Dynamic modeling of a centrifugal chiller with hybrid falling film evaporator including pressure drop computation

Abstract

Over the last decade, the introduction of new technologies such as falling film evaporators and advanced control techniques has significantly enhanced chiller efficiency while reducing refrigerant charges. However, the complexity of the involved transport phenomena poses significant challenges in simulating the behavior of these devices, resulting in very few validated models that encompass such advances. This study introduces a novel dynamic model for centrifugal liquid chillers with a hybrid evaporator (one that combines features of falling film and flooded designs). Employing the moving boundary method, the model incorporates the intricacies of the transport phenomena, including the pressure drop across the tube bank, with relatively low computational requirements. Implemented in OpenModelica, the model was validated using performance data from a 550 TR centrifugal chiller, yielding normalized residual errors of less than 0.5% for values of supply water temperature and power consumption. This provides a comprehensive tool suitable for analyzing chiller performance as a function of the evaporator geometric characteristics and enabling optimal dynamic control of central cooling systems incorporating this kind of chillers, as long as contributes to the development of dynamic and steady state models of vapor compression centrifugal chillers with falling film evaporators.