Throttling in Refrigeration Cycles

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SUMMARY

The discussion focuses on the throttling process in refrigeration cycles, specifically addressing the isenthalpic nature of this process. Participants clarify that while enthalpy remains constant during throttling, a temperature drop occurs due to the phase change from liquid to vapor. This phenomenon is explained by the energy required for the phase change, which results in a temperature decrease despite constant enthalpy. The distinction between isenthalpic and isentropic processes is also highlighted, emphasizing that the temperature behavior is not applicable to ideal gases alone.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of refrigeration cycles and their components
  • Knowledge of thermodynamic processes, specifically isenthalpic and isentropic
  • Familiarity with phase changes in substances, particularly from liquid to vapor
  • Basic principles of energy transfer and molecular interactions in thermodynamics
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the principles of isenthalpic processes in refrigeration systems
  • Study the thermodynamic properties of refrigerants during phase changes
  • Learn about the implications of throttling on refrigeration efficiency
  • Explore the differences between isenthalpic and isentropic processes in detail
USEFUL FOR

Engineers, thermodynamics students, and professionals in HVAC and refrigeration industries seeking to deepen their understanding of refrigeration cycle dynamics and the effects of throttling on system performance.

multiviya
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Hi all,

The process of throttling in refrigeration is taken to be isenthalpic. And as enthalpy remains constant then so should the temperature. But in the TS diag of the process it shows a drop of temperature from Thigher to Tlower. Please help me regarding this.

Thanks!
 
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for isenthalpic process, for which temperature decreases despite enthalpy remaining constant. But from what i know enthalpy is directly proportional to temperature, so temp should remain constant when enthalpy does. But clearly that's not the case in RAC cycle. Plz explain
 
Hi multiviya,
multiviya said:
But from what i know enthalpy is directly proportional to temperature, so temp should remain constant when enthalpy does.
This is only true for an ideal gas.
 
RefrigerationTS.png

The reason is that there is a (partial) phase change from liquid to liquid & vapor during the expansion process.

Normally, to go from liquid to gas, you need to add energy to break the molecular bonds, i.e. boil the liquid. But since we have a process which have no heat transfer to or from the surroundings by definition, the energy needed has to come from within, thus the temperature drop.
 

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