Thermodynamic Analysis of an Innovative Cold Energy Storage System for Auto-Cascade Refrigeration Applications

Zhenzhen Liu, Jingde Jiang, Zilong Wang and Hua Zhang ()
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Zhenzhen Liu: Institute of Refrigeration and Cryogenic Engineering, School of Energy and Power Engineering, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai 200093, China
Jingde Jiang: Technical Center for Mechanical and Electrical Product Inspection and Testing of Shanghai Customs District, Shanghai 200135, China
Zilong Wang: Institute of Refrigeration and Cryogenic Engineering, School of Energy and Power Engineering, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai 200093, China
Hua Zhang: Institute of Refrigeration and Cryogenic Engineering, School of Energy and Power Engineering, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai 200093, China

Energies, 2023, vol. 16, issue 5, 1-17

Abstract: The cooling capacity needed by ultra-low temperature apparatus cannot be reached economically with a single vapor compression refrigeration cycle due to the constraint of the high compressor pressure ratio. The auto-cascade refrigeration cycle is a good alternative. In this work, a novel concept that applies the principle of the auto-cascade refrigeration cycle to store cold energy is conducted. The environment-friendly refrigerants of R600a/R290/R170 zeotropic mixtures are used to study the performance of the modified auto-cascade refrigeration cycle (MACRC) as an alternative for cold-energy applications. The simulation results show that a cooling capacity of 500 W can be provided below ?60 °C. The mixture with a mass fraction of 0.25/0.35/0.40 yields a COP of 0.695 and an exergy efficiency of 0.262 at ?66 °C. The performance of the MACRC system was investigated at an ambient temperature of 20 to 40 °C for indoor small-scale applications. It is concluded that the performance would be improved by decreasing the ambient temperature. The results of the work should be helpful for the design and optimization of auto-cascade systems.

Keywords: zeotropic mixture; modified auto-cascade refrigeration; thermodynamic performance (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: 2023
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