A

Project Report
On
THEORETICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL STUDIES
ON
PULSE TUBE REFRIGERATOR

Submitted by:
Mr. Vivek Kumar Rawat
Roll No. 10503068

Guided by:
Prof. R. K. Sahoo
Mechanical Engineering
NIT Rourkela

Mechanical Engineering Department

National Institute of Technology Rourkela
Rourkela, Orissa - 769008
 CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the thesis entitled “Theoretical and Experimental studies on Pulse Tube
Refrigerator”, being submitted by Mr. Vivek Kumar Rawat, in the partial fulfillment of the
requirement for the award of the degree of B. Tech in Mechanical Engineering, is a record of
bona fide research carried out by him at the Department of Mechanical Engineering, National
Institute of Technology Rourkela, under our guidance and supervision.

Prof. R. K. Sahoo

Mechanical Engineering

NIT Rourkela

Date:
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my guide Prof. R. K. Sahoo for his invaluable
guidance and steadfast support during the course of this project work. Fruitful and rewarding
discussions with him on numerous occasions have made this work possible. It has been a great
pleasure for me to work under his guidance.

I am also indebt to Mr. Bishwanath Mukharjee of cryogenics laboratory for his technical
support during the experiments which has made this work possible.

I would like to express my sincere thanks to all the faculty members of Mechanical Engineering
Department for their kind co-operation.

I would like to acknowledge the assistance of all my friends in the process of completing this
work.

Finally, I acknowledge my sincere gratitude to my family members for their constant

encouragement and support.

Vivek Kumar Rawat

 ABSTRACT

The absence of moving components at low temperature end gives the pulse tube refrigerator
(PTR) a great leverage over other cryo-coolers like Stirling and GM refrigerators that are
conventionally in use for several decades. PTR has greater reliability; no electric motors to cause
electromagnetic interference, no sources of mechanical vibration in the cold head and no
clearance seal between piston and cylinder. Moreover, it is a relatively low cost device with a
simple yet compact design.

The objectives of the present work are to 1) understand the basic phenomena responsible for the
production of cold effect with the help of simple theoretical models based on ideal behavior of
gases and to 2) test a single stage GM type pulse tube refrigerator present in the cryogenics lab of
Mechanical Engineering Department of NIT Rourkela. Experimental studies consist of cooling
behavior of the refrigeration system and suggesting modifications to improve the performance of
the PTR.
 CONTENTS

TOPICS PAGE No

1. Introduction

1.1 Cryocoolers 1
1.2 Classification of cryocoolers 1-2
1.3 Pulse Tube Refrigerators 3
1.4 Analysis of PTRs 4-9
1.5 Objective 10

2. Literature Review 11-15

3. Experimental Setup and procedure

3.1 Description of experimental setup 17

3.2 Component Description 18-24

3.3 Leak Test 24

3.4 Experimental procedure 25

4. Results and discussions

4.1 Generation of pressure pulse 26

4.2 Effect of valve openings 26-29

4.3 Effect of frequency 29-30

4.4 Conclusions 30

4.5 Modifications Suggested 30

5. References 31-32
 CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

1.1 CRYOCOOLERS
Cryocoolers are small refrigerators that can reach cryogenic temperatures and provide
refrigeration in the temperature range 10 K to 120 K. The use of cryocoolers has been propelled
by many necessities of modern day applications such as adequate refrigeration at specified
temperature with low power input, long lifetime, reliable and maintenance free operation with
minimum vibration and noise, compactness, and lightweight. The requirements imposed in each
of these applications have been difficult to meet and have been the impetus for considerable
research in the field of cryocoolers for the past forty years.

Typical applications of cryocoolers are:

 Liquefaction of gases such as nitrogen, oxygen, hydrogen, helium, natural gas

 Cooling of super-conducting magnets
 Cooling of infra-red sensors for missile guidance
 Cryo vacuum pumps
 SQUID magnetometers
 Gamma ray sensors for monitoring nuclear activity
 Cooling of high temperature superconductors and semiconductors
 Cryosurgery
 Preservation of biological materials, blood, biological specimens etc.

1.2 CLASSIFICATION OF CRYOCOOLERS

Cryocoolers are classified into two types based on the type of heat exchanger used:

(1) Recuperative cryocoolers and (2) Regenerative cryocoolers.

Recuperative types, as shown in figure 1.1, utilize continuous flow of the refrigerant in one
direction, analogous to a DC electrical system. As a result, the compressor and expander must
have inlet and outlet valves to control the flow direction, unless rotary or turbine compressor or
expanders are used. The recuperative heat exchangers have two or more separate flow channels.
The performance of the recuperative cryocoolers is dependent on the properties of the working
fluids used. Also, the maximum exergy loss in most cryocoolers occurs in the compressor. The
main advantage of DC cryocoolers, however, is that they can be scaled to any size (up to few
MW of refrigeration).

