Paper presented to the 10th International Conference on Heat Transfer, Fluid Mechanics and Thermodynamics, Florida, 14-16 July 2014.
The present article focuses on the climate performance of
three different refrigerants used to replace the
hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC), R22, for common
refrigeration applications. The original system consists of a
small commercial refrigeration system, which provides nominal
refrigerating capacity of 15 kW. The condition of replacement
of R22 by these alternative fluids (R290, R32 and R410A)
represented a drop-in operation; there were no changes in the
basic cycle components during the tests, with the exception of
the lubricating oil. Experimental tests were carried out in steady
state condition and throughout the tests the compressor had its
entire speed range explored for different levels of modulation
of the electronic expansion valve (EEV), thus enabling the
realization of a complete thermodynamic analysis. The use of
the hydrofluorocarbon (HFC), R32, which has a low global
warming potential (GWP) and zero ozone-depleting potential
(ODP) guaranteed good efficiency to the refrigeration system.
The results showed regular conditions of efficiency of the
experimental facility operating with the blend R410A. Finally,
the use of the hydrocarbon (HC) resulted in the maximum
values for the coefficient of performance, COP.
