Refrigeration system and an improved transcritical vapour compression cycle
OwnerNacer Achaichiainventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
FIG. 1c illustrates a vapour compression cycle according to the present invention wherein a thermoelectric device is used to sub-cool the refrigerant exiting the gas cooler from point 3a to point 3, thus increasing the cooling effect of the evaporator/heat exchanger between points 4 and 1 without the detrimental increase in the temperature of the refrigerant at the suction inlet of the compressor that occurs in known systems through the use of an internal heat exchanger. The thermoelectric device may be provided at the outlet of the gas cooler or may be incorporated into the gas cooler.
Claims5
A refrigeration system for an air conditioner comprising a compressor for compressing a refrigerant, a gas cooler downstream of the compressor for cooling the refrigerant, an expansion valve downstream of the gas cooler for reducing the pressure of the refrigerant and a heat exchanger or evaporator downstream of the expansion valve for evaporating the refrigerant, characterised by the provision of thermoelectric means for reducing the temperature of the refrigerant at the inlet of the expansion valve.
A refrigeration system as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein control means are provided for controlling the degree of cooling provided by the thermoelectric means to optimise the cooling effect depending on system or performance needs, gas cooler performance, and ambient conditions.
A transcritical vapour compression cycle for carbon dioxide refrigerant comprising the steps of compressing a superheated refrigerant to increase the temperature, pressure and enthalpy of the refrigerant into the supercritical region, cooling the refrigerant in a gas cooler at a substantially constant pressure, expanding the refrigerant through an expansion valve to a temperature and pressure below the critical values, evaporating the refrigerant in an evaporator/heat exchanger whereby the refrigerant absorbs heat from a cooled space, characterised by the further step using thermoelectric means to further cool the refrigerant exiting the gas cooler thereby reducing the temperature of the refrigerant at the inlet of the expansion valve.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.