Fig. 1.1: Schematic of Recuperative Cryocoolers

In regenerative types, as shown in figure 1.2, the refrigerant undergoes an oscillating flow or an
oscillating pressure analogous to an AC electrical system. The compressor and the pressure
oscillator for the regenerative cycles need no inlet or outlet valves. The regenerator has only one
flow channel, and the heat is stored for a half cycle in the regenerator matrix, which must have a
high heat capacity. The performance of the regenerative type cryocoolers is dependent on the
phase difference between the pressure and mass flow rate phasors. Helium is the refrigerant of
choice for most regenerative type cryocoolers. The main disadvantage with regenerative type
cryocoolers is that they cannot be scaled to large sizes like the recuperative cryocoolers.
 Fig.1.2: Schematic of Regenerative Cryocoolers

1.3 PULSE TUBE REFRIGERATORS (PTRs)

The moving displacer in the Stirling and Gifford-McMahon refrigerators has several
disadvantages. It is a source of vibration, has a short lifetime, and contributes to axial heat
conduction as well as to a shuttle heat loss. In the pulse tube refrigerator, shown in Figure 1.2b,
the displacer is eliminated. The proper gas motion in phase with the pressure is achieved by the
use of an orifice and a reservoir volume to store the gas during a half cycle. The reservoir
volume is large enough that negligible pressure oscillation occurs in it during the oscillating
flow. The oscillating flow through the orifice separates the heating and cooling effects just as the
displacer does for the Stirling and Gifford-McMahon refrigerators. The orifice pulse tube
refrigerator (OPTR) operates ideally with adiabatic compression and expansion in the pulse tube.

The four steps in the cycle are as follows.

1. The piston moves down to compress the gas (Helium) in the pulse tube.
2. Because this heated, compressed gas is at a higher pressure than the average in the
reservoir, it flows through the orifice into the reservoir and exchanges heat with the
 ambient through the heat exchanger at the warm end of the pulse tube. The flow stops
when the pressure in the pulse tube is reduced to the average pressure.
3. The piston moves up and expands the gas adiabatically in the pulse tube.
4. This cold, low-pressure gas in the pulse tube is forced toward the cold end by the gas
flow from the reservoir into the pulse tube through the orifice. As the cold gas flows
through the heat exchanger at the cold end of the pulse tube it picks up heat from the
object being cooled. The flow stops when the pressure in the pulse tube increases to the
average pressure. The cycle then repeats.

The function of the regenerator is the same as in the Stirling and Gifford-McMahon refrigerators
in that it precools the incoming high-pressure gas before it reaches the cold end. The function of
the pulse tube is to insulate the processes at its two ends. That is, it must be large enough that gas
flowing from the warm end traverses only part way through the pulse tube before flow is
reversed. Likewise, flow in from the cold end never reaches the warm end. Gas in the middle
portion of the pulse tube never leaves the pulse tube and forms a temperature gradient that
insulates the two ends. Roughly speaking, the gas in the pulse tube is divided into three
segments, with the middle segment acting like a displacer but consisting of gas rather than a
solid material. For this gas plug to effectively insulate the two ends of the pulse tube, turbulence
in the pulse tube must be minimized. Thus, flow straightening at the two ends is crucial to the
successful operation of the pulse tube refrigerator.

1.4 ANALYSIS OF PULSE TUBE REFRIGERATORS

1.4.1 Enthalpy and Entropy Flow Model

The refrigeration power of the PTR is derived using the First and Second Laws of
Thermodynamics for an open system. Because of the oscillating flow the expressions are
simplified if averages over one cycle are made. Even though the time-averaged mass flow rate is
zero, other time-averaged quantities, such as enthalpy flow, entropy flow, etc., will have nonzero
values in general. We define positive flow to be in the direction from the compressor to the
orifice. The First Law balance for the cold section is shown in Figure 1.3. No work is extracted
from the cold end, so the heat absorbed under steady state conditions at the cold end is given by

Qc   H    Hr  (1.1)

where <H> is the time-averaged enthalpy flow in the pulse tube, and <Hr> is the time-averaged
enthalpy flow in the regenerator, which is zero for a perfect regenerator and an ideal gas. The
maximum, or gross, refrigeration power is simply the enthalpy flow in the pulse tube, with the
enthalpy flow in the regenerator being considered a loss. Combining the First and Second Laws
for a steady-state oscillating system gives the time-averaged enthalpy flow at any location as

