Virtual household refrigerators at steady-state and transient conditions. Numerical model and experimental validation

Abstract

The current status of a flexible numerical model for vapor compression refrigeration systems for steady state and transient conditions is presented. The model simulates both the refrigeration cycle itself and the refrigerated compartments network, based on a modular approach, where each element of the system is solved independently by means of appropriate models, and where the whole system is solved iteratively based on the links established between the elements. The methodology implemented to achieve the transient simulation of the whole system combines a steady-state approach for the refrigerating cycle loop with a transient approach for the refrigerated compartments. The aim of this work is to review the model validation at steady-state conditions for a particular refrigerator with a unique refrigerated cabinet and to perform transient simulations in order to foresee the refrigerator behavior. The main components of the studied refrigerator, namely, hermetic compressor, wire-and-tube condenser, non-adiabatic capillary tube, plate evaporator, low-pressure-side accumulator, and refrigerated cabinet, are included in the model. On the one hand, for steady state conditions, both the system relevant temperatures and the refrigerant charge distribution are predicted at different heat loads and compared against experimental values. On the other hand, for transient conditions, the evolution in time of both the system relevant temperatures and the refrigerant charge distribution is analyzed.