Advantages of Vapor Absorption Refrigeration

No Explanation Vapor Absorption Refrigeration

1 Method of compression of the refrigerant the absorbent
2 Power consumption devices the pump

3 The amount of power required the pump requires very small amount of
power and it remains almost the same (or may
increase slightly) even for higher capacities of
refrigeratio

4 Type of energy required The vapor absorption system runs mainly on

the waste or the extra heat in the plant.
the waste heat from the
diesel engine, hot water from the solar water
heater, etc
5 Running cost only small pump requires electric power and it
is quite low.

6 Foundations required and noise The absorption refrigeration systems operate

silently (no major moving part)

7 Maintenance In the absorption refrigeration system the only

moving part is the small pump that fails rarely.

8 Capacity control of the system the absorption refrigeration system it is

possible to obtain stepless capacity control and
zero capacity when there is no load on the
system.

9 Type of refrigerant used and its cost In ammonia-water absorption refrigeration

system, ammonia is used as the refrigerant,
which is easily and cheaply available. In lithium
bromide system, water is used as the
refrigerant, which is also available cheaply and
easily

10 Leakage of the refrigerant In the absorption refrigeration system there are

no (or very few) leakages of the refrigerant and
the refrigerant itself is very cheap

11 Greenhouse effect In the absorption refrigeration system no

refrigerant produces the greenhouse effect, so
their use won’t be stopped in future.

Disadvantages of Vapor Absorption Refrigeration

No Explanation Vapor Absorption Refrigeration
1 Initial capital cost High
2 Corrosive nature of lithium bromide lithium bromide is corrosive in nature, which
reduces the overall life of the system. ammonia
is corrosive to copper.

3 Low working pressures In case of the lithium bromide system these

pressures are so low that even the expansion
valve is not required since the drop in pressure
of the refrigerant due to its flow is good enough
to produce its expansion. Due to this the
refrigeration system should be sealed
thoroughly so that no atmospheric gases would
enter the refrigeration system

4 Coefficient of Performance (COP) the COP of the two stage lithium bromide
system is about 1.1

5 Higher heat rejection heat rejection factor for absorption refrigeration

system is high and it can be around 2.5 (heat
has to be rejected from number of parts like
condenser, absorber, analyzer, rectifier etc)

Reference
Basic Refrigeration and Air Conditioning by P N Ananthanarayanan, Tata McGraw-Hill Publishing Company Limited
rigeration
Vapor Compression Refrigeration
compressor
the compressor is the major power consuming
device

The compressor of the vapor compression

cycle requires large quantities of power for
its operation and it increases as the size of the
refrigeration system increases.

the compressor can be run by electric power

supply only

the running cost of the vapor compression

refrigeration system is very high(need electric
power -> expensive)
The compressor of the vapor compression
system is operated at very high speeds and it
makes lots of vibrations and noise. It also
requires very strong foundation so that it
can remain intact under vibrations and high
pressures of the refrigerant

the vapor compression system requires lots of

maintenance because compressor is the
crucial part of the vapor compression cycle,
and it has number of moving parts

In the vapor compression cycle the capacity

control of the system is done from the
compressor and in most of the cases stepwise
capacity control is obtained.

In case of the vapor compression refrigeration

system halocarbons are used as the
refrigerants, which are very expensive.

In case of the vapor compression systems

there are lots of leakages of the refrigerant
thus regular recharge of the refrigerant is
required which is very expensive.

Most of the halocarbon refrigerants used in

the compression refrigeration system produces
greenhouse effect. As per the Montreal
Protocol, their use has to stop completely by
the year 2020.

efrigeration
Vapor Compression Refrigeration
Less
 In the vapor compression system copper is
used with the halocarbon refrigerants and they
are quite safe thus ensuring long life of the
refrigeration system.

the system of the compression refrigeration

should also be packed tightly, but this is to
prevent the leakage of the refrigerant to the
atmosphere.

the vapor compression system used for the air

conditioning applications it is about 4 to 5

the compression refrigeration system the heat

is given up only from the condenser, so it heat
rejection factor is small, which is about 1.2.

lishing Company Limited