 H    PdV   To  S  (1.2)

where Pd is the dynamic pressure, V is the volume flow rate, To is the average temperature of the
gas at the location of interest, and is the time-averaged entropy flow. The first term on the right
hand side of Eq. (1.2) represents the potential of the gas to do reversible work in reference to the
average pressure Po if an isothermal expansion process occurred at To in the gas at that location.
Since it is not an actual thermodynamic work term, it is sometimes referred to as the
hydrodynamic workflow, hydrodynamic power, or acoustic power. Equation (1.2) shows that the
acoustic power can be expressed as an availability or exergy flow with the reference state being
Po and To. The specific availability or exergy is given as h- Tos.
Processes within the pulse tube in the ideal case are adiabatic and reversible. In this case entropy
remains constant throughout the cycle, which gives

S  0 (1.3)

Equations (1.1) and (1.2) are very general and apply to any oscillating thermodynamic system,
even if the flow and pressure are not sinusoidal functions of time. If they are sinusoidal, the
acoustic power can be written as
 PV 1 1cos  (1/2)RTom1(P1 / Po)cos
d   (1/2)PV (1.4)

where P1 is the amplitude of the sinusoidal pressure oscillation, V1 is the amplitude of the
sinusoidal volume flow rate, θis the phase angle between the flow and the pressure, R is the gas
constant per unit mass, and m1 is the amplitude of the sinusoidal mass flow rate. Equations (1.1-
1.3) can be combined to give the maximum or gross refrigeration power in terms of acoustic
power as

Q max   PdV  (1.5)

This simple expression is a very general expression and applies to the Stirling and Gifford-
McMahon refrigerators as well. In those two refrigerators the acoustic work is converted to
actual expansion work by the moving displacer. That work is easily measured by finding the area
of the PV diagram. In the case of the pulse tube refrigerator there is no moving displacer to
extract the work or to measure a PV diagram. Thus, the volume or mass flow rate must be
measured by some flow meter to determine the acoustic power. Such measurements are difficult
to perform inside the pulse tube without disturbing the flow and, hence, the refrigeration power.
Because there is no heat exchange to the outside along a well-insulated pulse tube, the First Law
shows that the time-averaged enthalpy flow through the pulse tube is constant from one end to
the other. Then, according to Eq. (1.2) the acoustic power remains constant as long as there are
no losses along the pulse tube to generate entropy. The instantaneous flow rate through the
orifice is easily determined by measuring the small pressure oscillation in the reservoir and using
the ideal-gas law to find the instantaneous mass flow rate. The instantaneous pressure is easily
measured in the warm end of the pulse tube, and the product of it and the volume flow is
integrated according to Eq. (1.5) to find the acoustic power.
 Fig.1.3: First Law Energy balance in PTR

1.4.2 Pulse Tube Losses and Figure of Merit

In an actual pulse tube refrigerator there will be losses in both the regenerator and in the pulse
tube. These losses can be subtracted from the gross refrigeration power to find the net
refrigeration power. The regenerator loss caused by <Hr> is usually the largest loss, and it can be
calculated accurately only by complex numerical analysis programs, such as REGEN3.1. The
other significant loss is that associated with generation of entropy inside the pulse tube from such
effects as (a) instantaneous heat transfer between the gas and the tube wall, (b) mixing of the hot
and cold gas segments because of turbulence, (c) acoustic streaming or circulation of the gas
within the pulse tube brought about by the oscillating pressure and gas interactions with the wall,
and (d) end-effect losses associated with a transition from an adiabatic volume to an isothermal
volume. The time-averaged entropy flows associated with (b), (c), and (d) are always negative,
that is, flow from pulse tube to compressor. The entropy flow associated with (a) is negative at
cryogenic temperatures, where the critical temperature gradient has been exceeded, but is
positive at higher temperatures, where the temperature gradient is less than the critical value. For
an ideal PTR the figure of merit is defined as

FOM   H  /  PdV 
(1.6)
1.4.3 Effect of Phase between Flow and Pressure

Equation (1.4) shows that for a given pressure amplitude and acoustic power, the mass flow
amplitude is minimized for = 0. Such a phase occurs at the orifice, that is, the flow is in phase
with the pressure. However, because of the volume associated with the pulse tube, the flow at the
cold end of the pulse tube then leads the pressure by approximately 30
in a correctly sized pulse
tube. The gas volume in the regenerator will cause the flow at the warm end of the regenerator to
lead the pressure even further, for example, by 50 to 60
. With this large phase difference the
amplitude of mass flow at the warm end of the regenerator must be quite large to transmit a
given acoustic power through the regenerator. This large amplitude of mass flow leads to large
pressure drops as well as to poor heat exchange in the regenerator. These losses are minimized
when the amplitude averaged throughout the regenerator is minimized. This occurs when the
flow at the cold end lags the pressure and flow at the warm end leads the pressure.

