TUTORIAL 19

Vapour Compression Refrigeration

Cycle
PROBLEM DESCRIPTION: TUTORIAL 19

Objective:
The objective of this tutorial is to model and design a refrigeration cycle with the given design criteria
and to determine the condensation and evaporation pressure.
PROBLEM DESCRIPTION: TUTORIAL 19 (CONTINUED)
The aim of this tutorial is to demonstrate the modelling of a standard refrigeration cycle using R22 as refrigerant. A Step by
step procedure is presented to assist the user in developing a Flownex model for a vapour compression refrigeration cycle
in which both a steady-state and a transient simulation will be considered.

The system consists of a positive displacement compressor,

condenser, a section of pipe between the condenser outlet and
the expansion valve, an expansion valve, evaporator and a
section of pipe between the evaporator outlet and the positive
displacement compressor inlet. The layout of the refrigeration
cycle is shown on the right.
 PROBLEM DESCRIPTION: TUTORIAL 19 (CONTINUED)
Refrigerant (R22) vapour enters the positive displacement compressor
shortly after it reached a superheated state where it is then compressed.
The high pressure high temperature vapour exiting the compressor is
then sensibly cooled to saturation conditions where after it is condensed
and ultimately sub-cooled (cooled to temperatures below saturation
temperatures). The liquid refrigerant adiabatically flows through a tube to
the inlet of the expansion valve. The expansion valve is in essence a
restrictor and it causes a large pressure and adiabatic temperature drop.
The liquid refrigerant is then evaporated in the evaporator where the
temperature rises to temperatures just high enough for the refrigerant to
enter the superheated phase. The vapour refrigerant then flows through
a tube to the inlet of the compressor to complete the cycle.
UNDERSTANDING THE PROBLEM
It is recommended that an analysis of the refrigeration cycle on a Temperature-Entropy (T-s) diagram be done
before any Flownex simulations are built. A typical T-s diagram for a refrigeration cycle is shown below on the right.
Process 1-2 represents the positive displacement compressor. During process 2-3 the fluid is cooled below
condensation temperature, condensed and then further sub-cooled to state 3.

2
Process 3-4 and 4-5 represents the
Initial value
pipe section and the expansion valve specified

respectively. From 5 to 6 the fluid is

evaporated and then heated to enter
Fixed boundary
the superheated phase at 6. Process T condition
3 Fixed boundary
6-1 represents a piper section which 4 condition
6
closes the cycle. 1

s
DESIGN CRITERIA AND DATA
Before a design of any kind can be made it is necessary to know what the goal of the design is: It is thus necessary to
know what the specific need is and what conditions needs to be considered when you are busy with the design. The next
few slides will clearly state what the design limitations are and what needs to be kept in mind while designing this specific
system.
Positive displacement compressor:
Swept volume: 0.001 m3
Ratio of dead volume to swept volume: 0.05
Rotational speed: 2000 rpm
Number of stages: 1
Isentropic efficiency: 90 %
Note: For two-phase fluids, one is only allowed to specify the isentropic efficiency.
Condenser:
Typical heat transfer: 116 kW
Refrigeration cycle (primary) side fluid: R22
Secondary side fluid: Water
Condensation temperature: 50 °C
Water inlet temperature: 30 °C
Typical temperature difference on water side: 10 °C
Water inlet pressure: 100 kPa
Refrigerant outlet quality: -0.03 (Sub-cooled)
DESIGN CRITERIA AND DATA
Pipe section between condenser and expansion valve:
Length: 1m
Diameter: 0.05 m
Roughness: 30 µm
Expansion valve:
Diameter: To be determined (Initial guess 0.007 m)
Discharge coefficient: 0.6 (Good first order approximation)
Evaporator:
Typical heat transfer: 90 kW
Refrigeration cycle (primary) side fluid: R22
Secondary side fluid: Water
Water inlet temperature: 15 °C
Typical temperature difference on water side: 8 °C
Water inlet pressure: 100 kPa
Refrigerant outlet quality: 1.03 (Super heated)
Pipe section between evaporator and compressor:
Length: 2m
Diameter: 0.2 m
Roughness: 30 µm
SUMMARY: TUTORIAL 19
• Step 1: Create a new project
• Step 2: Create the Compressor
• Step 3: Assign the operating fluid
• Step 4: Specify the Compressor inputs
• Step 5: Specify the Boundary Conditions inputs
• Step 6: Solve the network
• Step 7: Create the Condenser
• Step 8: Assign the Condenser operating fluid
• Step 9: Specify the Condenser (Primary) inputs
• Step 10: Specify the Condenser (Secondary) inputs
• Step 11: Specify Condenser (Primary) outlet boundary condition
• Step 12: Specify the Condenser (Secondary) boundary conditions
• Step 13: Specify guess values
• Step 14: Solve the network
• Step 15: Add a Pipe component
• Step 16: Specify the Pipe inputs
• Step 17: Specify the Pipe outlet boundary conditions
• Step 18: Specify guess values
• Step 19: Solve the network
• Step 20: Create a pressure release valve
SUMMARY: TUTORIAL 19 (CONTINUE)
• Step 21: Specify the Restrictor output boundary conditions
• Step 22: Specify the Restrictor inputs
• Step 23: Solve the network
• Step 24: Create the Evaporator
• Step 25: Assign the Evaporator operating fluid
• Step 26: Specify the Evaporator (Primary) inputs
• Step 27: Specify the Evaporator (Secondary) inputs
• Step 28: Specify Evaporator (Primary) outlet boundary condition
• Step 29: Specify the Evaporator (Secondary) boundary conditions
• Step 30: Specify guess values
• Step 31: Solve the network
• Step 32: Add a Pipe component
• Step 33: Specify the Pipe inputs
• Step 34: Specify guess values
• Step 35: Solve the network
• Step 36: View the results
• Step 37: Create a Snap
• Step 38: View the Refrigeration Library
• Step 39: View the Refrigerant properties
• Step 40: Set up an Action to release the boundary conditions
SUMMARY: TUTORIAL 19 (CONTINUE)
• Step 41: Specify the boundary condition actions
• Step 42: Specify the component and property
• Step 43: Similarly specify the remaining actions
• Step 44: Create Line Graphs
• Step 45: Specify the Mass Flow graph
• Step 46: Specify the Quality graph
• Step 47: Specify the Temperature graph
• Step 48: Specify the Pressure graph
• Step 49: Edit the Line Graph text
• Step 50: Set the Scheduler
• Step 51: Load the Initial Conditions
• Step 52: Create a Snap
• Step 53: Create a Locus Graph
• Step 54: Specify the Locus Graph
• Step 55: Specify the Locus Graph (continue)
• Step 56: Edit the Locus Graph
• Step 57: Solve the network
• Step 58: Designing to meet Design Criteria
• Step 59: Run the network
• Step 60: Run the network – Steady state achieved
STEP 1: CREATE A NEW PROJECT
a

a. Select File > New.

b. Assign the file with an appropriate name e.g.

