Reciprocating compressors for refrigeration and heat pump application

Abstract

Reciprocating compressors have been used in refrigeration for about 150 years. At first they operated at a maximum of 100 r.p.m. and so were very large. Much of the development has been directed to increasing speed and hence reducing size and cost. Recent improvements have been directed mostly to valve design because valve performance largely controls the indicator diagrams and hence the isentropic efficiency. Present studies are directed to improving the mechanical efficiency. Despite all this progress, further improvement is still possible.