Refridgeration, Boyle's law or enthelpy of vaporization?

AI Thread Summary
Air conditioners and refrigerators operate by removing heat from a system to create cold air, utilizing principles from thermodynamics. The two main concepts discussed are Boyle's law, which involves the expansion of gas in coils, and the enthalpy of vaporization, where heat is absorbed during the vaporization of a liquid. While Boyle's law suggests that gas expansion cools the refrigerant, the enthalpy of vaporization indicates that the refrigerant absorbs heat, enhancing cooling efficiency. These processes are not mutually exclusive; both play a role in the refrigeration cycle. Understanding the interplay between these principles is essential for grasping how refrigeration systems function effectively.
FrankJ777
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I've curious about how an air conditioner or refrigerator make's cold air. I've read two different descriptions how cold is "made", or how heat is removed from a system. Some descriptions I've read say that air conditioners use expanding gas in it's coils, hence the use of Boyle's law. Other descriptions I've read describe forced vaporization of a liquid, in which case heat would be absorbed from the surroundings due to the enthalpy of the liquid vaporizing. They seem like mutually exclusive actions, as for using Boyle's law the refrigerant would get cooler, but using the method of vaporizing a liquid, it seems the refrigerant would absorb more heat, and be more effective at cooling. Anyways, my question is which law governs the cooling action?
 
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