Tutorial 19.

c. Save the file in a preferred location.

c
 STEP 2: CREATE THE COMPRESSOR
a. Select the Components tab from the
Flownex libraries window. d
f
b. Browse to Turbos and Pumps.
e g
c. Drag a Positive Displacement
Compressor onto the drawing
canvas.
b
d. Browse to Nodes and Boundaries.

e. Drag 2 Nodes onto the drawing

canvas.

f. Drag 2 Boundary Conditions onto c

the drawing canvas.

g. Complete the network as shown.

a
STEP 3: ASSIGN THE OPERATING FLUID
a. Right click on the Positive Displacement Compressor and select Assign Fluids.

b. Open the drop down list under Fluid.

c. Select Two Phase Fluids under Type.

d. Select Refrigerant under Category.

e. Select R22 under Description.

f. Press OK.

e
f
a
Note that the refrigerant used in this tutorial is R22 as it is regularly used in
refrigeration and heating cycles.
 STEP 4: SPECIFY THE COMPRESSOR INPUTS
a. Select the Positive
Displacement Compressor
and press F4 on the
keyboard to display the b
properties window on the left
of the screen.

b. Enter Compressor at
Description. d
c
f a
c. Enter a Speed of 2000 rpm. e
d. Enter a Swept volume of g
0.001 m3.

e. Enter a Dead/swept volume

ratio of 0.05.

f. Enter a value of 1 at Number

of stages.

g. Ensure Efficiency option is

set to Isentropic efficiency
and specify a value of 0.9.
POSITIVE DISPLACEMENT COMPRESSOR INLET AND OUTLET CONDITIONS
a. Select External Charts and Lookup Tables tab on the bottom right of the screen.

b. Click on the Flownex drop menu.

c. Click on the Materials and Fluids drop menu. b

d. Click on the Two Phase Fluids drop menu.

e. Click on the Refrigerant drop menu.

f. Double click on R22. Select Show Temperature vs Entropy Diagram (TS). c

d
e
f

From the T-s diagram (slide 5) it can be seen that the positive displacement compressor
inlet is in the superheated region (point one on the T-s diagram). The evaporation
temperature for R22 is specified as 0°C for the evaporator.
f
The corresponding pressure for an evaporation temperature of 0⁰C is approximately 505
kPa. This is an approximation made from using the Flownex Libraries. The following a
procedure describes how this approximation was made. It is firstly necessary to open the
Temperature entropy diagram by following these simple instructions.
POSITIVE DISPLACEMENT COMPRESSOR INLET AND OUTLET CONDITIONS
a. Place the mouse pointer at point
“a” as shown .

b. Click and drag while moving the

mouse to point “b” as shown.

c. Release the mouse button and

view the “zoomed” area.
a
d. Continue step “b” until there is a
definite temperature line visible.
b

Tip: The colors used in the Temperature entropy diagram is described in the top right corner of the diagram. 0⁰ C is
equal to 273.15 K. It is, however, at this point impossible to make accurate readings from the T-S diagram. It is thus
necessary to “zoom” in and make an accurate reading.
POSITIVE DISPLACEMENT COMPRESSOR INLET AND OUTLET CONDITIONS
a. When the previous slide is
complete, do not continue to
“zoom”.
b. Hover mouse over the desired
temperature to ensure an
accurate pressure reading as
shown.

b
View the figure on the left. The temperature
and pressure where the mouse hovered is
273.1K and 497.18kPa respectively.
The desired temperature was 273.15K with
an assumed pressure of 505kPa. This
assumption thus ensures that the refrigerant
is in the superheated phase to ensure that a
quality of 1.03 can be achieved.
The outlet quality of the evaporator is specified (slide 6 and 7) to be 1.03. The quality at the inlet of the compressor must be
the same as the quality at the outlet of the evaporator. The pressure at the compressor inlet is assumed to be 505kPa to
satisfy the assumption that the refrigerant is in the superheated phase (quality of 1.03). The desired temperature to ensure a
quality of 1.03 thus has to be determined. This temperature is iteratively determined. By choosing a compressor inlet
temperature, assigning an inlet and outlet compressor pressures of 505kPa and 1951kPa and then by pressing solve, it is
possible to determine the quality of the refrigerant by hovering the mouse pointer over the compressor inlet node. By doing
this a temperature of 8.7⁰C was chosen with an accompanying quality of 1.0297. This is a good enough assumption for this
tutorial.
The condensation temperature of the condenser is given as 50°C. The approximate pressure correlating with the
temperature is 1951 kPa. This pressure is determined by following the same procedure as was followed to calculate the
pressure above (505kPa) but only in the Sub cooled region (Blue side).
Thus, specify the inlet pressure and temperature for the positive displacement compressor as 505 kPa and 8.7⁰C
respectively and the outlet pressure as 1951 kPa.
 STEP 5: SPECIFY THE BOUNDARY CONDITION INPUTS
a. Select the Compressor inlet Boundary Condition and press F4 on the
keyboard to open the properties window.
b. Set the Pressure boundary condition to Fixed on user value.
c. Enter a Pressure of 505 kPa. f
d. Set the Temperature boundary condition to Fixed on user value.
e. Enter a Temperature of 8.7°C.
f. Select the Compressor outlet Boundary Condition and press F4 on the
keyboard to open the properties window.
g. Set the Pressure boundary condition to Fixed on user value.
h. Enter a Pressure of 1951 kPa.

a f

g
b h
c
d
e a
 STEP 6: SOLVE THE NETWORK
a

b
a. Press Save.

b. Press Solve Steady State.

c. View the Flow Solver results.

d. Hover the mouse over the Compressor outlet Node to view the Tooltip d
results.
e
e. Note the Total temperature of 84.4061°C, this temperature will be used
as a Temperature guess value in future calculations.
f
f. Note that the mass source is -0.606944 kg/s. The minus sign indicates
that a mass flow of 0.606944 kg/s is leaving the specific node.

c
 STEP 7: CREATE THE CONDENSER
a. Delete the Compressor outlet Boundary Condition.
b. Select the Components tab from the Flownex libraries window.
c. Expand the Flownex tree and browse to Heat Exchangers.
d. Drag a Recuperator - Primary onto the drawing canvas.
e. Drag a Recuperator - Secondary onto the drawing canvas.
f. Use Nodes and Boundary Conditions to complete the network as shown. c
g. Link the components as shown.

