance of alternative refrigerants in vapour compression refrigeration/heat pump systems. The model is based on the NTU-ε method in analysing the heat exchangers following an elemental approach. The model extends its applicability to new refrigerants including hydrocarbons and uses a large database of REFPROP package for refrigerant properties. The main inputs to the model include the physical details of the heat exchangers, compressor efficiency, mass flow rates of heat transfer fluids and their inlet temperatures to the evaporator and the condenser, the pressure drops across the heat exchangers and the capacity of either the evaporator or condenser (in kW). The model results are validated with a wide range of experimental data of HCFC22 and propane (HC290) on a heat pump test facility for a number of parameters, e.g. coefficient of performance, condenser capacity, mass flow rate of the refrigerant and compressor discharge temperature. Although the model is currently tested for pure refrigerants using compact brazed plate (counter flow type) heat exchangers, it can also be applied to mixture of refrigerants as well as to other types of heat exchangers.     

A state-space dynamic model for vapor compression refrigeration system based on moving-boundary formulation

A transient response model for vapor compression refrigeration system has been developed in the paper. The system model contains four sub-models representing condenser, evaporator, compressor and electronic expansion valve (EEV). The condenser and the evaporator are developed based on the moving-boundary formulation. Through linearization, these dynamic models are transformed into state-space representation which is expressed in the form of matrix. The compressor and EEV adopt steady models because their thermal inertia is much smaller compared with the heat exchangers (i.e., condenser and the evaporator). The system model has been validated by experiment in terms of step change of EEV opening degree and heat load as well as ramp increase of inlet temperature of coolant oil of condenser. The results show that the model simulations have a good agreement with the experimental data. The simulation errors compared with the experimental data are mostly less than 10%. Since the model proposed in this study is expressed in the form of state-space matrix, they are featured by strong portability and high computation efficiency. It allows us to investigate the thermal dynamic characteristics of a refrigeration system under any complicated conditions and develop excellent control schemes.     

A hybrid transient model for simulation of air-cooled refrigeration systems: Description and experimental validation

In this paper are described a hybrid dynamic model for transient simulation of refrigeration systems as well as dynamic experiments that have been performed on an air/water heap pump. The machine under consideration is made of an evaporator, a condenser, an expansion valve, a variable speed scroll compressor and a receiver. The refrigerant and second fluid flows in heat exchangers are approximated by a cascade of Continuous Stirred Tank Reactors (CSTRs). This model is quite flexible since a unique structure is used for the evaporator and the condenser models according to different boundary conditions. This is due to the use of a switching procedure between different configurations based on a phase stability test that is designed to ensure the continuity of the system simulation. An analytical thermodynamic model of the refrigerant based on an equation of state is used. Good agreement between simulation results and experimental data is achieved.     

Modeling evaluation of a direct-expansion solar-assisted heat pump water heater using R410A

A direct-expansion solar-assisted heat pump (DX-SAHP) system by using R410A as refrigerant is described, which can supply domestic hot water during the whole year. Based on the distributed parameter and homogeneous flow models of collector/evaporator and condenser, the lumped parameter models of compressor and electronic expansion valve, and the refrigerant charge model, a numerical model is developed to estimate the thermal performance of the system. Given the structure parameters, meteorological parameters, initial and final water temperatures, for a fixed superheat degree, the effects of the refrigerant charge quantity on the performance parameters of the system are analyzed, such as compressor power, heat gain of collector, heating time, collector efficiency and system COP. Furthermore, for a fixed refrigerant charge quantity, the effects of various parameters, including solar radiation, ambient temperature, compressor speed and initial water temperature, have been simulated and analyzed on the thermal performance of the system.     

Performance and heat transfer characteristics of hydrocarbon refrigerants in a heat pump systemPerformance et caractéristiques de transfert de chaleur des frigorigènes hydrocarbures utilisés dans un système de pompe à chaleur

Performance of a heat pump system using hydrocarbon refrigerants has been investigated experimentally. Single component hydrocarbon refrigerants (propane, isobutane, butane and propylene) and binary mixtures of propane/isobutane and propane/butane are considered as working fluids in a heat pump system. The heat pump system consists of compressor, condenser, evaporator, and expansion device with auxiliary facilities such as evacuating and charging unit, the secondary heat transfer fluid circulation unit, and several measurement units. Performance of each refrigerant is compared at several compressor speeds and temperature levels of the secondary heat transfer fluid. Coefficient of performance (COP) and cooling/heating capacity of hydrocarbon refrigerants are presented. Experimental results show that some hydrocarbon refrigerants are comparable to R22. Condensation and evaporation heat transfer coefficients of selected refrigerants are obtained from overall conductance measurements for subsections of heat exchangers, and compared with those of R22. It is found that heat transfer is degraded for hydrocarbon refrigerant mixtures due to composition variation with phase change. Empirical correlations to estimate heat transfer coefficients for pure and mixed hydrocarbons are developed, and they show good agreement with experimental data. Some hydrocarbon refrigerants have better performance characteristics than R22.     

