Refrigeration

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NOTES | QUESTION PAPERS
REFRIGERATION
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QUESTION PAPERS
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REFRIGERATION
Refrigeration may be defined as the process of removing
heat from a substance under controlled conditions and
reducing and maintaining the temperature of a body below
the temperature of its surroundings by the aid of external
work.
In a refrigerator, power is to be supplied to remove the heat

continuously from the refrigerator cabinet to keep it cool at a
temperature less than the atmospheric temperature.
A medium called refrigerant continuously extracts the heat

from the space within the refrigerator which is to be kept
cool at temperatures less than the atmosphere and finally
rejects to it to the surroundings.
• Refrigerator is a mechanical device

which is used to maintain the temperature
of a given space lower than the
temperature of surroundings.
• Air conditioner is a mechanical device

which is used to control the total
environment of a confined space.
• Both Refrigerator & Air conditioner work on

the same basic principle of transferring heat
from a low temperature region to a high
temperature region and follows the second
law of thermodynamics, which states that
“Heat cannot flow from a low temperature

region to a high temperature unless aided
by some external work ”.
• In both Refrigerator & Air conditioner, heat

has to be extracted from a low temperature region and
transferred to a high temperature region.
• According to second law of thermodynamics, some external

work input to the system is required
Applications of Refrigeration
Ice making
Preservation of food products (perishables) and
medicines
Air - conditioning
Transportation of foodstuff, dairy products,
flowers, etc.,
Special industrial processes for chemicals,
petroleum, medicals, surgical aids, etc.,
Cryogenics
Processing of food products, beverages, textiles,
oil refining, photographic materials, etc.,
Refrigeration Effect
• Refrigeration is defined as the process of maintaining the

temperature of a confined space at low temperature by
continuously removing heat from the low temperature space
and transferring it to high temperature surroundings.
QUESTION PAPERS
• The low temperature space is known as the Refrigerated

chamber.
• The high temperature surroundings is the Atmosphere.
• The medium which carries heat from the low temperature

region to a high temperature region is called the Refrigerant.
• According to second law of thermodynamics, some external

work or energy must be added to the system to achieve the
refrigeration effect.
• In most of the refrigerators the work is supplied in the form of

mechanical energy.
Unit of Refrigeration: Tons of refrigeration
In a refrigeration system, the rate at which the heat is

absorbed in a cycle from the interior space to be cooled is
called refrigerating effect.
The capacity of a refrigeration system is expressed in Tons of

refrigeration which is the unit of refrigeration.
A ton of refrigeration is defined as the quantity

of heat absorbed to convert one ton of water at
00C to one ton of ice at the same temperature in
24 hours.
One American ton (2000 pounds) is taken as

the standard in the refrigeration practice.
In S.I. System,
1 Ton of Refrigeration = 210 kJ/min = 3.5 kW

Coefficient of Performance (COP) of a Refrigerator
The performance of a refrigeration system is expressed by a

factor known as Coefficient of Performance (COP). The COP
of a refrigeration system is defined as the ratio of amount of
heat absorbed or extracted in a system to the amount of work
supplied.
Amount of heat absorbed

COP = ------------------------------------------
Amount of work supplied
The performance indicator of a refrigerator COP can be

improved by increase in the amount of heat absorbed
from a system and by minimizing the amount of work
supplied.
Refrigerants
Refrigerants are heat carrying mediums, which during their

cycle in the refrigeration system absorb heat from a low
temperature system and reject the heat to a high temperature
system.
Classification of Refrigerants:
(i) Primary refrigerants
(ii) Secondary refrigerants

Refrigerants
Primary refrigerants: Directly take part in the refrigeration

system
Examples: Ammonia, Carbon dioxide, Sulphur dioxide,

Methyl chloride, Ethyl chloride etc.
Secondary refrigerants: first cooled by primary refrigerants

and then used for cooling purposes
Examples: Brine solution, water, air, etc.

