Performance improvement of absorption refrigeration system using triple-pressure-level

Abstract

In the absorption refrigeration system (ARS) working with aqua–ammonia, the ejector is commonly located at the condenser inlet. In this study, the ejector was located at the absorber inlet. Therefore, the absorber pressure becomes higher than the evaporator pressure and the system works with triple-pressure-level. The ejector has two main functions: (i) aiding pressure recovery from the evaporator, (ii) upgrading the mixing process and the pre-absorption by the weak solution of the ammonia coming from the evaporator. In addition to these functions, it can also act to lower the refrigeration and heat-source temperatures. Energy analyses show that the system’s coefficient of performance (COP) and exergetic coefficient of performance (ECOP) were improved by 49% and 56%, respectively and the circulation ratio ( f) was reduced by 57% when ARS is initiated at lower generator temperatures. Due to the reduced circulation ratio, the system dimensions can be reduced; consequently, this decreases overall cost. The heat source and refrigeration temperatures decreased in the range of 5–15 °C and 1–3 °C, respectively. Exergy analyses show that the exergy loss of the absorber of ARS with ejector had a higher exergy loss than those of the other components. Therefore, a multiple compartment absorber can be proposed to reduce the exergy loss of the absorber of ARS with ejector.