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U.S. Department of Energy
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Optimization of R290 variable geometry heat exchangers

Conference ·
OSTI ID:2448605
Air-to-refrigerant heat exchangers (HX) are vital components in Heating, Ventilating and Air Conditioning and Refrigeration (HVAC&R) equipment. Recent literature has proposed utilizing shape-optimized, non-round tubes to reduce component size and refrigerant charge, thus enabling the adoption of low-GWP natural refrigerants like R290. However, most designs are restricted to fixed tube configurations, limiting the overall performance potential. In this work, multi-objective optimization is used in a staged approach to develop variable geometry multi-pass air-to-R290 HXs with minimal volume and airside pressure drop. Non-round tubes are used throughout the domain and each pass may have different tube arrangements to maximize HX performance. Compared to conventional fin-tube HXs, the optimized designs demonstrate more than 60% reductions in envelope volume, 30% reductions in face area, and up to 24% reduction in airside pressure drop. Additionally, the refrigerant charge reduction was up to 64%, thus enabling safe use of flammable and mildly-flammable refrigerants.
Research Organization:
University of Maryland
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Energy Efficiency Office. Building Technologies Office
DOE Contract Number:
EE0009677
OSTI ID:
2448605
Report Number(s):
DOEBTO-UMD-9677-24-BO2
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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