Common Refrigerants
Most commonly used refrigerants are:
 Ammonia - vapour absorption refrigerator

 Carbon dioxide - marine refrigerators
 Sulphur dioxide - household refrigerators
 Methyl chloride - small scale refrigeration and
domestic refrigerators
 Freon-12 - domestic vapour compression
refrigerators
 Freon-22 - Air Conditioners
Most commonly used refrigerants
Chloro Fluoro Carbons (CFCs):

Group of refrigerants which are commercially known as
Freons.
Some of the refrigerants belonging to this group are:
Dichlorodifluoromethane (CCl2F2):
Available with the commercial name of R-12 or Freon-
12. It is very widely used in industrial and commercial
applications such as refrigerators, freezers, water
coolers, room and window air conditioning units etc.,
Trichloromonofluoromethane (CCl3F):
Commercial name is Freon-11 or R-11. Due to its low
operating pressures, this refrigerant is exclusively used
in large centrifugal compressor systems
Dichloromonofluoromethane (CCl2F):
Commercially known as Freon-21or R-21. It is mainly
used in centrifugal compressor systems for relatively
high temperature refrigeration requirements.
Methyl Chloride (CH3Cl):

Commercial name is R- 40 and is used in
domestic and commercial units.
Ammonia (NH3):
One of the oldest and most widely used of all the
refrigerants. The major drawback of ammonia is its
toxicity.
Widely used in cold storage, warehouse plants, ice
-cream manufacture, ice plants, beverage industry,
food freezing plants etc.,
Commercial name is R-717.
Desirable Properties of Refrigerant
Thermodynamic Properties:
Boiling point: An ideal refrigerant must have low boiling

temperature at atmospheric pressure.
Freezing point: It must have a very low freezing point

because the refrigerant should not freeze at low evaporator
temperatures.
Specific Heat: A good refrigerant must have low specific heat

when it is in liquid state and high specific heat when it is
vapourised. The low specific heat of the refrigerant helps in
more heat absorption in the evaporator and high specific heat
of the vapour helps in easy condensing. Both these desirable
properties will increase the refrigerating effect.
Evaporator and condenser pressure: To avoid the
leakage of the atmospheric air and to enable the
detection of the leakage of refrigerant, both the
evaporator and condenser pressures should be
slightly above the atmospheric pressure.
Latent heat of evaporation: This must be very high
so that a minimum amount of refrigerant will give
the desired result. In other words, it increases the
refrigeration effect.
Critical temperature and pressure: The critical
temperature of a refrigerant is the highest
temperature at which it can be condensed to a
liquid, regardless of a higher pressure and it should
be above the highest condensing temperature.
Physical Properties
Specific Volume: The specific volume of the

refrigerant must be very low so that it occupies less
volume upon vaporization. Higher the specific
volume, the size of the compressor should be large,
which requires more power for its operation and also
increases the cost of the device.
Viscosity: The viscosity of a refrigerant at both the

liquid and vapour states must be very low as it
improves the heat transfer and reduces the pumping
effort required.
: Safe Working Properties :
Toxicity: A good refrigerant should be non-toxic. Any
leakage of the toxic refrigerant increases suffocation
and poisons the atmosphere or any food items stored.
Corrosiveness: A good refrigerant should be non-

corrosive to prevent the corrosion of the metallic parts
of the refrigerators.
Chemical Stability: An ideal refrigerant must not

decompose under operating conditions.
Miscibility: The ability of a refrigerant to mix with oil is

called miscibility. The miscible refrigerants are
advantageous from the heat transfer point of view.
Other Properties
Coefficient of Performance (COP): The COP of a refrigerant
must be high so that the energy spent in refrigeration will be
less.
Odour: A good refrigerant must be odourless, otherwise some

food stuff such as meat, butter, etc. loses their taste.
Leakage: The refrigerant must be such that any leakage can

be detected by simple tests.
Action with Lubricating Oil: A good refrigerant must not
react with the lubricating oil used in lubricating the parts of
the compressor.
Flammability: The refrigerant should have high ignition

temperature so that when compressed to high temperature
and pressure, it should not catch fire.
Cost :
The cost of refrigerant is not so important in small
refrigerating units, but is very important in large refrigerating
systems, like industrial and commercial. The ammonia being
cheapest, is widely in large industrial plants such as cold
storages and ice plants.
Desirable properties for an ideal refrigerant