A counter flow recuperator heat

exchanger is selected for this tutorial
for illustration purposes. The heat
exchanger selection depends on the
application and system design of
each refrigeration system. The f
recuperator selected was designed d
to keep the velocity for the liquid flow a e
(secondary) to 1 m/s or less and the
velocity for the gas flow (primary) to g
10 m/s or less. The flow path length
and heat transfer area were varied b
until complete condensation of the
refrigerant occurred and the total
heat transfer was in the region of 116
kW. This was done through an
iterative process.
 STEP 8: ASSIGN THE CONDENSER OPERATING FLUID
a. Right click on the Recuperator - Secondary and select
Assign Fluids.
b
b. Open the drop down list under Fluid.
c. Select Pure Fluids under Type.
d. Select Specific Applications under Category. c
e. Select H2O - Water (variable density) under
Description.
f. Press OK.

f
CONDENSER OPERATING INPUTS:
In order to be able to design a system it is necessary for some parameters to be known. The following parameters are
known and should be used in the design of the condenser system.
Condenser system:
Flow direction: Counter
Number of increments: 20
Heat capacity (MC): 100 kJ/K
Conductivity of wall: 14 W/m K
Wall thickness: 1 mm
Total heat transfer area: 5.28 m2
Area ratio between sides: 1
Flow path length: 0.4 m
Hydraulic diameter on both sides: 3 mm
Total frontal inlet and outlet area refrigerant side: 0.0009 m2
Total frontal inlet and outlet area water side: 0.0017 m2
Laminar friction factor multiplier (both sides): 1
Turbulent friction factor multiplier (both sides): 1
Laminar Nusselt number (both sides): 3.66
Turbulent Nusselt number multiplier (both sides): 1
Roughness (both sides): 30 µm
Mass flow on water side: 1.7 kg/s
STEP 9: SPECIFY THE CONDENSER (PRIMARY) INPUTS
a
a. Select the Recuperator - Primary and press F4 to open the
properties window.
b. Enter Condenser (Primary) at Description. b
c. Set the Flow Direction to Counter.
d. Enter a Heat transfer area of 5.28 m2.
e. Enter a Fluid path length of 0.4 m. c
d
f. Enter a value of 20 at Number of increments. e
f
g. Enter a Wall thickness of 0.001 m. g
h. Enter a Wall conductivity of 14 W/m2·K.
h i
i. Enter a Heat capacity of 100 kJ/K.
j. Enter a Laminar friction factor multiplier of 1. j
k
k. Enter a Turbulent friction factor multiplier of 1. l
m
l. Enter a Laminar Nusselt number of 3.66. n
o
m. Enter a Turbulent Nusselt number multiplier of 1.
n
n. Enter an Inlet and Outlet Hydraulic diameter of 0.003 m. o
o. Enter an Inlet and Outlet Area of 0.0009 m2. p
p. Enter a Roughness of 30 µm.
 STEP 10: SPECIFY THE CONDENSER (SECONDARY) INPUTS
a
a. Select the Recuperator - Secondary and press F4 to open the
properties window.

b. Enter Condenser (Secondary) at Description.

b
c. Enter a Laminar friction factor multiplier of 1.

d. Enter a Turbulent friction factor multiplier of 1.

e. Enter a Laminar Nusselt number of 3.66.

c
f. Enter a Turbulent Nusselt number multiplier of 1. d
e
g. Enter an Inlet and Outlet Hydraulic diameter of 0.003 m.
f
g
h. Enter an Inlet and Outlet Area of 0.0017 m2. h
i. Enter a Roughness of 30 µm. g
h

i
STEP 11: SPECIFY CONDENSER (PRIMARY) OUTLET BOUNDARY CONDITION
a. Select the Condenser (Primary) outlet Boundary Condition and press F4 to open the properties window.

b. Set the Pressure boundary condition to Fixed on user value.

c. Enter a Pressure of 1951 kPa.

d. Set the Temperature boundary condition to Fixed on user value.

e. Enter a Temperature of 46.8°C.

a
Tip: In order to ensure
that the quality at the
output of the condenser is
-0.03 it is necessary to
specify a temperature and
b pressure. It is already
a c assumed that the
d
e pressure should be 1951
kPa (slide 17), but a
temperature has to be
chosen. This process is
also done iteratively as
before. The chosen value
is thus 46.8 ⁰C.
STEP 12: SPECIFY THE CONDENSER (SECONDARY) BOUNDARY CONDITIONS
a. Select the Condenser (Secondary) inlet Boundary Condition and press F4 to open the properties window.
b. Set the Pressure boundary condition to Fixed on user value.
c. Enter a Pressure of 100 kPa.
d. Set the Temperature boundary condition to Fixed on user value.
e. Enter a Temperature of 30°C.
f. Select the Condenser (Secondary) outlet Boundary Condition and open the properties window.
g. Set the Mass source boundary condition to Fixed on user value.
h. Enter a Mass source of -1.7 kg/s.

a f

b
c g
d h
e

Note: The water side inlet pressure and temperature was given as 100 kPa
and 30 °C and the mass flow was given above to be 1.7 kg/s.
 STEP 13: SPECIFY GUESS VALUES
a. Select the Compressor outlet Node and press F4 to open the properties
window.
b. Set Specify guess values to Yes.
c. Set Specify pressure guess value to Yes.
d. Enter a Pressure guess value of 1951 kPa. This is the pressure of the b
boundary condition before it was deleted. c
d
e. Set Specify temperature guess value to Yes. e
f
f. Enter a Temperature guess value of 84.4°C. This is the temperature
result obtained in Step 6.

