Novel design and performance enhancement of domestic refrigerators with thermal storage
Journal article
Marques, C., Davies, G., Maidment, GG, Evans, JA and Wood, ID (2013). Novel design and performance enhancement of domestic refrigerators with thermal storage. Applied Thermal Engineering. 63 (2), pp. 511-519. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2013.11.043
Authors | Marques, C., Davies, G., Maidment, GG, Evans, JA and Wood, ID |
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Abstract | This paper investigates the design and operation of a thermal storage refrigerator. Firstly, compressor performance at a range of typical refrigerator operating conditions was analysed. The model results suggest that larger compressors are more efficient when running, with isentropic efficiency increasing by 50% as the displacement increased from 4 to 8 cm3. The impact of compressor performance on the overall refrigerator efficiency was estimated and the results indicated that an energy reduction of 19.5% can be obtained by replacing a conventionally sized, 4 cm3 compressor by a larger 8 cm3 model. However, using a larger compressor will normally lead to more start/stop events, which reduces overall efficiency. A method is proposed for exploiting the superior performance of large compressors by accumulating their high cooling capacity output in a phase change material (PCM), reducing the number of on/off cycles. Numerical modelling and experimental validation were undertaken using a prototype thermal storage refrigerator, incorporating a PCM, to estimate the PCM charge and discharge rate and the corresponding refrigerator on and off cycle durations at different ambient conditions. The results showed that the integration of a 5 mm PCM slab into the refrigerator allowed for 3–5 h of continuous operation without a power supply. The numerical model was found to be in good agreement with the experimental results, with the error between the simulation and tests below 5% for most experiments. |
Keywords | Household refrigerator; Phase change material; Energy storage; Compressor; Energy efficiency; 0913 Mechanical Engineering; 0915 Interdisciplinary Engineering; Energy |
Year | 2013 |
Journal | Applied Thermal Engineering |
Journal citation | 63 (2), pp. 511-519 |
Publisher | Elsevier |
ISSN | 1359-4311 |
Digital Object Identifier (DOI) | https://doi.org/10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2013.11.043 |
Web address (URL) | http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-84892432975&partnerID=40&md5=6d744c1f41a9fa37176aa6a1bebb6223 |
Publication dates | |
03 Dec 2013 | |
Publication process dates | |
Deposited | 27 Jun 2018 |
Accepted | 19 Nov 2013 |
Accepted author manuscript | License |
https://openresearch.lsbu.ac.uk/item/878q8
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Accepted author manuscript
Novel design and performance enhancement of domestic refridgerators with thermal storage.pdf | ||
License: CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 |
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