Positive evaporating pressures
Moderately low condensing pressure
Relatively high critical temperature
Low freezing point, low viscosity, low sp.vol.
High latent heat of vaporization
Low cost of refrigerant
Inertness and stability
High heat transfer characteristics
Non toxicity and odour less
Non flammability
Principle of Refrigeration
Heat flows from a system at higher temperature to

another at lower temperature.
Heat can flow from a system at low temperature to a

system at higher temperature by the aid of external work
as per the 2nd law of Thermodynamics.
QUESTION PAPERS
Fluids by absorbing the heat, change from liquid

phase to vapour phase and subsequently condense by
giving off the heat.
The boiling and freezing temperatures of a fluid

depend on its pressure.
Basic Components of a Refrigerating Unit
Four (4) basic components:
Evaporator
Compressor / Pump (in Vapour absorption
refrigeration systems)
Condenser
Throttle Valve or Expansion Valve
Types of Refrigeration Systems
Air Refrigeration
Vapour Compression Refrigeration
Vapour Absorption Refrigeration
Vapour Compression Refrigeration system
In a vapour compression refrigerator, a vapour is

used as refrigerant. It is circulated through the
system, in which it alternately evaporates and
condenses, thus undergoing a change of phase
from vapour to liquid and again liquid to vapour.
During evaporation, it absorbs the latent heat from

the refrigerated space and subsequently gives off
heat while condensing. A vapour compression
system makes use of mechanical energy supplied
to the compressor to run the refrigerator.
It consists of an evaporator, made of coiled tubes

installed in the freezing compartment of the refrigerator
and connected to the suction side of the compressor and
a throttle valve.
The delivery side of the compressor is connected, to a
condenser, which in turn connected to a throttle valve.

Vapour compression refrigeration system
Condenser
Major Components in Vapour Compression Cycle



Evaporator
• It is the heart of the refrigerator
• Liquid refrigerant is evaporated by the

absorption of heat from the refrigerator cabinet
(where the substances which have to be cooled
are kept)
• The evaporator consists of metal tubes which

surround around the freezing and cooling
compartments to produce the cooling effect
(required for freezing ice or lowering the
temperature of perishables placed in the
cooling compartment).
Evaporator :
- Low temperature region, where in the items to be
preserved are kept. Also known as Refrigeration chamber
or Freezing chamber or cooling unit or chilling unit and
houses the small diameter metallic tubes called evaporator
tubes through which the refrigerant flows. As the refrigerant
flows through these tubes, it absorbs heat from the chamber
and vaporizes. This vapours are then passed through the
condenser.
Compressor / Pump:
- Vapours coming out of the evaporator tubes are
compressed to high pressure and temperature. In the
compressor, work is done on the vapours to enable the
dissipation of energy from low temperature vapours to the
high temperature surroundings in the condenser.
Compressor is used only in vapour compression type refrigerators. In case of the
vapour absorption type refrigerators, a pump is used to increase the pressure of the
vapours.
Condenser :
The dry saturated vapours coming out of the
compressor passes through the condenser tubes,
wherein the vapours dissipate heat to the
surrounding cooling medium, air or water, and
converted into liquid refrigerant.
Throttle or Expansion valve:
- is a capillary device, which reduces the pressure
of the liquid refrigerant coming out of the condenser
tubes to that of the initial pressure inside the
evaporator chamber. From the throttle valve, the
liquid refrigerant enters the evaporator chamber to
start the new cycle.
Circulating system:
This comprises of the mechanical devices

such as compressors or pump necessary to
circulate the refrigerant to undergo the
refrigeration cycle.
They increase the pressure and therefore

the temperature of the refrigerant.
Generally these devices are driven by the
electrical energy input to the motor or
pump.
Vapour Absorption Refrigeration
Flow Diagram of Vapour Absorption Refrigeration System

Vapour absorption refrigeration system
In addition to evaporator, condenser and throttle valve

consists of Absorber, generator (Separator) and a pump (No
compressor)
The refrigerant used in these systems is Ammonia.

