EME 109 Lab 3: Air

Conditioning/Psychrometric Experiment

Austin Jones

April 23, 2019

Section A03, 3:40 Lab
TA: Vang Chang
Introduction:

In this lab, our goal was to demonstrate the characteristics of an air conditioner system as

well as the principles of psychrometrics. Specifically, we analyzed the P.A. Hilton Air

Conditioning Laboratory Unit under different operating conditions (see table 3 in appendix),

which is equipped with a pre-heater, after-heater, and boiler. Case 1 was the basic air conditioner

operation. Case 2 applied a heat load by turning on pre-heater. Case 3 had the pre-heater turned

off, but the after-heater and boiler switched on. Various measuring instruments were used to get

properties of the air and refrigerant such as a thermocouple, thermometers, flow meter,

rotameter, and pressure gages.

Before starting, we recorded the ambient temperature, pressure and relative humidity of

the lab environment. Then we used the measuring instruments to record data for each of the

cases after reaching steady state. The data was then analyzed in various manners shown in the

following section.
Results and Discussion:

(See table 1in appendix for raw data experiment)

Pressure-Enthalpy Diagram of R-134a cycle

The 4 different states were plotted on the PH diagram for the R-134a cycle (see figure 1).

Case 1 is shown in red, 2 is shown in blue, and 3 is shown in green. State 1 was plotted by the

point corresponding to pressure and temperature 1 (t​3​ and p​3​). The pressures were converted to

MPa in order to use the chart. State 3 was plotted from the corresponding temperature and

pressure at state 3 (t​3​ and p​3​). The transition between states 3-4 was assumed isenthalpic, so the

temperature at state four was found by the measuring the temperature at 4 (t​4​). State 2 was

plotted at the same pressure as 3 and found by using temperature at 2 (t​2​) because the process

from 2-3 is isobaric.

Psychrometric Chart for Air Processes

The states of the AC at stations A, B, C, and D were plotted on a psychrometrics chart.

(see figure 2). Case 1 is shown in red, 2 is shown in blue, and 3 is shown in green. These plots

were easily drawn by marking points for each dry and wet bulb temperatures.

Mass flow rates

To get the mass flow rates, we used the specific volume of air at station D and the

inclined manometer reading for each case. The following equation was used to determine mass

flow rates:

√
z
m = .0504 v , where
 m=mass flow rate [kg/s] z=manometer reading [mmH​2​0]
v​=specific volume [m​3​/kg]
The values of the mass flow rate for each case are presented in table 4 in the appendix.

Heat Transfer of Pre-heater Coils for Case 2

To obtain the heat transfer of the pre-heater coils, the mass flow was used, as well as the

enthalpies for A and B of state 2:

Q​ = ​m​ (​h​ − ​h​ )

preheater ​ 2​ B​2 ​ A​2​

The results from case 2 yield a heat transfer rate of 0.4169 kW.

The pre-heater power rate is calculated using the formula

P = V​2​/R

In our case, the preheater power ratings were 926.4 and 920.51 W. Adding these, we get a total
power of 1.846 kW. Our heat transfer rate is much smaller, most likely due to losses in the system.

Mass Transfer of Steam Generator for Case 3

Two different approaches were used to estimate mass transfer from steam generator. The

first method applies energy and mass balances to the boiler. By assuming all electrical energy

entering boiler was used to convert water to steam and that there was no heat loss, the balance

equation reduces to:

P ​= Δ​hvap ​× ​m​boiler

P is the input power of 4.35 kW, Δ​hvap ​is the heat of vaporization of water which is 2256 kJ/kg,

and ​m​boiler ​is the mass flow rate of the water leaving the boiler as steam. By sloving for ​m​boiler​, the

mass transfer rate was 1.928 g/s.

 The second method was to use experimental data and the psychrometric chart. The mass

flow rate was multiplied by the difference in absolute humidities of states A3 and B3:

m​actual​ ​= ​m3​​ (​AHB​ ​3​ − ​AH​A3​ ​)

Using this equation, the value turned out to be 0.1128 g/s. The discrepancy in these two methods

is probably due to the fact that a few of the cancellations in the energy balance are false. There

was most likely a significant amount of heat loss in the boiler, and some steam may have escaped

to the outside environment.

Mass Transfer of Condensate from Evaporator for Case 3

To find the condensate flow rate in case 3, we divided the amount of condensate collected

by the time taken to collect the condensate. Our experiment yielded a flow rate of 0.326 g/s, and

volumetric flow rate of 0.326 ml/sec. The condensate flow rate is calculated by multiplying the

mass flow rate by the difference in absolute humidity between states C and B:

m​ = ​m​ (​AH​ − ​AH​ )

condensate ​ 3​ C3​ ​ B​3​

Our experiment yields a value of 0.0752 g/s. The large difference between the two values is most likely
due to reading off of the psychrometric chart. Also, some of the condensate may have been picked up and
put back into the air flow.

