Thermodynamic analysis and performance simulation of different kinds of mass recovery processes applied in adsorption refrigeration system

Abstract

Mass recovery process is an efficient way to improve the performance of adsorption refrigeration system. By researching two kinds of conventional mass recovery cycle (i.e., mass recovery between two beds [TBMRC] and between evaporators [TEMRC]), double mass recovery cycle (DMRC) is proposed to reduce heat loss. Thermodynamic analysis shows that the heat loss of DMRC is less than the other two kinds. Consequently, DMRC system performance should be the best, followed by TEMRC and TBMRC as the worst. A mathematical model of heat and mass transfer was then built and simulation was performed to analyze the system performance. The simulation results show that the optimal cycle time and mass recovery time are 30 mins and 10 s, respectively. Compared with the basic cycle, both coefficient of performance and specific cooling power of mass recovery cycle are much better. The system performance of different kinds of mass recovery cycle is almost the same in most cases, caused by a small reduction of heat loss in DMRC or TEMRC, when compared with the cooling capacity and heating power. However, under some conditions (i.e., large cycle time or high evaporation temperature), performance of DMRC is better than the other two kinds, which is consistent with the thermodynamic analysis results.