The pressure boundary on the outlet of the compressor is relaxed (boundary

specification removed) and the same pressure is specified on the outlet of the
condenser (state 3 on the T-s diagram). It is known that the refrigerant outlet
quality is specified to be -0.03.
The corresponding pressure and temperature to obtain this quality was determined to be 46.8
⁰C and 1951 kPa (slide 17). If the network was to be solved now, the solver would fail: This
can be explained at the hand of the T-s diagram (slide 5). On the T-s diagram only state 1
and 3 will be specified. Before the solver performs the first iteration, Flownex interpolates
a
between the boundary values specified to obtain initial values to start the calculations with.
As a result the solution would interpolate between state 1 and 3 on the T-s diagram. The
problem is that the fluid is in two different phases at point 1 and 3. These initial values will
make it difficult for the solver to obtain the correct answers. This problem is rectified by
specifying Solver Guess Values at node 2 as a rule of thumb. Specify the initial pressure
and temperature as 1951 kPa and 84.4 °C respectively. These values are obtained by
solving the network before adding the condensing system (slide 19).
 STEP 14: SOLVE THE NETWORK
a

a. Press Save.

b. Press Solve Steady State.

c. View the Flow Solver results.

d
d. Hover the mouse over the Compressor outlet Node to view the
e
Tooltip results.
f
e. The calculated Total pressure is 1958.22 kPa.

f. The calculated Total temperature is 84.6348°C.

c
STEP 15: ADD A PIPE COMPONENT
a. Delete the Condenser (Primary) outlet Boundary Condition.

b. Select the Components tab from the Flownex libraries window.

c
c. Expand the Flownex tree and browse to Piping.

d. Drag a Pipe onto the drawing canvas.

e. Use Nodes and Boundary Conditions to complete the network as shown.

a
b
e

f
STEP 16: SPECIFY THE PIPE INPUTS
a. Select the Pipe component and press F4 to open the properties
window.

b. Enter a Length of 1 m.

c. Enter an Inlet Diameter of 0.05 m.

d. Enter a Roughness of 30 µm.

a
d
STEP 17: SPECIFY THE PIPE OUTLET BOUNDARY CONDITIONS
a. Select the Pipe outlet Boundary Condition and press F4 to open the properties window.

b. Set the Pressure boundary condition to Fixed on user value.

c. Enter a Pressure of 1951 kPa.

d. Set the Temperature boundary condition to Fixed on user value.

e. Enter a Temperature of 46.8°C.

b c

d e

a
STEP 18: SPECIFY GUESS VALUES
a. Select the Pipe inlet Node and press F4 to open the properties window. Note: The guess values are the
same as what the boundary
b. Set Specify guess values to Yes.
conditions were before it was
c. Set Specify pressure guess values to Yes. deleted (see slide 25).
d. Enter a Pressure guess value of 1951 kPa.
e. Set Specify temperature guess value to Yes.
f. Enter a Temperature guess value of 46.8°C.

b
c d
e
f
STEP 19: SOLVE THE NETWORK
a

a. Press Save.

b. Press Solve Steady State.

c. View the Flow Solver results.

d
d. Hover the mouse over the Pipe inlet Node to view the
Tooltip results. e
f
e. The calculated Total pressure is 1951.03 kPa.

f. The calculated Total temperature is 50.1869°C.

c
THE SOLVED NETWORK

a. Hover the mouse over the Pipe to view the Tooltip

results.

Note: From the results it can be seen that the mass flow
through the pipe section is 0.607 kg/s and that the
refrigerant quality at the condenser outlet is -0.04 (view a
slide 34). It is important to take note of these values as it
will be used to make future assumptions.
STEP 20: CREATE A PRESSURE RELEASE VALVE (EXPANSION VALVE)
a. Select the Components tab from the Flownex libraries window.

b. Expand the Flownex tree and browse to Restrictors.

c. Drag a Restrictor with Discharge Coefficient onto the drawing canvas.

d. Use a Node and Boundary Condition to complete the network as shown.

Note: The expansion valve chosen is a

restrictor with discharge coefficient. Leave
the boundary values specified at the inlet b
of the expansion valve in order to help the
solver to find the correct answer. Due to
the fact that the mass flow through the
expansion valve is very sensitive to the c
inlet condition (which is very close to the
saturation line), Flownex has trouble to
converge if the conditions of the inlet node
to the expansion valve (node 6) is not
fixed. The method used to obtain a stable a
solution is to keep the conditions at node 6
fixed and to vary the orifice diameter until
the mass flow on both sides of the
expansion valve is equal. This is done by
using the designer function of Flownex.
d
STEP 21: SPECIFY THE RESTRICTOR OUTPUT BOUNDARY CONDITIONS
a. Select the Restrictor outlet Boundary Condition and
press F4 to open the properties window.

b. Set the Pressure boundary condition to Fixed on user

value.

c. Enter a Pressure of 505 kPa.

b c

a
 STEP 22: SPECIFY THE RESTRICTOR INPUTS
a. Select the Restrictor with Discharge Coefficient and press F4 to open the Note: The mass flow through the
properties window. expansion valve is highly dependent on
the diameter of the expansion valve. If the
b. Enter Valve at Description.
diameter is for instance 0.007m the mass
c. Set the Cross sectional option to Diameter. flow is calculated as 0.457 kg/s compared
to the 0.607 kg/s in the rest of the
d. Enter a Diameter of 0.008 m.
network. This is due to the diameter
e. Enter a Discharge coefficient of 0.6. opening of the restrictor which produces
too much resistance. This has the effect
that at the node before the expansion
valve where the pressure is specified,
mass balance is obtained by blowing off
the extra R22 to the ambient conditions.
b To rectify this problem it is necessary to
match the diameter of the orifice in order
to ensure the same mass flow through the
orifice as through the rest of the network.
The procedure of calculating this specific
diameter will be discussed in detail in the
following few slides. The diameter of
c 0.008m is an assumption made according
d to the calculations made (in the next few
e
slides) and it produces a mass flow of
0.597kg/s which is close enough
considering that a second section of pipe
a still needs to be inserted before the final
mass flow can be calculated.
STEP 22: SPECIFY THE RESTRICTOR (EXPANSION VALVE) INPUTS

a
Tip: Before any specifications can be made, it is necessary to determine what the diameter of the expansion valve
should be in order to be able to solve the network accordingly. This procedure will now be discussed.