多联式空调制冷系统动态仿真研究

为了研究多联机制冷系统的动态性能,建立了基于简化气液两相流体网络的多联式空调制冷系统动态仿真模型.其中,压缩机和电子膨胀阀采用稳态模型,蒸发器和冷凝器采用移动边界动态仿真模型,气液分离器采用动态模型.采用Matlab和Simulink为仿真工具,对多联机动态仿真模型进行求解,并通过一套具有四台室内蒸发器的多联机系统的实验结果进行验证和改进.结果表明,该动态仿真模型能够准确预测多联机动态过程的变化趋势,并保持很高的计算精度,蒸发温度、冷凝温度和过热度的误差都在1.0℃左右,排气温度误差小于3.0℃,可以用于多联机动态性能分析,并可作为开发和优化多联机控制策略和控制算法的有效工具.     

Development of a novel multi-capillary, multi-temperature commercial refrigerator cabinet with common low-pressure receiver

A multi-temperature 4 drawer catering cabinet was designed to operate using a low-pressure receiver with capillary expansion to the separate evaporator in each drawer. Low-pressure receivers have been shown to be an effective way of allowing evaporators to operate in a fully flooded mode thus enabling more efficient use of the evaporator surface for heat transfer. If a low-pressure receiver is used in a refrigeration circuit the control of refrigerant flow into the evaporator is less critical as the expansion device is not responsible for preventing liquid returning to the compressor. Therefore, a capillary expansion device can be used effectively over a range of operating pressures. The system was shown to be effective at maintaining temperatures in the storage drawers during chilled, frozen and mixed storage temperature tests carried out to the EN441 test standard. The cabinet operated successfully at all conditions except when the heat load in each drawer was excessive (>400 W above base level heat load). In this case, refrigerant was found to back up in the condenser and the low-pressure receiver was empty of liquid refrigerant. A solution to this would be to allow controlled flow of refrigerant from the condenser to the low-pressure receiver at high condensing pressures.     

A model-driven multivariable controller for vapor compression refrigeration systems

A model-driven controller for vapor compression refrigeration systems is presented herein. Mathematical sub-models were developed for each of the system components: heat exchangers (condenser and evaporator), variable-speed compressor and variable-orifice electric expansion device. The overall system simulation model was used to design a MIMO controller based on the linear-quadratic Gaussian method using a state observer of the Kalman filter type. A purpose-built testing apparatus comprised of a variable-speed compressor and a pulse-width modulated expansion valve was used to collect data for the system identification and model validation exercises. It was found that the model reproduces the experimental trends of the working pressures in conditions far from the operation point (±30%) with a maximum deviation of ±5%. Additional experiments were also performed to verify the ability of the controller of tracking reference changes and rejecting thermal load disturbances as high as 15%.     

An elemental NTU- model for vapour-compression liquid chillers

This paper presents a steady-state model for predicting the performance of vapour-compression liquid chillers over a wide range of operating conditions. The model overcomes the idealisations of previous models with regard to modelling the heat exchangers. In particular, it employs an elemental NTU- methodology to model both the shell-and-tube condenser and evaporator. The approach allows the change in heat transfer coefficients throughout the heat exchangers to be accounted for, thereby improving both physical realism and the accuracy of the simulation model. The model requires only those inputs that are readily available to the user (e.g. condenser inlet water temperature and evaporator water outlet temperature). The outputs of the model include system performance variables such as the compressor electrical work input and the coefficient of performance (COP) as well as states of the refrigerant throughout the refrigeration cycle. The methodology employed within the model also allows the performance of chillers using refrigerant mixtures to be modelled. The model is validated with data from one single screw chiller and one twin-screw chiller where the agreement is found to be within ±10%.     

变频空调器中毛细管应用的理论计算与研究

在结合毛细管、冷凝器、蒸发器、压缩机的数学模型的基础上,对采用毛细管作为节流元件的变频空调器系统进行整体计算,绘制出相应的计算结果图表,进而分析了不同频率下系统达到稳定时的制冷量、COP、制冷剂流量等随压缩机频率变化而变化的趋势,得出毛细管所能适应的频率范围。     

风冷热泵机组增加湿帘预冷的方案设计与计算

湿帘预冷技术是一种新型的空调节能技术，该技术可以保证在不增加两器面积的前提下，大幅提高机组的制冷效率，还可以在高温天气情况下保护压缩机。以20冷吨的风冷热泵模块式机组为例，设计增加湿帘预冷装置的初步方案，包括湿帘窗的结构和供水系统，可供相关设计人员参考。     

多元VRV空调系统性能研究

提高舒适性与降低能耗是空调系统的发展方向.在现代建筑中,在同一时刻,有的房间需要制冷,有的房间需要制热,甚至有的房间既不需要制冷也不需要制热,传统的空调系统只能所有房间同时供热或同时制冷,本文提出了一种新型的多元热回收VRV空调系统.此系统由一个室外机和多个室内机构成.系统通过变频压缩机和电子膨胀阀自动调节各室内机的制冷剂流量以满足各个房间的负荷的需要,通过电子膨胀阀与电磁三通阀的切换实现多个房间同时制冷和制热的要求.制热房间的室内机作为冷凝器,制冷房间的室内机作为蒸发器,而室外机可能是冷凝器也可能是蒸发器.这样,由于冷凝热与蒸发热同时被利用,系统能效比大大提高,与得到相同冷热量的分散机组相比,室外机的容量和能耗都大大降低.与传统的空调系统相比,此系统用较低的能耗提供有较高的舒适性,适用于住宅或商业建筑使用,有制冷、热泵和热回收等五种运行模式,可在全年内运行.     

