Conference Year
2021
Keywords
Condensation, Flow boiling, Non-azeotropic mixtures, Heat transfer coefficient
Abstract
Refrigerant blends obtained mixing hydrofluorocarbons (HFC) and hydrofluoroolefins (HFO) have recently been proposed as substitutes for high GWP (Global Warming Potential) fluids employed in refrigeration and air-conditioning systems. As a general trend, the dimension of pipes used in heat exchangers is decreasing: diameters around 5 mm are often employed in finned-tube coil heat exchangers and minichannels heat exchangers (with internal diameter around 1-2 mm) are also a common solution for the automotive sector and for air-cooled chillers. Condensation and flow boiling heat transfer coefficients of zeotropic ternary mixtures R455A (R32, R1234yf and R744 at 21.5/75.5/3.0% by mass composition) and R452B (R32, R1234yf and R125 at 67.0/26.0/7.0% by mass composition) have been measured inside a minichannel (0.96 mm diameter) and inside a conventional tube (8.0 mm diameter). R455A exhibits a temperature glide around 10 K at 35 °C bubble temperature whereas R452B presents a temperature glide around 1 K at 40 °C bubble temperature. The experimental results are compared with selected correlations for condensation and flow boiling heat transfer which account for the additional mass transfer resistance occurring during two-phase heat transfer of zeotropic mixtures. It emerges the importance of including the mass transfer resistance for the prediction of heat transfer coefficient when considering high temperature-glide mixtures.