Design Evaluation for a Finned-Tube CO 2 Gas Cooler in Residential Applications

Charalampos Alexopoulos, Osama Aljolani, Florian Heberle, Tryfon C. Roumpedakis, Dieter Brüggemann and Sotirios Karellas
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Charalampos Alexopoulos: Laboratory of Steam Boilers and Thermal Plants, Department of Thermal Engineering, School of Mechanical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 9 Heroon Polytechniou Street, 15780 Zografou, Greece
Osama Aljolani: Chair of Engineering Thermodynamics and Transport Processes (LTTT), Center of Energy Technology (ZET), Faculty of Engineering Science, University of Bayreuth, Universitätsstraße 30, 95440 Bayreuth, Germany
Florian Heberle: Chair of Engineering Thermodynamics and Transport Processes (LTTT), Center of Energy Technology (ZET), Faculty of Engineering Science, University of Bayreuth, Universitätsstraße 30, 95440 Bayreuth, Germany
Tryfon C. Roumpedakis: Laboratory of Steam Boilers and Thermal Plants, Department of Thermal Engineering, School of Mechanical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 9 Heroon Polytechniou Street, 15780 Zografou, Greece
Dieter Brüggemann: Chair of Engineering Thermodynamics and Transport Processes (LTTT), Center of Energy Technology (ZET), Faculty of Engineering Science, University of Bayreuth, Universitätsstraße 30, 95440 Bayreuth, Germany
Sotirios Karellas: Laboratory of Steam Boilers and Thermal Plants, Department of Thermal Engineering, School of Mechanical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, 9 Heroon Polytechniou Street, 15780 Zografou, Greece

Energies, 2020, vol. 13, issue 10, 1-17

Abstract: Towards the introduction of environmentally friendlier refrigerants, CO 2 cycles have gained significant attention in cooling and air conditioning systems in recent years. In this context, a design procedure for an air finned-tube CO 2 gas cooler is developed. The analysis aims to evaluate the gas cooler design incorporated into a CO 2 air conditioning system for residential applications. Therefore, a simulation model of the gas cooler is developed and validated experimentally by comparing its overall heat transfer coefficient. Based on the model, the evaluation of different numbers of rows, lengths, and diameters of tubes, as well as different ambient temperatures, are conducted, identifying the most suitable design in terms of pressure losses and required heat exchange area for selected operational conditions. The comparison between the model and the experimental results showed a satisfactory convergence for fan frequencies from 50 to 80 Hz. The absolute average deviations of the overall heat transfer coefficient for fan frequencies from 60 to 80 Hz were approximately 10%. With respect to the gas cooler design, a compromise between the bundle area and the refrigerant pressure drop was necessary, resulting in a 2.11 m 2 bundle area and 0.23 bar refrigerant pressure drop. In addition, the analysis of the gas cooler’s performance in different ambient temperatures showed that the defined heat exchanger operates properly, compared to other potential gas cooler designs.

Keywords: supercritical carbon dioxide; experimental testing; finned-tube gas cooler (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: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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