a. Select the Configurations ribbon and click on

the Designer Setup. b c
b. Right click in the top window of the Designer
Configuration.

c. Select Add.

d. Select Designer Config1 and rename it as

Orifice Diameter
d
e. Right click in the bottom left window and select
Add.
e
f. Right click in the bottom right window and select f
Add
 STEP 22: SPECIFY THE RESTRICTOR (EXPANSION VALVE) INPUTS (CONTINUED)

a. Select the menu under the Component

and Property tab as shown. A Specific
Property Selection window will appear.

b. Select the Restrictor with Discharge a

Coefficient inlet node .

c. Browse to the Total mass flow under the

a
Property menu on the right and select
Mass Source.

d. Select OK as shown.

c
b

d
 STEP 22: SPECIFY THE RESTRICTOR (EXPANSION VALVE) INPUTS (CONTINUED)
g
a. Enter 0 under Target value as shown.
b. Select the menu under the Component and
Property tab as shown. A Specific Property
Selection window will appear.
c. Select the Restrictor with Discharge
Coefficient.
a b f
d. Browse to the Diameter under the Property
menu.
e. Select OK as shown.
b
f. Enter a Minimum and Maximum diameter
value (0.001m and 0.01m).
g. Exit the Designer Configuration window.

Note: It is necessary to have the same mass flow

through the restrictor as through the pipe. If the c
mass source at the inlet node to the restrictor is
set at 0 kg/s, it ensures that the same mass flow
will flow through the pipe and restrictor. If there is a
mass source at a node it indicates that there is
either mass added or extracted from the specific d
node.

e
STEP 22: SPECIFY THE RESTRICTOR (EXPANSION VALVE) INPUTS (CONTINUED)

a. Select Run Designer.

Note: It is now possible to calculate what the Orifice diameter

should be in order for it to allow a mass flow of 0.607kg/s pass
through it.

Tip: By hovering the mouse over the Restrictor it can be

seen that the total mass flow through it is 0.607 kg/s as
specified. By selecting the Restrictor and pressing F4 (to view
the properties page of the restrictor) it can be seen that the
diameter of the restrictor is calculated to be 0.00819295m.
Note that the diameter of the Restrictor will be set to 0.008 m
as specified on slide 37.
STEP 23: SOLVE THE NETWORK
a

b
Note: The previous steps only demonstrates how the diameter of the
restrictor could have been calculated by using the Designer. Note
that the assumed diameter for the orifice is chosen as 0.008m and
that the diameter thus has to be specified as 0.008m under the
properties page of the restrictor (see slide 37).

a. Press Save.

b. Press Solve Steady State.

c. View the Flow Solver results.

d. Hover the mouse over the Valve outlet Node to view the Tooltip
results.

e. The calculated Total pressure is 505 kPa.

d f. The calculated Total temperature is 0.430359°C.

e c
f
STEP 24: CREATE THE EVAPORATOR
f
a. Delete the Restrictor outlet
Boundary Condition.

b. Select the Components tab

from the Flownex libraries
window.

c. Expand the Flownex tree and c

browse to Heat Exchangers.

d. Drag a Recuperator - Primary

onto the drawing canvas.

e. Drag a Recuperator -
Secondary onto the drawing
d
canvas. a e
f. Use Nodes and Boundary
Conditions to complete the b
network as shown.
EVAPORATOR OPERATING INPUTS:
In order to be able to design a system it is necessary for some parameters to be known. The following parameters are
known and should be used in the design of the condenser system.The evaporator was designed for a typical heat
transfer rate of 90 kW and a water temperature difference of 8 °C.
The specification of the evaporator is given next:
Flow direction: Counter
Number of increments: 20
Heat capacity (MC): 100 kJ/K
Conductivity of wall: 14 W/m K
Wall thickness: 1 mm
Total heat transfer area: 14 m2
Area ratio between sides: 1
Flow path length: 0.4 m
Hydraulic diameter on both sides: 3 mm
Total frontal inlet and outlet area refrigerant side: 0.0029 m2
Total frontal inlet and outlet area water side: 0.003 m2
Laminar friction factor multiplier (both sides): 1
Turbulent friction factor multiplier (both sides): 1
Laminar Nusselt number (both sides): 3.66
Turbulent Nusselt number multiplier (both sides): 1
Roughness: 30 µm
Water side mass flow: 3.0855 kg/s
STEP 25: ASSIGN THE EVAPORATOR OPERATING FLUID
a. Right click on the Recuperator - Secondary and select
Assign Fluids.
b
b. Open the drop down list under Fluid.
c. Select Pure Fluids under Type.
d. Select Specific Applications under Category. c
e. Select H2O - Water (variable density) under
Description.
f. Press OK.

a
 STEP 26: SPECIFY THE EVAPORATOR (PRIMARY) INPUTS
a
Note : these input parameters are given in the design parameters of the
evaporator
b
a. Select the Recuperator - Primary and press F4 to open the
properties window.
b. Enter Evaporator (Primary) at Description.
c
c. Set the Flow Direction to Counter. d
d. Enter a Heat transfer area of 14 m2. e
f
e. Enter a Fluid path length of 0.4 m. g
f. Enter a value of 20 at Number of increments.
h
g. Enter a Wall thickness of 0.001 m. i
h. Enter a Wall conductivity of 14 W/m2·K.
j
i. Enter a Heat capacity of 100 kJ/K.
k
l
j. Enter a Laminar friction factor multiplier of 1. m
k. Enter a Turbulent friction factor multiplier of 1. n
o
l. Enter a Laminar Nusselt number of 3.66.
n
m. Enter a Turbulent Nusselt number multiplier of 1.
o
n. Enter an Inlet and Outlet Hydraulic diameter of 0.003 m.
p
o. Enter an Inlet and Outlet Area of 0.0029 m2.
p. Enter a Roughness of 30 µm.
STEP 27: SPECIFY THE EVAPORATOR (SECONDARY) INPUTS
a
a. Select the Recuperator - Secondary and press F4 to open the
properties window.

b. Enter Evaporator (Secondary) at Description.

b
c. Enter a Laminar friction factor multiplier of 1.

d. Enter a Turbulent friction factor multiplier of 1.