Mechanical refrigeration using an ejector-injector to transfer the working fluid from the evaporator to the condenser

The refrigeration plant described in this paper uses an ejector-injector instead of a compressor to pump the freezing mixture from the evaporator to the condenser. A pump draws the liquid from the condenser and pumps it to another vessel. Before the ejector-injector, a heat exchanger preheats the refrigerating fluid to speed up the mixing with steam ejected from the evaporator. The steam is compressed using kinetic energy in the ejector-injector and the pump supplies a discharge pressure to operate the plant. The heat transfer fluid, the condensing and evaporating pressures and the energy losses determine the operating features of the plant. Energy saving is obtained using such an ejector-injector and it provides a simple method of refrigeration. The operating conditions were optimized in this study and the feasibility of the plant was confirmed.     

Numerical study on the steady state and transient performance of a multi-type heat pump system

Numerical methods are provided to analyze dynamic characteristics as well as steady-state performance of a multi-type heat pump system. Lumped parameter method was applied to simulate the compressor and expansion device. Additionally, fully distributed method was used for analyzing the condenser and evaporators. The transient terms in the governing equations for heat exchangers were solved adopting the wave equation solutions. The simulation results predict the steady-state performance of a heat pump system with the deviation of ±10%. The transient simulation showed satisfactory responses of temperatures and pressures for various compressor speeds or expansion valve openings. From the results, it was shown that the operating conditions of secondary fluid of one indoor unit had minor influence on the performance of the other unit, while opening of expansion valve affected the transient responses of both evaporators significantly.     

小型制冷系统的稳态模拟

所建立的小型制冷系统模型包括压缩机、冷凝器、膨胀阀和蒸发器四个部件模型以及使系统封闭的 充灌量模型,实现了所有相关物性参数计算的程序化以便于模型的数值求解。在蒸发器模型中提出了析湿系数 的新算法,加速了模型的计算。用所建立的模型模拟工作参数的变化对系统性能的影响,其结果与实际规律相 符合,证明了该模型的正确性。根据模型得出的定量结果可分析各性能参数变化的相互影响,并对性能参数的 敏感性进行分析,为系统优化和控制提供理论依据。此外,换热器模型还可独立用于各种换热器性能的分析与 优化。     

Comparative study of irreversibilities in an aqua-ammonia absorption refrigeration system

Irreversibilities in components of an aqua-ammonia absorption refrigeratio system (ARS) have been determined by second law analysis. The components of the ARS are as follows: condenser, evaporator, absorber, generator, pump, expansion valves, mixture heat exchanger and refrigerant heat exchanger. It is assumed that the ammonia concentration at the generator exit is, independent of the other parameters, equal to 0.999 and at the evaporator exit the gas is saturated vapour. Pressrre losses between the generator and condenser, and the evaporator and absorber are taken into consideration. In the results the dimensionless exergy loss of each component, the exergetic coefficient of performance, the coefficient of performance and the circulation ratio are given graphically for each different generator, evaporator, condenser and absorber temperature.     

螺杆冷水机组稳态仿真

为预测螺杆冷水机组在不同结构参数下的变工况特性，提出了标准螺杆冷水机组，带经济器一级节流螺杆冷水机组和带经济器二级节流螺杆冷水机组稳态仿真模型和算法。其中，压缩机压缩过程描述为多变过程；压缩机补气过程描述为等容、绝热混合过程；电子膨胀阀膨胀描述为等焓过程；壳管式冷凝器以及满液式蒸发器用对数平均温差方法计算。模型计算结果表明，仿真模型定性合理。     

Experimental pure fluid and binary mixture performance in a heat pump equipped with a distillation column

An experimental heat pump system that included a distillation column, accumulator/sump, and heater was experimentally investigated using two different working fluids, R32 and a mixture of R32/134a. Performance variations with changes in sump heater power, condenser and evaporator heat transfer fluid flow, and compressor speed were examined. Heating capacity generally increased with increases in the factors tested. Heating capacity increases were generally smaller with the R32/134a tests than with the R32 tests, except with variations in sump heater power. An increase in sump heater power caused a pronounced increase in the circulating R32 concentration during the mixture tests, and the heating capacity increased markedly. The increase in heating capacity with sump heater power during the R32/134a tests was on par with the increase with compressor power during these same tests. The increase in capacity with sump heater power during the R32/134a tests also was substantial even when compared with the capacity increase with compressor speed during the R32 tests.