1.4.4 Intrinsic PTR efficiency

In an ideal PTR the only loss is the irreversible expansion through the orifice. The irreversible
entropy generation there is a result of lost work that otherwise could have been recovered and
used to help with the compression. All other components are assumed to be perfect, and the
working fluid is assumed to be an ideal gas. The COP for this ideal PTR is given by

COPcarnot  Qc / Wo  Tc /(Th  Tc) (1.7)

COPideal  Qc / Wo   PdVc /  PdVh  Tc / Th (1.8)

where Eq. (1.5) was used to relate the refrigeration power to the acoustic power at the cold end.
The acoustic power at the hot end of the regenerator is simply the PV power of the compressor.
Because the regenerator is assumed to be perfect, the acoustic power varies along its length in
accordance with the specific volume, which is proportional to temperature for an ideal gas. The
maximum COP from Eq. (1.8) is 1.0, but only when the cold temperature becomes equal to the
hot temperature. A comparison of the COP from Eq. (1.8) with the Carnot COP from Eq. (1.7)
shows that the only difference is the presence of the Tc term in the denominator of Eq. (1.7). That
term represented the work reversibly recovered at the low temperature and used to help in the
compression. The Carnot efficiency of the ideal PTR is given by

ideal  COPideal / COPcarnot  (Th  Tc) / Th (1.9)

For Th = 300 K and Tc = 75 K, ideal = 0.75. Since practical pulse tube refrigerators have
efficiencies less than about 20% of Carnot, the intrinsic loss is dominated by other practical
losses when operating at this low temperature. However, for Tc = 250 K, ideal = 0.17. In that
case the lost power at the orifice is a much larger fraction of the total input power. Thus, the PTR
cannot compete with the vapor-compression refrigerator for near-ambient operation. It is useful
only for much lower temperatures, especially cryogenic temperatures, unless the acoustic power
flow at the warm end of the pulse tube is recovered.
 Fig.1.4: Carnot Efficiency of various types of cryocoolers

1.5 OBJECTIVE OF THIS WORK

The objectives of this work is to test and optimize a Pulse Tube Refrigerator and study its
performance by varying different parameters like frequency and valve openings and suggest
modifications in the present design.
 CHAPTER 2

LITERATURE REVIEW

The first pulse tube refrigerator was discovered accidentally at Syracuse University by Gifford
and Longsworth in the mid-1960s as they were developing the Gifford McMahon refrigerator.
They noticed that the closed end of a pipe became very hot when there was a pressure oscillation
inside, whereas the open end toward the compressor was cool. After further studies and
optimization of the geometry, they were able to achieve a low temperature of 124 K at one end
when the closed end was cooled with water. In their arrangement they used a Gifford-McMahon
compressor to drive the system, but there was no orifice or separate reservoir. There was a small
reservoir associated with the heat exchanger at the warm end of the pulse tube. Pulse tube
diameters were about 20 to 25 mm and operating frequencies were about 1 Hz. This pulse tube
arrangement without an orifice is now referred to as the basic pulse tube.

The operating principle of the basic pulse tube refrigerator is entirely different from the orifice
type discussed earlier. In the basic pulse tube refrigerator the compression and expansion process
inside the pulse tube occurs about halfway between adiabatic and isothermal. Expressed more
rigorously, the thermal penetration depth in the gas is comparable to the tube radius. This large
boundary layer pumps heat from the cold to the hot end of the pulse tube by a shuttle action of all
the gas parcels. A parcel of gas is compressed and moved toward the closed end. At the plateau
of the sinusoidal motion there is time for the hot parcel of gas to transfer heat to the adjacent tube
wall. Next the parcel of gas is expanded and moved away from the closed end. Near the end of
its motion this cooled parcel picks up heat from the adjacent tube wall. That heat is then carried
back toward the closed end as the cycle repeats. Other parcels contribute to the heat pumping
action all the way from the cold to the hot end. Because heat transfer with the wall is involved,
there is a critical temperature gradient where the heat pumping effect goes to zero. At that point
the temperature profile of the gas during its movement exactly matches that in the tube wall. If a
steeper temperature gradient were imposed on the wall, the gas would shuttle heat from the hot
to the cold end. This critical temperature gradient then prevents such a system from reaching
cryogenic temperatures. Efficiencies of this arrangement were very poor, and, as a result, little
work was done with the basic pulse tube refrigerator after about 1970.