c
e. Enter a Laminar Nusselt number of 3.66. d
e
f. Enter a Turbulent Nusselt number multiplier of 1. f
g
g. Enter an Inlet and Outlet Hydraulic diameter of 0.003 m. h
Enter an Inlet and Outlet Area of 0.003 m2.
g
h. h
i. Enter a Roughness of 30 µm.
i
Note: these input parameters are given in the design parameters of the
evaporator.
STEP 28: SPECIFY EVAPORATOR (PRIMARY) OUTLET BOUNDARY CONDITION
a. Select the Evaporator (Primary) outlet Boundary Condition and press F4 to open the properties window.
b. Set the Pressure Boundary Condition to Fixed on user value.
c. Enter a Pressure of 505 kPa.
d. Set the Temperature Boundary Condition to Fixed on user value.
e. Enter a Temperature of 8.7°C.

b
c
d
e

Tip: These boundary conditions are the same as the

initial boundary condition for node one: thus the
boundary condition at the entrance of the positive
displacement compressor. It is assumed that the
temperature and pressure through the pipe (which will
close the refrigerant loop) will stay constant.
STEP 29: SPECIFY THE EVAPORATOR (SECONDARY) BOUNDARY CONDITIONS
a. Select the Evaporator (Secondary) inlet Boundary Condition and press F4 Note: These boundary conditions
to open the properties window. are specified in the design
parameters (See slide 45). Also
b. Set the Pressure boundary condition to Fixed on user value. take note that the negative sign in
front of the Mass source indicates
c. Enter a Pressure of 100 kPa. that the flow is exiting the system at
this node.
d. Set the Temperature boundary condition to Fixed on user value.
e. Enter a Temperature of 15°C.
f. Select the Evaporator (Secondary) outlet Boundary Condition and press
F4 to open the properties window.
g. Set the Mass source boundary condition to Fixed on user value.
h. Enter a Mass source of -3.0855 kg/s.
g
h
a

b
c
d
e

f a
 STEP 30: SPECIFY GUESS VALUES
a. Select the Restrictor outlet
Node and press F4 to open
the properties window.
b. Set Specify guess values to
Yes.
c. Set Specify pressure guess
value to Yes.
d. Enter a Pressure guess
value of 505 kPa. This is the a b
pressure of the boundary c
condition before it was
d
e
deleted. f
e. Set Specify temperature
guess value to Yes.
f. Enter a Temperature guess
value of 0.4°C. This is the
temperature result obtained in
Step 23.

Note: the guess value for the pressure used here is

the same as the previously specified boundary
condition before it was removed. The temperature
guess value is the same as the calculated value of the
temperature at the same node (slide 42).
 STEP 31: SOLVE THE NETWORK
a

a. Press Save. Tip: The designed heat

transfer for this evaporator is
b. Press Solve Steady State. 90.7 kW. The heat transfer
rate without running the
c. View the Flow Solver results. designer is 87.5 kW. This
clearly shows the importance
d. Hover the mouse over the Restrictor outlet of accurate designing. The
Node to view the Tooltip results. design specifications for the
evaporator is 90 kW. With the
e. The calculated Total pressure is 510.165 designer switched on this
kPa. target is met.
f. The calculated Total Temperature is
0.744616°C.
g. Run the Designer and Solve Steady State
again. Compare the answers obtained. d
c
e
f
 STEP 32: ADD A PIPE COMPONENT
a. Delete the Evaporator (Primary)
outlet Boundary Condition.

b. Select the Components tab from c

the Flownex libraries window.

c. Expand the Flownex tree and

browse to Piping.

d. Drag a Pipe onto the drawing

canvas.

e. Use Nodes and Boundary e d

Conditions to complete the
network as shown.
b

a
STEP 33: SPECIFY THE PIPE INPUTS
a. Select the Pipe component and press F4 to open the
properties window.

b. Enter a Length of 2 m.

c. Enter an Inlet Diameter of 0.2 m.

d. Enter a Roughness of 30 µm.

a
c

d
STEP 34: SPECIFY GUESS VALUES
a. Select the Pipe inlet Node and press F4 to open the Tip: The guess values are made in order to help
properties window.
Flownex to solve the network. The values are
b. Set Specify guess values to Yes.
based on the initial compressor inlet values. The
c. Set Specify pressure guess values to Yes.
assumption is made that the temperature and
d. Enter a Pressure guess value of 505 kPa.
pressure will not vary too much through the pipe.
e. Set Specify temperature guess value to Yes.
f. Enter a Temperature guess value of 8.7°C.

b
c d
e
f

a
STEP 35: SOLVE THE NETWORK
a

a. Press Save.

b. Press Solve Steady State.

c. View the Flow Solver results.

c
STEP 36: VIEW THE RESULTS
a b a. Select the Node at
(a) and press F4 to
open the properties
window.
b. Select the Results
tab.
b c. Repeat step (a) and
a (b) to view the
Results of the Node
at (b), (c) and (d).

c d

c d
STEP 37: CREATE A SNAP
a. Select Snaps from the library. Tip: A snap allows the user to load initial conditions. When
Flownex solves a network it changes initial conditions as the
b. Press the New Snap icon. iterations continue. Multiple “runs” can thus be made if the initial
conditions are loaded before each run. Note that there will be
c. Enter Initial Conditions at File automatically generated snaps when the snap window is opened
for the first time. It is suggested that these snaps be deleted and
name. that the automatic snap generator be switched off. This can be
done by clicking on e and f.
d. Press Save.

c
d
a
 STEP 38: VIEW THE REFRIGERATION LIBRARY
a. Press the External Charts and Lookup Tables tab in the Libraries Explorer window.

b. Expand the Flownex tree.

b
c. Expand Materials and Fluids.

d. Expand Two Phase Fluids.

e. Expand Refrigerants.
c
f. Double click on R22.

g. Press Test to view the fluid properties at a specific Temperature and Pressure.
d
e
f

g
STEP 39: VIEW THE REFRIGERANT PROPERTIES
a. Specify a Pressure of 100 kPa. Note: Initial conditions are
specified here. This is to
b. Specify a Temperature of 15°C.
ensure that the tables for
c. Press Test.
ambient conditions and the
d. The Results are displayed in the pane on the right. R22 is at the same
temperature and pressures.
e. After viewing the results click on Close until the Flownex Drawing Page can be seen
to continue.