Compressor Power Input for each case

The compressor power input was determined by the equation:

P ​compressor =
​ (​m x isentropic work ) / 0.80

The isentropic work was determined using the PH diagram, and is the difference in enthalpies
between states 1 and 2​s​, where 2​s ​is a state with entropy equal to state 1 and equal pressures
between 2 and 3.

Actual compressor work was determined by multiplying mass flow rate by difference in
enthalpies between 1 and 2 for each case. Heat loss is the difference between compressor power
and compressor work.

(See table 5 for results)

Refrigeration Coefficient of Performance

The coefficient of performance is determined by the formula:

m(h1−h4)
COPR = compressor power input

The results for the COPR for each case are presented in table 6 in the appendix.

Suggestions to Improve Experimental Design

One way to improve the experimental design of this experiment, would be to use better

instruments. Many of the instruments used have low resolution and are hard to get a good

reading off. It might be more useful to use digital readings instead.

Discussion

Desirable thermodynamic properties for a substance to be an effective refrigerant are high

enthalpy of vaporization, and good thermal conductivity, low boiling/freezing points, and low

specific heat. High enthalpy of vaporization allows for maximum heat absorbed in evaporation.

It is physically possible for the entropy of a refrigerant to decrease as it goes through a

compressor. A refrigerant can be modeled as an ideal gas, and if the pressure is greater than

temperature, the change in entropy is negative, as modeled by the following equation:

Δ​S ​= ​nC​p​ln(T/T​o)​ ​ ​−​nRln​ ​(P/P​o​)

Conclusion:

Our goal in this experiment was to analyze the P.A. Hilton Air Conditioning Laboratory

Unit. We were concerned mainly with the refrigerant cycle, psychrometrics of the air flow, mass

transfer rates, heat transfer, power, and coefficient of performance. We observed the air

conditioner in three different operating conditions, and data points were plotted on PH chart and

psychrometric chart for each case. Mass flow rates were also calculated for each operating

condition. We assumed a compressor efficiency of 80 % for this unit, and compressor power was

compared to compressor work in order to obtain heat loss, which ranged from 0.376kW to

0.386kW. The coefficient of performance was also computed for each case and ranged from

6.016 to 6.128. A typical COPR for AC cycles is around 4.0, which suggests that the P.A. Hilton

is among one of the higher performing units. Some of the calculations seemed to be far from

expected, and is most likely due to the methods of measurements.

Appendix:

Table 1: Raw experimental data

Test Ref 1 2 3 Units

A Air at Fan inlet Dry 28.7 29.2 29.2 deg C
We
t 22 22.3 22.7 deg C
B Air after Pre-heater Dry 26 38.8 30.9 deg C
We
t 23.5 24.8 25 deg C
C Air after Cooling Dry 20.9 28 24 deg C
We
t 16.2 18.4 22 deg C
D Air after Re-heater Dry 22 27 23 deg C
We
t 15.2 19.9 23 deg C
1 R134a Leaving Evaporater 240 260 280 kN/m^2
15 20 19 deg C
3 R134a before Expansion Valve 1110 1250 1250 kN/m^2
41.9 46 45 deg C
4 R134a entering Evaporator 5 10 8 deg C
2 R134a after Compressor 64.5 70 70 deg C
R134a Mass Flow Rate 12 15 14 g/s
Pre-heater Input 0 1846.934621 0 W
Re-heater input 0 0 938.4992259 W
Broiler Heat Input 0 0 4353.382763 W
Orifice Differential Pressure 0.49 0.49 0.48 mm H20
Condensate Collected 0 0 30 ml
Time Interval 0 0 92 s
Current 5.5 6 6 A
 Table 2: Ambient conditions in the laboratory

Ambient Dry Bulb Temperature 28.6​ °C

Ambient Pressure 1014 mbar

Relative Humidity 70%

Table 3: Power for 3 operating cases

Case 1 Case 2 Case 3

Pre-heater 0 2 kW 0

After-heater 0 0 1 kW

Boiler 0 0 3 kW

Table 4: Mass flow rates of air

Case ​
Mass Flow Rate m [kg/s]

1 0.0383

2 0.0379

3 0.0376
Table 5: Compressor Power Inputs, compressor work, and compressor heat loss

Case Compressor Power Compressor Work Compressor heat loss

input
1 1.900 kW 1.532 kW 0.386 kW
2 1.895 kW 1.516 kW 0.379 kW
3 1.880 kW 1.504 kW 0.376 kW

Table 6: COPR for each case

Case COPR
1 6.128
2 6.064
3 6.016