Working
Refrigerant ammonia passes through the Evaporator tubes
and absorbs heat from the freezing chamber and evaporates.
Low pressure and low temperature ammonia vapours are then
passed through the Absorber containing cold water.
Vapours dissolve in cold water to form a strong ammonia
solution.
The strong ammonia solution is pumped by a Pump into the
Separator ( Generator), where it is heated by an Electric
heating coil.
Due to this heat addition the ammonia dissolved in

water vapourises and gets separated from the
solution.
These high pressure high temperature ammonia
vapours pass through the condenser and gives off
heat to the cooling medium (cold water circulating
around the tubes) and condensed to liquid state.
The liquid ammonia is collected in the receiver.
The high pressure, medium temperature liquid
refrigerant is then passed through the throttle valve,
where it expands with reduction in the pressure and
temperature.
Enters the evaporator kept in the storage room and
cycle repeats .
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Comparison between Vapour Compression and Vapour
• 46
Absorption Refrigeration
Vapour Compression System Vapour Absorption System
Refrigerant vapour is compressed & works Refri. vapour is absorbed &
on mechanical energy heated. Works on heat energy
Refrigeration capacity is less than 1000 Refrigeration capacity is
tons greater than 1000 tons
COP is much higher (4 to 10) COP is less than or equal to 2
Smaller in size Larger
Noisy due to compressor Pump noise is less
Refilling of refrigerant is simple Difficult
Chances of leakage of refrigerant are more Less
Wear and tear are more Wear and tear are less
Refrigerant: Freon - 12 Refrigerant: Ammonia
Maintenance and operating costs are high Less
Air - Conditioning (A/C)

Air-conditioning may be defined as the process of treating
air with respect to temperature, humidity and cleanliness and
distribute it as per the requirement of the conditioned space.
Properly conditioned air results in greater comfort to the
occupants in public places, offices and factories.
Industrially it can be beneficial in controlling product quality,
texture and uniformity.
Principle of A.C.
• An A.C. continuously draws the air from an indoor

space to be cooled and cools it by the refrigeration
principles and discharges it back into the same indoor
space that needs to be cooled
Applications of Air Conditioners

Industrial applications: To control chemical and
bio-chemical reactions.
Examples: Photographic industry, textile, printing,
machine tool industry etc.
Commercial applications: Theatres, hotels,
departmental stores, banks etc.,
Transport applications: Automobiles, trains,
aircraft, ships etc.,
Special applications: T.V. centres, computer
centres, automatic telephone exchange buildings,
hospitals, etc.,
Classification of Air - Conditioning (A/C)

Based on comfort:
Human Comfort Air Conditioning
Industrial Air Conditioning
Based on Season:
Winter Air Conditioning system
Summer Air Conditioning system
Year Round Air Conditioning system
QUESTION PAPERS
Room / Window Air-Conditioner

Main components of Room / Window Type Air Conditioner :
(i) Compressor, (ii) Condenser, (iii) Air filter,

(iv) Drier, (v) Capillary tube, (vi) Evaporator,
(vii) Fans, (viii) Thermostat, (ix) Motor,
(x) Heater
QUESTION PAPERS
Room / Window Air-Conditioner