In the early 1980s Wheatley and coworkers at Los Alamos National Laboratory began to
investigate heat-pumping effects at frequencies much higher than that used in the basic pulse
tube refrigerator. At frequencies of 500 to 1000 Hz resonance would occur in short tubes and
lead to a standing wave. At such high frequencies the thermal penetration depth in helium is on
the order of 0.1 mm. Proper heat transfer was achieved by the use of closely spaced plates inside
the tube. This resonant pulse tube, better known as the thermoacoustic refrigerator also has a
low-temperature limit set by the critical temperature gradient because it, also, relies on heat
transfer with the solid structure. A low temperature of about 195 K has been achieved with this
type of refrigerator. Further research and development on the thermoacoustic refrigerator is
continuing for use in near-ambient refrigeration and air conditioning. At the Moscow Bauman
Technical Institute in 1984 Mikulin et al. introduced an orifice inside the pulse tube near the
warm end and achieved a low temperature of 105 K.

In 1985 Radebaugh et al. at NIST/Boulder placed the orifice outside the pulse tube, as shown in
Figure 2c, to allow the warm heat exchanger to act as a flow straightener. The orifice was a
needle valve, which allowed an easy optimization of the flow impedance. A temperature of 60 K
was then achieved. Frequencies of 5 to 10 Hz were used in those early studies and were limited
by the available valveless compressor. Fundamental studies of the orifice pulse tube refrigerator
were carried out at NIST over the next several years to better understand the operating principles
of this device. Such studies showed that the orifice pulse tube refrigerator did not rely on heat
transfer with the tube wall. In fact, such heat transfer degraded the performance. A simple
harmonic model was developed to calculate the time-averaged enthalpy flow in the pulse tube
and the resultant refrigeration effect. The model assumed adiabatic conditions inside the pulse
tube. In 1990 temperatures below 40K were achieved at NIST and other laboratories.
One of the first pulse tube refrigerators developed for space applications was the miniature
double-inlet system developed by Chan et al. and discussed previously. It produces 0.5 W at 80
K with 17 W of input electrical power. It is being considered for many different space
applications and about 30 have been made to date. Figure 2.1 shows a photograph of this
refrigerator. It uses an inline arrangement of the regenerator and pulse tube, which is the most
efficient because it reduces the dead volume at the cold end and minimizes turbulence from
changing flow directions.

Figure 2.2 shows a recent pulse tube refrigerator developed at NIST for NASA to be used in the
laboratory to study the process of liquefying oxygen on Mars. The flight program scheduled for
the year 2007 would chemically convert the carbon dioxide atmosphere of Mars into oxygen,
after which it is to be liquefied and stored. After about 500 days enough liquid oxygen should be
collected to fire rockets for lifting off from Mars and returning to Earth with rock samples. The
pulse tube liquefier shown in Figure 2.2 is a coaxial geometry with the pulse tube located inside
the annular regenerator. In use, the cold tip points down to eliminate gravitational-induced
convection in the pulse tube. The dual-opposed compressor uses flexure bearings and moving
coils. It produces 19 W of refrigeration at 90 K with 222 W of input PV power. Though this
compressor is only 63% efficient, the system would have a Carnot efficiency of 17% with an
85% efficient compressor.

Recent advances in linear compressor technology at the University of Oxford have led to reduced
volumes and masses for a compressor of a given PV power. A recent pulse tube refrigerator
using this compressor technology and developed for NASA to cool infrared focal plane arrays to
55 K with 0.5 W of refrigeration power is shown in Figure 2.3. The compressor uses 35 W of
input power and has a mass of only 3.6 kg.
 Figure 2.1: Mini pulse tube refrigerator for space applications

Figure 2.2: Pulse tube refrigerator for studies of oxygen liquefaction on Mars
 Figure 2.3: Pulse tube refrigerator for Integrated Multispectral Atmospheric Sounder

CONCLUSIONS

In a time span of about 15 years the pulse tube refrigerator and its variations have become the
most efficient of all cryocoolers for a given size, even exceeding that of Stirling refrigerators in
some cases. Efficiencies above 17% of Carnot have been achieved. They have no moving parts
at the cold end, and for large systems can be driven with thermoacoustic drivers that also have no
moving parts. The lack of moving parts in the cold end gives them the advantage of less
vibration, higher reliability, and lower cost than all other cryocoolers, except for Joule-Thomson
refrigerators, which also have no cold moving parts. However, the Joule-Thomson refrigerators
currently have lower efficiencies than pulse tube refrigerators, at least for temperatures below
about 100 K. Commercial and industrial applications of pulse tube refrigerators are slower to
develop because of the need to reduce cost while maintaining high reliability. Nevertheless, at
least three companies now sell pulse tube refrigerators for commercial applications. In all three
cases the compressors are mostly Gifford-McMahon type compressors, and rotary valves are
used to switch between the high- and low-pressure lines. Thus, these commercial systems do not
have the high efficiency of the space systems where valveless compressors are used. In a few
cases Stirling-type pulse tube refrigerators are being sold commercially for high efficiency
applications. So far most of the development of pulse tube refrigerators has been for rather small
systems with less than a few watts of cooling at 80 K or lower. Recently there has been much
more interest in pulse tube refrigerators for industrial applications in gas liquefaction and in
power applications of superconductors. In many of these cases refrigeration powers of kilowatts
or even tens of kilowatts are required. These are intermediate-size applications and are smaller
than the large air and gas liquefaction plants where megawatts of refrigeration power are needed.

