What Is a Refrigerator Compressor?
The refrigerator compressor is one of the four main components located inside your fridge that makes your refrigeration system work. The compressor works directly with the condenser and evaporator coil, along with the expansion valve. Your refrigerator's compressor controls and compresses the flow of liquid refrigerant, playing a crucial role in your refrigeration system. Compressors fundamentally work the same for air conditioning systems, but will differ in some big ways, and this article focuses on how a refrigerator compressor works.
Refrigeration compressors act as the heart of the refrigeration cycle. To begin the refrigeration cycle, the evaporator takes refrigerant in a liquid form, and converts it into a low pressure gas. The compressor's job is to receive this lower pressure refrigerant gas from the evaporator and convert it into a higher pressure gas. When this high pressure gas gets compressed, it generates a lot of heat, increasing the pressure and temperature inside the compressor. This high pressure gas moves into the condenser where it condenses back into a liquid, giving off more heat as the cooling cycle begins in your refrigerator. This newly converted liquid refrigerant then moves into the expansion valve, which provides and controls the flow of refrigerant in a low pressure liquid form.
At this point, you may be asking yourself "Ok I know how my refrigerator compressor works, but what type of compressor do I need? Will this refrigeration compressor work with my fridge? Which commercial refrigerator do I need?"
One type of compressor is a reciprocating compressor. Reciprocating compressors use a piston-based operation, similar to a combustion engine. As the piston moves up and down, refrigerant from the evaporator will pump in, and as the temperature and pressure increases, compressed refrigerant gas flows out of the compressor into the condenser.
Another type of refrigeration compressor is the centrifugal compressor. Centrifugal compressors take refrigerant in the liquid form, and converts the refrigerant into kinetic energy by spinning it through a rotating impeller. As the speed of the impeller increases, the kinetic energy will heat up the temperature of the refrigerant, converting the liquid into a refrigerant gas. Temperature sensors inside the compressor will then release and pump this high pressure refrigerant gas over to the condenser, beginning a new cycle of cooling.
Rotary-vane compressors utilize a rotating drive shaft with vanes that split it into suction and discharge sections. Pistons rotate to both increase and decrease volume between the sections, allowing for continuous pressure buildup and release as it spins.
Rotary-screw compressors use two male and female rotors spinning in opposite directions, trapping, and compressing refrigerant between the rotors as air travels through.
Rotary-scroll compressors use fixed and orbiting scrolls to suck pockets of refrigerant into the center where it gets compressed WITHOUT the use of pistons.
As we all know that the refrigeration system is composed of 4 major components, that is refrigeration compressor, condenser, throttling device (capillary or thermal expansion valve or electronic expansion valve) and evaporator. They are 4 Major Refrigeration Cycle Components.
What Is A Refrigerant Compressor?
The refrigerant compressor is a kind of machine, compressing the low-temperature and low-pressure vapor refrigerant into high-temperature and high-pressure vapor refrigerant. The refrigeration system compressor is one of the most important refrigeration cycle components. It is the core of the air-conditioning system or refrigeration system. If we compare the refrigeration cycle to the human body system, the refrigeration system compressor is one of the most important components in the refrigeration cycle. It likes heart of the vapor refrigeration system.
Why Compressor Is Used In Refrigeration System?
Refrigeration is actually achieved by changing the state of the refrigerant. The refrigeration cycle process is as bellow：
The compressor plays the most important role in the process of changing the state of the refrigerant. It likes a pump, compresses the vapor refrigerant and increases the the refrigerant temperature and pressure, makes it flowing in the refrigeration cycle.
What Does a Compressor Work In a Refrigeration System?
The compressor function in refrigeration system is as bellow:
- Draw low-temperature low-pressure vapor refrigerant from the evaporator.
- Compressor the low-temperature and low-pressure refrigerant steam into high-temperature and high-pressure superheated vapor refrigerant.
- Discharge the compressed refrigerant to the condenser and push the refrigerant to flow in the system to complete the refrigeration cycle.
It can be seen that the compressor plays a very important role in refrigeration cycle. So the quality of the refrigerant compressor directly affects the quality of the refrigeration system.
The function of compressors in refrigeration system and air conditioning systems is exactly the same. But due to different temperature and cooling capacity requirements, the working conditions and cooling capacity of the refrigeration system compressors are different.
What Are The 4 Types of Refrigeration Compressor?