d
a
b

c e
 STEP 40: SET UP AN ACTION TO RELEASE THE BOUNDARY CONDITIONS

a. Press the Actions Setup icon in the Configuration ribbon. Tip: Actions are used to relax some
boundary conditions to allow Flownex to
b. Right click in the Scenario pane and select New Scenario from the menu. reach steady state when the Transient
Solver is used. The boundary conditions
c. Rename the new scenario to Release Boundary Conditions. are thus used by Flownex in the
calculation of the first few iterations.
d. Right click in the Action pane and select New Action from the menu.

c
b
d
 STEP 41: SPECIFY THE BOUNDARY CONDITION ACTIONS
a. Rename the new action to
Temperature - Comp Inlet.

b. Press the browse icon under Trigger.

a
b e
c. Set the Start Time to 0.1 s.

d. Press OK.

e. Press the browse icon under Target.

c
Note: Here it is specified that the boundary condition will be released (relaxed)
after 0.1s when the system is solved by using the Transient Solver. The
boundary conditions are used by Flownex for the first few iterations. Once the
boundary conditions are not fixed anymore, the system reaches a true steady
state as the system converges. The system balances itself out and the small
energy and mass sources on the pressure and temperature specified nodes are
removed, making this a closed loop.

d
STEP 41: SPECIFY THE BOUNDARY CONDITION ACTIONS
a. Select the Compressor inlet
Node Boundary Condition
(Boundary Condition - 3) as
the component.

b. Select Temperature boundary

a b
condition as the property.

c. Press OK.

d. Set the Value to Not specified. c

d
STEP 43: SIMILARLY SPECIFY THE REMAINING ACTIONS

a. Repeat Step 41 and 42 to release the Pressure and Temperature Boundary Conditions of the Valve inlet Boundary
Condition.
c
b. Exit the Actions window.

c. Press Save.

a
STEP 44: CREATE LINE GRAPHS
a. Select the Components tab from the Flownex libraries window.

b. Expand Visualisation and browse to Graphs.

c. Drag 4 Line Graphs onto the drawing canvas.

Tip: Graphs are used to visualize the Solving process and to show the
values as it solves.
 STEP 45: SPECIFY THE MASS FLOW GRAPH
a. Select the Compressor inlet Pipe and open the properties window.

b. Select the Results tab.

c. Drag the Total mass flow result onto the top left Line Graph.

c a

b
STEP 46: SPECIFY THE QUALITY GRAPH
a. Select the Condenser outlet Node and open the properties window.

b. Select the Results tab.

c. Drag the Quality result onto the top right Line Graph.

d. Repeat step (a) to (c) for the Primary Evaporator outlet Node.

c
b
a

d
d
STEP 47: SPECIFY THE TEMPERATURE GRAPH
a. Select the Compressor inlet Node and open the properties window.
b. Select the Results tab.
c. Drag the Total temperature result onto the bottom left Line Graph.
d. Repeat step (a) to (c) for the Valve inlet Node.
c

d a
d

c
 STEP 48: SPECIFY THE PRESSURE GRAPH
a. Select the Valve inlet Node and open the properties window.

b. Select the Results tab.

c. Drag the Total pressure result onto the bottom right Line Graph.

b
 STEP 49: EDIT THE LINE GRAPH TEXT
a. Select the Quality Line Graph.
b. Press F4 to open the properties window.
c. Rename the Line items as shown.
d. Repeat step (a) to (c) for the Temperature Line Graph.

c
d
STEP 50: SET THE SCHEDULER
a. Select the Solvers and Utilities
tab from the Flownex libraries
window.

b. Double click on Scheduler.

c. Enter a Time Step Size of 100

m.s.
c
d. Enter a Speed Factor of 100 %. d

e. Set the Simulation End Time to e

Run indefinite.
b
Tip: The Scheduler does precisely what its name suggests. It controls the
solving process of Flownex: Here the user can specify the time step (time
between iterations) and the speed factor.

a
STEP 51: LOAD THE INITIAL CONDITIONS
d

a. Press the Snaps Window icon.

b. Right click on Initial Conditions.

b
c. Select Load.

d. Press Save.
c
Note: Here the user loads the conditions
as saved when the snap was created.

a
 STEP 52: CREATE A SNAP
a. Press the Snaps Window icon. b

b. Press the New Snap icon.

c. Enter Steady State at File name.

d. Press Save.

d
a
STEP 53: CREATE A LOCUS GRAPH
a. Select the Graphs tab from the Project Explorer window.

b. Right click on the Graphs folder.

c. Select Add Graph Page.

d. Select XY Graph.

a
STEP 54: SPECIFY THE LOCUS GRAPH
a. Select the Evaporator outlet Node and open the properties window.

b. Drag Fluid Data Reference onto the XY-Graph page.

b b
 STEP 55: SPECIFY THE LOCUS GRAPH (CONTINUE)

a. Repeat Step 54 for the

Components listed in (b) to
(d).

b. The Compressor outlet

Node.

c. The Condenser outlet Node.

d. The Valve outlet Node.

Tip: It is important to note that the

properties should be specified in this
order to avoid confusion when the
points are connected.
STEP 56: EDIT THE LOCUS GRAPH
a. Select the Locus Graph and press F4 to open the properties
window.
b. Set Connect Points to Yes. b
c. Set Visible under Legend of both the X Axis Value and Y Axis
Value of each Line set to No. This will clear up some viewing space.

a
c

Note: at step c there are a total of 8 “Yes” marks that should be turned to
“No” under Legend.
 STEP 57: SOLVE THE NETWORK
a

c
a. Press Save.
b. Load the Initial Conditions as it was done on slide 71.
c. Press Solve Steady State.
d. To zoom in on the Locus Graph, click on the graph and drag a rectangle over the area you want to view.

d
d
DESIGN SPECIFICATIONS AND RESULTS
Before any design is complete, it is necessary to verify that all of the design specifications are met. It is thus necessary to
compare the results obtained to the initial design specifications.