At present there is not a clear upper limit to the useful size of pulse tube refrigerators.

The many advances in pulse tube refrigerators in such a short period of time have brought these
refrigerators to the point where they are beginning to replace other types of cryocoolers in
several applications. With further improvements, especially reduced costs, many other
applications are beginning to develop, particularly in the area of superconductivity. Improved
cryocoolers are an enabling technology for many cryogenic and superconductor applications.
Pulse tube refrigerators now have the potential to be used in many of these applications.
 CHAPTER 3

EXPERIMENTAL SET-UP AND PROCEDURE

3.1 DESCRIPTION OF THE EXPERIMENTAL SET-UP

The schematic of the experimental set-up is as shown in the figure 3.1. The whole experimental
set-up can be divided into four units namely the compressor unit, the pressure wave generating
unit, the cold box unit and the data acquisition system. The compressor unit consists of the
compressor, the after cooler and the oil filters. The low-pressure working fluid is compressed to
a high pressure in the compressor. The after cooler removes the heat of compression and brings
the working fluid to near-ambient temperature. The working fluid then passes through the oil-
filters where the oil and other fine impurities are removed. The suction and discharge ends are
connected to a rotary valve that consists of a synchronous motor that is actuated by an electrical
frequency varying unit.

Fig 3.1: Schematic of the experimental set-up

The regenerator and pulse tube are connected to these valves as shown in figure 3.1. The
regenerator, pulse tube and the heat exchangers are placed in an evacuated vessel, normally
known as the cryostat or the cold box. The cold end of the pulse tube has provisions for fixing a
heater wire and a Platinum resistance thermometer (PT 100). In the pulse tube heat is
intermittently transferred from the cold end to the warm end heat exchanger Cold water, cooled
in a water bath, cools the warm end heat exchanger. A buffer volume is attached to the warm end
of the pulse tube through a metering valve. The cryostat is maintained at a pressure of 10-4 mbar
so as to minimize the heat leakage from the ambient. Multilayer insulation is used to reduce the
heat leak from ambient. A number of pressure transducers and temperature sensors have been
located at critical positions in the set-up. All electronic sensors are connected to the data
acquisition system, which helps to digitally monitor and store data.

3.2 COMPONENT DESCRIPTION

3.2.1 Compressor Unit

The compressor used is single-stage oil lubricated hermetically sealed reciprocating compressor.
A thermal overload protector, attached to the compressor prevents overloading by switching off
upon overheating. The compressor is water cooled to remove the large amount of heat produced
during compression of Helium. The oil used in the compressor may get carried over to the cold
box where it can freeze and foul the pipes, pulse tube and the regenerator. Superior quality
coalescing filters followed by activated charcoal bed have been used. The oil filters are of
Domnick Hunter, UK make. Oil, collected in the oil filters, is periodically sent back through a
solenoid valve. Solenoid operated automatic by-pass valve has also been provided.
 Table 3.1: Specifications of compressor

Make Kirloskar Copeland Limited

Suction Pressure 6 bar

Discharge Pressure 28 bar

Flow rate 8 m3/hr

Voltage rating 400 V – 3 Phase – 50Hz, 3kW

Size 710mm x 585mm x 510mm

Weight 80 kg

Gas Commercial Helium

3.2.2 Rotary Valves

The rotary valve is one of the critical components of most cryocoolers such as Gifford c-Mahon
and pulse tube. It is used to switch between high and low pressures from a helium compressor to
the required system. In most commonly used valves the rotor is pressed tightly against the stator
and large driving torques are needed.

Fig. 3.2 Rotary valve

3.2.3 Electrical Frequency Varying Unit

The electrical frequency varying unit serves the purpose of varying the frequency of the
electrical supply to the synchronous motor attached to the rotary valve. Hence it controls the
speed of the motor which varies the frequency of the pressure wave fed to the pulse tube.
Synchronous speed is given by,

Ns = 120*f/p

F – frequency of the electrical signal

P – no of poles of motor

It consists of many components like integrator, potentiometers, FET switches, microcontroller

etc. integrated on a printed circuit board.

3.2.4 Regenerator

Regenerator was made of stainless steel tube filled with 200 mesh size stainless steel meshes.
The tube is of length 200mm and of inner diameter 17.6mm. The tube was machined to reduce
its thickness to 0.5mm to reduce axial heat conduction. The meshes were machined by turning
process so that they fit exactly into the tube. The meshes were closely packed into the tube.
Stainless steel meshes were used because they have high heat capacity and provide a large
surface area for heat transfer.

