Refrigeration system with efficient expansion device control, liquid refrigerant return, oil return, and evaporator defrost
AssigneeHill Phoenix, Inc.
InventorsSenthilkumar Kandappa Goundar Shanmugam, Manu Mital
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Abstract
A refrigeration system includes an evaporator configured to receive a flow of refrigerant and transfer heat into the refrigerant within the evaporator to provide cooling for a temperature-controlled space, an expansion valve operable to modulate the flow of refrigerant into the evaporator, a liquid level sensor configured to measure a level of liquid accumulated within a component of the refrigeration system, and a controller configured to operate the expansion valve to increase the flow of refrigerant into the evaporator or decrease the flow of refrigerant into the evaporator based on the level of liquid measured by the liquid level sensor.
Claims6
A refrigeration system comprising:
- an evaporator configured to receive a flow of refrigerant and transfer heat into the refrigerant within the evaporator to provide cooling for a temperature-controlled space;
- an expansion valve operable to modulate the flow of refrigerant into the evaporator;
- an oil level sensor configured to measure a level of oil accumulated within the component of the refrigeration system
- a liquid level sensor configured to measure a level of liquid accumulated within a component of the refrigeration system, wherein the level of liquid is a total level of oil and liquid refrigerant accumulated within the component of the refrigeration system;
- and
- a controller configured to operate the expansion valve to increase the flow of refrigerant into the evaporator or decrease the flow of refrigerant into the evaporator based on the level of liquid measured by the liquid level sensor;
- wherein the controller is configured to:
- determine a level of liquid refrigerant accumulated within the component of the refrigeration system by subtracting the level of oil from the total level of oil and liquid refrigerant;
- and
- operate the expansion valve to increase the flow of refrigerant into the evaporator or decrease the flow of refrigerant into the evaporator based on the level of liquid refrigerant.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.