Performance Evaluation of a CO 2 Refrigeration System Enhanced with a Dew Point Cooler

Martin Belusko, Raymond Liddle, Alemu Alemu, Edward Halawa and Frank Bruno
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Martin Belusko: Barbara Hardy Institute, School of Engineering, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes Campus, Mawson Lakes 5095, SA, Australia
Raymond Liddle: Barbara Hardy Institute, School of Engineering, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes Campus, Mawson Lakes 5095, SA, Australia
Alemu Alemu: Barbara Hardy Institute, School of Engineering, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes Campus, Mawson Lakes 5095, SA, Australia
Edward Halawa: Future Industries Institute, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes Campus, Mawson Lakes 5095, SA, Australia
Frank Bruno: Future Industries Institute, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes Campus, Mawson Lakes 5095, SA, Australia

Energies, 2019, vol. 12, issue 6, 1-22

Abstract: Dew point cooling (DPC) is a novel indirect evaporative cooling concept capable of delivering air temperatures approaching the dew point. Coupling this technology with CO 2 refrigeration is well suited to minimising transcritical operation when the coefficient of performance (COP) is dramatically reduced in hot climates. A substantial experimental program was conducted to characterise this combination by testing a 20 kW CO 2 refrigeration system subject to ambient temperatures above 40 °C. It was demonstrated that DPC operation not only avoided transcritical operation during such weather conditions, but also increased the COP by up to 140% compared to the conventional system. The combination of these technologies was successfully mathematically modelled, from which the optimum condenser inlet air temperature was identified for each condenser temperature. Using this optimum condition, it was possible to maximise the COP for a range of conditions applicable to the psychometric chart. An annual case study for Adelaide, Australia was conducted which demonstrated that optimally coupling DPC with CO 2 refrigeration can reduce the annual energy consumption and peak demand by 16% and 47%, respectively, compared to a conventional CO 2 booster system. Furthermore, the number of hours of transcritical operation was reduced from 3278 to 27.

Keywords: CO 2 refrigeration system; dew point cooler; evaporative cooling; subcritical operation; transcritical operation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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