3.2.5 Pulse tube

Pulse tube was made of stainless steel tube of length 300mm and of inner diameter 12.7mm. It
was also machined to reduce thickness to 0.5mm. The pulse tube is bounded by a warm-end heat
exchanger and a cold-end heat exchanger.
3.2.6 Cold-end Heat Exchanger

It is brazed to the cold end of the pulse tube. Made out of a copper rod it has provisions for Pt
100s and a heater wire. It is packed with Copper meshes (mesh size 200) for enhanced heat
transfer between the working fluid and the load.

3.2.7 Warm-end Heat Exchanger

It is connected to the warm end of the pulse tube. It is a wire mesh heat exchanger. It is made of
two co-axial stainless steel tubes filled with stainless steel wire meshes. The working fluid flows
in the inner tube. Cold water from a water bath is pumped through the shell side of the heat
exchanger.

3.2.8 Buffer Volume

It is connected to the warm-end heat exchanger through a metering valve. It is a two liter
stainless steel cylinder. The buffer volume was chosen to be greater than ten times the volume of
the pulse tube.

3.2.9 Cryostat

The regenerator, pulse tube and the heat exchangers are enclosed in a cryostat and maintained at
a vacuum of approximately 0.01 mbar. This almost fully eliminates the infiltration of heat by
convection. No part of the cold end should be in contact with the cryostat. This helps avoid heat
infiltration.
 Table 3.2: Details of Cryostat

Material SS304

Leak Rate < 10-6 Torr-lit/sec

Length 484 mm

Diameter 300 mm

Outlets from the flange 4 nos (3/4 ” dia 100 mm long)

3.2.10 RTD Scanner System

The temperature sensor connected to the RTD scanner system, which helps to digitally monitor
and store the data. Temperature of the cold end is measured using Platinum resistance
thermometer (Pt 100s) for accurate measurements. It was calibrated and used in the four-wire
system for improved accuracy. A 24 V DC supply is used as the power source for the
transducers. An electrical feed-through has been used to preserve vacuum while making the
electrical connections from inside the cryostat to the data-logger. An aluminium transition piece
has been fabricated and used for fixing the electrical feed-through to the cryostat.

Fig 3.3: Pictorial view of the Data Acquisition System

Fig 3.4: Pictorial view of regenerator and pulse tube

Fig 3.5: Pictorial view of electrical unit

Fig 3.6: Pictorial view of rotary valve

Fig 3.7: Pictorial view of compressor

3.3 LEAK TEST

First the system was charged with nitrogen and checked for leaks using soap solution. Later it
was filled with small quantity of helium and a helium leak detector was used. Leaks were found
in the compressor unit especially in the pressure gauges and in the bypass valve. These
components were replaced and all other leaks were plugged so that the leak was minimized to be
within the allowable limits.

3.4 EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE

The cryostat is connected to the vacuum pump and the vacuum pump is switched on until the
vacuum within the cryostat is of the order of 1x10-4 mbar. The pulse tube refrigerator is
evacuated and then filled with the working fluid to appropriate pressure. The water bath is
switched to cool the water. The electrical switching unit is adjusted to produce the required
pressure wave. The metering valves are also adjusted according to requirements.

The setup is started by switching on the compressor and the electrical switching unit. The
pressure ratio is controlled by adjusting the bypass valve. The pump circulates the water through
the warm-end heat exchanger. The setup is run at no load until steady state is achieved. The
temperature values are continuously monitored by the data acquisition system.
 CHAPTER 4

RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

4.1 GENERATION OF PRESSURE PULSE

The primary task was to create a sinusoidal pressure wave in the regenerator and pulse tube. This
was achieved using rotary valves controlled by electrical unit.

Experiments were conducted with optimum pressure range of 5 bar – 12 bar. Frequencies of 1
Hz and 2 Hz were used during experiments

4.2 EFFECT OF VALVE OPENING

The performance of the pulse tube refrigerator primarily depends upon the phase relationship
between pressure and mass flow. This phase relationship is dependent on many parameters like
pulse tube volume, orifice valve opening, bypass valve opening and frequency of pressure pulse.
Several experiments were done to reach an optimum configuration with respect to the no load
temperature. Figures 4.1 and 4.2, show the effect of valve opening on the performance of pulse
tube refrigerator.
Fig 4.1: Cool down characteristics for different orifice valve openings

Fig 4.2: Cool down characteristics for different bypass valve openings
 Table 4.1: Configuration description

Orifice valve opening Bypass valve opening

(as read on the metering scale) (as read on the metering scale)