A/C - Cycle
Condenser : It is an appliance in which the heat from the
refrigerant is rejected at higher temperature to another
medium, usually the atmospheric air or cooling water. In a
condenser the refrigerant vapour gives off its latent heat to the
cooling medium and condenses into liquid so that it can be
expanded in the expansion device. The heat given off in the
condenser includes the heat absorbed in the evaporator as
well as the heat developed due to compression.
Expansion (Throttle) Valve : An expansion device serves as a
device to reduce the pressure suddenly and hence the
temperature of the liquid refrigerant before it passes to the,
evaporator. The liquid refrigerant from the condenser is passed
through an expansion valve (throttle valve) where the pressure
& temperature reduces.
The refrigerant at low pressure and temperature passing in the
evaporator coiled tubes absorbs the heat from the contents in
the freezing compartment and evaporates. This in turn lowers
temperature in the freezing compartment.
Psychometric Properties
Specific Humidity or Humidity Ratio: Ratio of
mass of water vapour to mass of dry air present in a
given volume of mixture
Absolute humidity: Mass of water vapour present in
a given volume of air
Relative Humidity: Ratio of the actual amount of
water vapour (moisture) in the air to the maximum
possible amount of water vapour (moisture) the air can
hold at the prevailing temperature.
The saturated air will have a relative humidity of 100%.
Effective Temperature: Temperature of saturated air
at which a person would experience the same feeling of
comfort as experienced in the actual unsaturated
environment
• REFRIGERATION AND AIR CONDITIONING
• Introduction
• Refrigerator is a mechanical device which is used to
maintain the temperature of a given space lower than the
temperature of surroundings.
• Air conditioner is a mechanical device which is used to
control the total environment of a confined space.
• Both of these devices work on the same basic principle
of transferring heat from a low temperature region to a
high temperature region and follows the second law of
thermodynamics which states that “heat cannot flow from
a low temperature region to a high temperature unless
aided by some external work”. In both of the above said
devices heat has to be extracted from a low temperature
region and transferred to a high temperature region.
Hence according to second law of thermodynamics
some external work is input to the system. This principle
is illustrated in the following block diagram.

Refrigeration

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In a refrigerator, power is to be supplied to remove the heat

A medium called refrigerant continuously extracts the heat

• Refrigerator is a mechanical device

• Air conditioner is a mechanical device

• Both Refrigerator & Air conditioner work on

“Heat cannot flow from a low temperature

• In both Refrigerator & Air conditioner, heat

• According to second law of thermodynamics, some external

• Refrigeration is defined as the process of maintaining the

• The low temperature space is known as the Refrigerated

• The high temperature surroundings is the Atmosphere.

• The medium which carries heat from the low temperature

• According to second law of thermodynamics, some external

• In most of the refrigerators the work is supplied in the form of

Unit of Refrigeration: Tons of refrigeration

In a refrigeration system, the rate at which the heat is

The capacity of a refrigeration system is expressed in Tons of

A ton of refrigeration is defined as the quantity

One American ton (2000 pounds) is taken as

1 Ton of Refrigeration = 210 kJ/min = 3.5 kW

The performance of a refrigeration system is expressed by a

Amount of heat absorbed

The performance indicator of a refrigerator COP can be

Refrigerants are heat carrying mediums, which during their

(i) Primary refrigerants

(ii) Secondary refrigerants

Primary refrigerants: Directly take part in the refrigeration

Examples: Ammonia, Carbon dioxide, Sulphur dioxide,

Secondary refrigerants: first cooled by primary refrigerants

Examples: Brine solution, water, air, etc.

Most commonly used refrigerants are:

 Ammonia - vapour absorption refrigerator

Most commonly used refrigerants

Chloro Fluoro Carbons (CFCs):

Some of the refrigerants belonging to this group are:

Methyl Chloride (CH3Cl):

Boiling point: An ideal refrigerant must have low boiling

Freezing point: It must have a very low freezing point

Specific Heat: A good refrigerant must have low specific heat

Specific Volume: The specific volume of the

Viscosity: The viscosity of a refrigerant at both the

Corrosiveness: A good refrigerant should be non-

Chemical Stability: An ideal refrigerant must not

Miscibility: The ability of a refrigerant to mix with oil is

Odour: A good refrigerant must be odourless, otherwise some

Leakage: The refrigerant must be such that any leakage can

Flammability: The refrigerant should have high ignition

Desirable properties for an ideal refrigerant

Heat flows from a system at higher temperature to

Heat can flow from a system at low temperature to a

Fluids by absorbing the heat, change from liquid

The boiling and freezing temperatures of a fluid

Basic Components of a Refrigerating Unit

Four (4) basic components:

Types of Refrigeration Systems

Vapour Compression Refrigeration system

In a vapour compression refrigerator, a vapour is

During evaporation, it absorbs the latent heat from