There are 4 types of refrigeration compressor mainly used in commercial refrigeration and industrial refrigeration. They are reciprocating rotary compressors, rotary vane compressors, scroll compressors and rotary screw compressors. All of these compressors are belong to positive displacement compressor.
What Is Positive Displacement Compressor?
The positive displacement compressor is a kind of compressor that has the compression chamber, through the change the internal volume of the compression chamber to increase the refrigerant pressure. The positive displacement compressor often used in air conditioning, commercial refrigeration and industrial refrigeration.
Reciprocating Compressor In Refrigeration System
In Refrigeration System, reciprocating compressors can be divided into -semi-hermetic reciprocating compressor and hermetic reciprocating compressor according to the structure.
Semi-hermetic Reciprocating Compressor
Semi-hermetic piston compressors are widely used in cold storage refrigeration. They have the features below:
- Adapt to a wider pressure range and cooling capacity requirements.
- Low requirements on materials, common steel materials are mostly used, the processing is relatively easy.
- The technology and production of semi-hermetic reciprocating compressor is relatively mature.
- The use and installation of semi-hermetic reciprocating compressor is relatively simple.
Main brands of semi-hermetic reciprocating compressors include Bitzer, Emerson Copeland, Dorin, GEA Blog, Frascold and others.
Hermetic Reciprocating Compressor
Hermetic reciprocating compressor, also called refrigerator compressor, because 90% of hermetic piston compressors are mainly used in home refrigerators and freezers. They are widely used in household refrigerators, freezers and light commercial refrigeration equipment.
Hermetic piston compressor features compact structure, good sealing, easy to use, low vibration, low noise. In the occasions with cooling capacity below 1HP, it is basically full market for hermetic piston compressors.
Rotary Compressor in Refrigeration System
Rotary vane compressor widely used in home air conditioner, commercial air condition, dehumidifier, heat pump air conditioner, clothes dryer, water chiller, etc. But rotary vane compressor also widely used in commercial refrigeration and transport refrigeration. According to different installation, there are Horizontal Rotary Compressor and Vertical Rotary Compressor in refrigeration system.
Horizontal Rotary Compressor for Air Conditioning
Horizontal rotary compressor is specially designed for low height and compact size. Because of the low height and compact size, they are widely used in RV air conditioner, rooftop ac unit, commercial rooftop dehumidifier and water source heat pump, etc. They have the features:
- R410A, R32 and R290 environmental-friendly refrigerant
- Horizontal structure, low height and compact size
- Twin-rotary compressor, lower noise and vibration
- Inverter technology, more energy efficiency
- Sanyo CRSS brand, high reliability and high efficiency
R410A Inverter Rotary Compressor for Air Conditioner
R32 Inverter Rotary Compressor for Air Conditioner
R290 Inverter Rotary Compressor for Air Conditioner
Horizontal Rotary Compressor for Commercial Refrigeration
In addition, the rotary compressor also widely used in commercial refrigeration. Its low height and compact size make the rotary refrigeration compressors high desirable in commercial refrigeration applications.
Features:
- R404A compressor are qualified for R448A, R449A, R410A, R134A, R455A, R454C refrigerant.
- R290 propane compressor for commercial refrigeration includes fixed speed refrigeration compressor and variable speed refrigeration compressor.
- Liquid injection cooling technology solves the high discharge temperature problem and widen the evaporating temperature range.
- Wide evaporating temperature range from -5°C to -45°C, makes the rotary refrigeration compressor suitable for medium temp refrigeration and also low temp refrigeration.
- Low height and compact size, lower the height of condensing unit, ensures the largest effective volume of the refrigerated display cabinet.
R404A Rotary Refrigeration Compressor (Non-Inverter)
R404A Rotary Refrigeration Compressor (Inverter)
R290 Rotary Refrigeration Compressor (Inverter)
Scroll Compressor in Refrigeration System
Scroll compressors are mainly used in household air conditioners, multi-split units, modular units, small water-to-ground source heat pumps, commercial refrigeration, cold storage refrigeration.
Screw Compressor In Refrigeration System
Screw compressor is a kind of positive displacement compressor. They are widely used in central air-conditioning systems in residential and commercial buildings, In addition, screw refrigeration compressors are also used in industrial refrigeration, food freezing, cold storage, and refrigeration devices for various transportation vehicles.
If you need any help choosing the right compressor for your refrigeration system, free free to contact Glen Refrigeration team by or , we are ready to help.
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