Configuration 1 7 0

Configuration 2 14 0

Configuration 3 21 0

Configuration 4 7 10

Configuration 5 7 20

Table 4.2: No load temperature attained

No load temperature (K)

Configuration 1 245.21

Configuration 2 250.00

Configuration 3 241.55

Configuration 4 213.28

Configuration 5 226.11
The results show that no load temperature obtained is strongly dependent on opening of the
orifice and bypass valves. It is clear that there is an optimum value for the valve openings. When
the orifice valve is opened there is a drop in its resistance and thus the performance of PTR
changes. It is observed that performance of orifice pulse tube refrigerator can be improved by
introducing a bypass valve. Introduction of the bypass increases the amplitude of the pressure
fluctuation on the cold side of the pulse tube and reduces the phase angle, with clear effects on
the performance. The results are seen to be quite sensitive to the bypass resistance. Large
opening of the bypass valve has negative effect on the performance. Overall the results reveal a
complex behavior with respect to the orifice and bypass adjustments, which can be attributed to
the fact that instantaneous division of flow between the two parallel paths depends upon the
instantaneous impedances of the two paths.

4.3 EFFECT OF FREQUENCY

Experiments were conducted with frequencies of 1 Hz and 2 Hz with Nitrogen as working fluid.
The results are shown in figure 4.3.

310.00
300.00
290.00 1 Hz

280.00
Temp (K)

2 Hz
270.00
260.00
250.00
240.00
230.00
1.546…
2.417…
3.244…

4.983…
5.865…
6.740…
7.599…

9.264…
10.05…
10.84…
11.62…
12.41…
13.17…
13.95…
14.73…
0.0005
0.6294

4.1148

8.4541

Time (min)

Fig 4.3: Cool down characteristics for different frequencies

Pulse tube refrigerator works at low frequencies. Frequency defines the diffusion depth in the
working fluid and the regenerator material. When frequency is increased diffusion depth
decreases and the heat storage in the regenerator degrades. High operating frequency means a big
pressure drop in the regenerator, which leads to a poor performance. Hence low frequencies (1
Hz and 2 Hz) were used. It was observed that with a frequency of 2 Hz lower no load
temperature could be achieved. This can be attributed to the fact that higher frequency increases
time averaged enthalpy flow.

4.4 CONCLUSIONS

1. A pulse tube refrigerator has been built and tested with different valve openings,
frequencies and working fluid. The proof of concept has been established.
2. The results show that in the presence of relatively high pressure gradients in the
regenerator, the bypass improves performance by reducing these gradients and by
improving the phase relationship between pressure and mass flow.
3. Lowest no load temperature obtained is 213 K.

4.5 MODIFICATIONS SUGGESTED

1. Optimization of pulse tube and regenerator dimensions as well as arrangement of

regenerator material to achieve lowest possible temperature.
2. Incorporation of an inertance tube to enhance the performance of pulse tube refrigerator.
3. Vortex tube arrangement can be used inside the pulse tube to avoid mixing of cold and
hot gas.
 REFERENCES

1. Ray Radebaugh, Development of the Pulse Tube refrigerator as an Efficient and

Reliable Cryocooler, Proc. Institute of Refrigeration (London) 1999-2000.

2. Ray Radebaugh, Pulse Tube cryocoolers for cooling Infrared Sensors, Proceedings of
SPIE, The International society for Optical Engineering, Infrared Technology and
Applications XXVI, Vol.4130, pp. 363-379 (2000).

3. Ray Radebaugh, Advances in cryocoolers, Proc. ICEC16/ICMC, Japan, 1966, pp. 33-
44, Elsevier Science, Oxford, 1997.

4. G. Walker, Cryocoolers, Plenum Press, New York, 1983.

5. B. J. Huang and G. J. Yu, Experimental study on the design of orifice pulse tube
refrigerator, International Journal of Refrigeration, vol. 24 (2001) pp. 400-408.

6. S. Zhu, P. Wu, and Z. Chen, Double inlet pulse tube refrigerators: an important
improvement, Cryogenics 30, 514 (1990).

7. E. D. Marquardt and R. Radebaugh, Pulse tube oxygen liquefier, Adv. in Cryogenic

Engineering, vol. 45, Plenum Press, NY (2000) in press.

8. E. I. Mikulin, A. A. Tarasov, and M. P. Shkrebyonock, Low temperature expansion

pulse tubes, Adv. in Cryogenic Engineering, vol. 29, Plenum Press, New York (1984) pp.
629-637.
9. Shaowei Zhu, Yasuhiro Kakimi and Yoichi Matsubara, Waiting Time effect of a GM
type orifice pulse tube refrigerator, Cryogenics 38 (1998) 619–624.