THERMODYNAMIC LAB:

REFRIGERATION / AIR CONDITIONING CYCLE (T1)

KM31401: LAB IV
AZIRA BINTI MISMAN
BK15110037
GROUP 3B
FACULTY OF ENGINEERING, UMS

ABSTRACT

The objective of the refrigeration / air-conditioning cycle is to demonstrate vapor-

compression refrigeration and to study the relationship of pressure and temperature in a
refrigeration cycle. The vapor-compression cycle consists of four processes; isentropic
compression, constant-pressure heat rejection, throttling in an expansion device, and
constant-pressure heat absorption in an evaporator. A p-h diagram is used to determine the
performance calculation of a refrigerating machine. There are three conditions tested on the
air-conditioning unit, consisting of ambient, water heater (1 kW), and lower water heater (2
kW). The COPR obtained from the ambient, water heater and lower water heater are 3.18,
3.63 and 3.60, respectively, while the refrigeration capacities are 1507kJ/kg, 1885kJ/kg and
2385.8kJ/kg, respectively.

1. INTRODUCTION / OBJECTIVE

The objective of this experiment is to demonstrate vapor compression refrigeration and to

study the relationship of pressure and temperature in a refrigeration cycle. The A660 Air
Conditioning Unit is used in this experiment. The temperature reading for ambient, water
heater and lower water heater are recorded in a table. From the data obtained, P-h diagram
is plotted at the chart to obtain the value of enthalpy. The value of enthalpy is required to
calculate the COP of the air conditioning system and refrigerant capacity.

2. PROCEDURES

a. The air conditioning unit is switched on and the air flow is set to a convenient
value.
 b. The orifice differential pressure is set to 4 mm H2O.
c. When the condition is stabilized, the following observations are made,
i. Evaporator outlet temperature
ii. Condenser inlet temperature
iii. Condenser outlet temperature
iv. Evaporator outlet pressure (gauge)
v. Condenser inlet pressure (gauge)
vi. Condenser outlet pressure (gauge)
vii. Orifice differential pressure, Z
viii. Supply voltage, VL
ix. Heater resistance
d. The pre-heaters are switched on to give 1 kW (nominal) heating.
e. The procedures are repeated to give 2 kW heating, which is the lower water
heater.

3. RESULT AND DISCUSSION (~150 words)

1 2 3
TEST REF.
(Ambient) (1 kW) (2 kW)
Evaporator outlet temperature t13 °C 12.9 12.3 16.9
Condenser inlet temperature t14 °C 78.4 79.3 81.2
Condenser outlet temperature t15 °C 47.3 48.5 50.4
Supply volts VL V AC 225 220 225
-2
Evaporator outlet pressure (gauge) p1 kNm 275 275 325
-2
Condenser inlet pressure (gauge) p2 kNm 1190 1160 1300
-2
Condenser outlet pressure (gauge) p3 kNm 1175 1150 1250
Duct Differential Pressure Z mmH2O 4 4 4
Time interval X s 180 180 180
R-134a mass flow rate ref g/s 11 13 15.8

The COPR and refrigerant capacity are calculated by the data obtained from the P-h diagram
plotted on the psychometric chart. From the diagram plotted, the value for h1, h2 and h4 are
obtained. Based on the data in the table, it can be said that when temperature increases, the
pressure increases. However, the water heater data decreases slightly. It was supposed to
increase as it goes from ambient to 1 kW and 2 kW. The errors might come from the air loss
during experiment conducted since the glass on the outlet air is not closed properly, resulting
in the pressure loss and drop in mass flow rate. Besides, the data display also kept on
changing due to unstable conditions although we took 3 minutes interval before taking the
reading. Such errors can be reduced by repeating the whole experiment a few times and
also regularly maintaining the AC unit so that it will be in a good condition.
4. CONCLUSION

As a conclusion, the vapour compression cycle of the AC unit has been demonstrated and
the relationship between temperature and pressure is defined. The COPR obtained from the
ambient, water heater, and lower water heater are 3.18, 3.63 and 3.60, respectively, while
the refrigeration capacities are 1507kJ/kg, 1885kJ/kg and 2385.8kJ/kg, respectively.

REFERENCES

Cengel, Y., Boles, M. A. (2001). ‘Thermodynamics : An Engineering Approach (Sixth Ed.)’.

Boston: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.

JSRAE. (n.d.). ‘How to Draw a Refrigeration Cycle’. Retrieved on 8th March 2018 from a
website: http://www.jsrae.or.jp/jsrae/stady/Eng%20saikuru.htm

APPENDICES

a) Calculation of COP for Ambient

The enthalpies are obtained from the psychometric chart:-

= 407 kJ/kg, = 450 kJ/kg, = 270 kJ/kg, ̇ 11

COP for refrigeration cycle;

(407 – 270) kJ/kg 137 kJ/kg

( )kJ/kg
= 43 kJ/kg

Refrigeration capacity;
RC ̇( ) ( ) kJ/kg
= 1507 kJ/kg

b) Calculation of COP for water heater (1 kW)

The enthalpies are obtained from the psychometric chart:-

= 415 kJ/kg, = 455 kJ/kg, = 270 kJ/kg, ̇ 13

 COP for refrigeration cycle;

(415 – 270) kJ/kg 145 kJ/kg

( )kJ/kg = 40 kJ/kg

Refrigeration capacity;
RC ̇( ) ( ) kJ/kg
= 1885 kJ/kg

c) Calculation of COP for Lower water heater (2 kW)

The enthalpies are obtained from the psychometric chart:-

= 421 kJ/kg, = 463 kJ/kg, = 270 kJ/kg, ̇ 15.8

COP for refrigeration cycle;

(421 – 270) kJ/kg 151 kJ/kg

( )kJ/kg = 42 kJ/kg

Refrigeration capacity;
RC ̇( ) ( ) kJ/kg
= 2385.8 kJ/kg
d) Psychometric chart:-