Criteria Design Criteria Flownex

Mass Flow Through the system. 0.607 kg/s 0.60657 kg/s through the Condenser.
0.5788 kg/s through the Evaporator .
Quality at Condenser outlet. -0.03 0.029
Quality at Evaporator outlet. 1.03 1.024

From these results it could indicate that this demonstration is a total failure. It is however not. The answers that was
calculated by Flownex was computed by using the input parameters given by the user. It has thus calculated the correct
answers for the parameters given.
Slides 37 to 41 explained how the restrictor’s diameter can be calculated in order to ensure that the mass flow
throughout the system is the same. This calculated diameter was not used throughout the calculations and an assumed
diameter was chosen. This was done on purpose to demonstrate the ability of Flownex to solve and compute answers.
By assuming this diameter, Flownex had to adapt and create a mass sink at the restrictor inlet node. By hovering the
mouse pointer over this inlet node it can be seen that a mass source of – 0.028231 kg/s was created: 0.028231kg/s
mass is thus exiting the system at this node. This is why the mass flow through the Evaporator is not the same as
through the Condenser.
If the mouse pointer is hovered over the compressor inlet valve it will be seen that Flownex is adding a mass of
0.0282506 kg/s to the system to ensure the mass flow of 0.0657kg/s through the Condenser.
The following slides will demonstrate how the user can use Flownex to manipulate a system in order to obtain the
specified design criteria.
STEP 58: DESIGNING TO MEET DESIGN CRITERIA

The designer will be used to allow Flownex to determine the outputs in order to meet the design criteria. The designer was
used in slide 37 to 41 to calculate the diameter for the restrictor. The procedure for how to access the designer window and
how to switch the Simulator to the Designer will not be repeated. Please follow the steps as specified in slide 38 to 41.

The designer has already been set up to calculate the correct restrictor diameter in order to ensure that the mass source at
the upstream node of the restrictor is 0 kg/s. In order to ensure that the quality at the condenser outlet node is -0.03 it is
necessary to change the pressure at the boundary condition of the restrictor inlet node. To ensure a quality at the
evaporator outlet node of 1.03 it is necessary to change the pressure at the boundary condition of the inlet node of the
positive displacement compressor.
 DESIGNING TO MEET DESIGN CRITERIA

a. Load the Initial

Conditions snap
(see slide 71)

b. Select Designer
setup.

c. Right click and add

two new design
boxes in both the
left and right
bottom window as
c c
shown.
DESIGNING TO MEET DESIGN CRITERIA
a. Select the Condenser outlet node as shown and choose f. Enter the minimum and maximum values as shown.
Quality as variable
g. Select the boundary condition at the Positive
b. Enter the target value -0.03. displacement compressor upstream node and select
Pressure as variable.
c. Select the Evaporator outlet node as shown and choose
Quality as variable. h. Enter the minimum and maximum values as shown.
d. Enter the target value 1.03.
e. Select the boundary condition at the Restrictor upstream
node and select Pressure as variable.

Note: when the menu

a b e f
is selected at “a” the
window above will c d g h
appear. This will be the
case of a, c, e and g.
 DESIGNING TO MEET DESIGN CRITERIA
b

c
a. Close the Show Designer Setup Dialog. Tip: multiple iterations will be done in order for the
answers to converge. By toggling between the console
b. Save the network.
and Flow Solver in the Tasks Output menu it is
c. Run the Designer. possible to track the progress of the designer.
d. The designer will now design the network to obtain
the solutions as described in the design
specification.
e. The Task Output menu is by default on the bottom
h
of the window.
f. The Flow Solver.
g. The Console. f g
h. When a solution is found, it will appear in the
Console as shown.
DESIGNING TO MEET DESIGN CRITERIA
After a solutions is found by Flownex, hover the mouse pointer over the following nodes to view the solutions.

Design Criteria Flownex

Mass Flow Through the system. 0.607 kg/s 0.5937 kg/s through the Condenser.
0.5937 kg/s through the Evaporator .
Quality at Condenser outlet. -0.03 -0.03
Quality at Evaporator outlet. 1.03 1.03
Restrictor inlet boundary 1951 kPa 1987.73 kPa
pressure
Compressor inlet boundary 505 kPa 46.157 kPa
pressure
Energy source at Restrictor inlet 0 -0.779679 kW
node
Energy Source at Compressor 0 0.174741 kW
inlet node.

It is thus clear that the boundary conditions given and assumed for this particular tutorial was not precise and
accurate. Flownex could thus determine the appropriate boundary conditions to meet the desired design criteria. It
also gives the user a clear idea of what effect a certain order of magnitude change in pressure will have on the design
criteria.
By selecting the Compressor and Restrictor inlet valves it can be seen that an energy source has been created at
these nodes. It is thus clear that it is necessary to use the Actions function of Flownex as explained on slide 60 to
slide 63.
To rectify the energy source problem it is necessary to switch the solver to Default Solver, to be able to Solve the
problem by using the Transient Solver.
STEP 59: RUN THE NETWORK

a b c

a. Solve Steady State

b. Press Run to run the

transient solution.

c. Stop the Solver when

the Results reach
Steady State.
 STEP 60: RUN THE NETWORK – STEADY STATE ACHIEVED (WITHOUT DESIGNER)

Note: The Maximum

display length under the
Line Graph Properties
tab (press F4 after the
graph has been
selected). The Display
multiple Y-axis under
the Line Graph
Properties pane has
been changed to Yes.

Notice that Multiple

Y-Axis's are now
used to represent the
Quality and
Temperature.
CONCLUSION
Before Designer With Designer Desired
Mass Flow Through the system. 0.627 kg/s 0.5956 kg/s 0.607 kg/s

Quality at Condenser outlet. -0.0396 -0.026 -0.03

Quality at Evaporator outlet. 1.0052 1.029 1.03
Restrictor inlet boundary pressure 1968 kPa 1924.47 kPa
Energy source created throughout the 0 kW 0 kW
system

It can thus now be seen that when the designer was used, one was able to compute a basic steady state system
with the desired results. When the system was then solved again by using the answers obtained by the designer, a
steady state was reached with answers close to the desired design specifications.

Slide 87 shows the graphs for the Transient solution without using the designer and Slide 85 shows the graphs when
the designer was used. The initial fluctuations in the graphs are most likely a result of the energy sources within the
system. The graphs stabilise when these energy sources no longer exist. It can also be seen that the answers
obtained by using the designer reached equilibrium long before the solution, where the designer was not used.

This tutorial clearly demonstrates the ability of Flownex to solve and manipulate intricate networks with ease.
STEP 60: RUN THE NETWORK – STEADY STATE ACHIEVED (WITHOUT DESIGNER)

Note: the difference

between the graphs
when the designer was
used and when the
designer was not used.
The graphs displayed
here are the steady
state solutions found
without using the
designer.
 YOU HAVE SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED
THIS TUTORIAL!

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