CHAPTER-3

Air cycle Refrigeration System

 Introduction

• Air cycle refrigeration systems belong to the general class of gas cycle
refrigeration systems, in which a gas is used as the working fluid. The gas
does not undergo any phase change during the cycle, consequently, all the
internal heat transfer processes are sensible heat transfer processes.
• Gas cycle refrigeration systems find applications in air craft cabin cooling and
also in the liquefaction of various gases.
Airplane refrigeration
• Airplanes cruise at 10000m altitude where ambient temperature is -50and
pressure of 0.15bar
• Higher we go, cooler we find
Requirement Of Cooling In Airplanes

Ramming of air
Solar radiation
Pressure of air inside the cabin
Heat released from occupants
Heat released from equipment
 Air Standard Cycle analysis
• Air cycle refrigeration system analysis is considerably simplified
if one makes the following assumptions:

I. The working fluid is a fixed mass of air that behaves as an ideal

gas
II. The cycle is assumed to be a closed loop cycle with all inlet and
exhaust processes of open loop cycles being replaced by heat
transfer processes to or from the environment
III. All the processes within the cycle are reversible, i.e., the cycle is
internally reversible
IV. The specific heat of air remains constant throughout the cycle
An analysis with the above assumptions is called as cold Air Standard Cycle (ASC) analysis.
This analysis yields reasonably accurate results for most of the cycles and processes encountered in air cycle
refrigeration systems.
Reversed Carnot Cycle Employing A Gas

• Reversed Carnot cycle is an ideal refrigeration cycle for

constant temperature external heat source and heat sinks.
The figures shows the schematic of a reversed Carnot
refrigeration system using a gas as the working fluid along
with the cycle diagram on T-s and P-v coordinates. The cycle
consists of the following four processes:

Process1-2: Reversible, adiabatic compression

in a compressor
Process 2-3: Reversible, isothermal heat
rejection in a compressor
Process 3-4: Reversible, adiabatic expansion
in a turbine Schematic of a reverse Carnot refrigeration system
Process 4-1: Reversible, isothermal heat
absorption in a turbine
Fig. (b). Reverse Carnot refrigeration system in P-v and T-s coordinates
• The heat transferred during isothermal processes 2-3 and 4-1 are given
by:

• Applying first law of thermodynamics to the closed cycle,

• the work of isentropic expansion, W3-4 exactly matches the work of

isentropic compression W1-2.
• the COP of the Carnot system is given by:
 Limitations Of Carnot Cycle

• Carnot cycle is an idealization and it suffers from several practical limitations.

• One of the main difficulties with Carnot cycle employing a gas is the difficulty
of achieving isothermal heat transfer during processes 2-3 and 4-1.
• For a gas to have heat transfer isothermally, it is essential to carry out work
transfer from or to the system when heat is transferred to the system
(process 4-1) or from the system (process 2-3). This is difficult to achieve in
practice.
• In addition, the volumetric refrigeration capacity of the Carnot system is very
small leading to large compressor displacement, which gives rise to large
frictional effects.
• All actual processes are irreversible, hence completely reversible cycles are
idealizations only.
 Ideal reverse Brayton cycle
This is an important cycle frequently employed in gas
cycle refrigeration systems.
This may be thought of as a modification of reversed
Carnot cycle, as the two isothermal processes of Carnot
cycle are replaced by two isobaric heat transfer
processes. This cycle is also called as Joule or Bell-
Coleman cycle.
The ideal cycle consists of the following four processes:
 Process 1-2: Reversible, adiabatic compression in a Fig. (a). Schematic of a closed reverse Brayton cycle
compressor
 Process 2-3: Reversible, isobaric heat rejection in a heat
exchanger
 Process 3-4: Reversible, adiabatic expansion in a turbine
 Process 4-1: Reversible, isobaric heat absorption in a heat
exchanger
 Fig.(b). Reverse Brayton cycle in T-s plane
Process 1-2: Gas at low pressure is compressed isentropically from state 1 to state 2.
• Applying steady flow energy equation and neglecting changes in kinetic and potential
energy, we can write:
Process 2-3: Hot and high pressure gas flows through a heat exchanger and rejects heat
sensibly and isobarically to a heat sink.

Process 3-4: High pressure gas from the heat exchanger flows through a turbine,
undergoes isentropic expansion and delivers net work output.

Process 4-1: Cold and low pressure gas from turbine flows through the low temperature
heat exchanger and extracts heat sensibly and isobarically from a heat source, providing a
useful refrigeration effect.
From the above equations, it can be easily shown that:

Applying 1st law of thermodynamics to the entire cycle:

The COP of the reverse Brayton cycle is given by:

using the relation between temperatures and pressures, the COP can also be written
as:

From the above expression for COP, the following observations can be made:
a) For fixed heat rejection temperature (T3) and fixed refrigeration temperature (T1), the COP of
reverse Brayton cycle is always lower than the COP of reverse Carnot cycle
Fig. Comparison of reverse Carnot and reverse Brayton cycle in T-s plane
b) COP of Brayton cycle approaches COP of Carnot cycle as T1 approaches T4
(thin cycle), however, the specific refrigeration effect [cp(T1-T4)] also reduces
simultaneously.
c) COP of reverse Brayton cycle decreases as the pressure ratio rp increases
Actual Reverse Brayton Cycle
The actual reverse Brayton cycle differs from the ideal cycle due to:
i. Non-isentropic compression and expansion processes
ii. Pressure drops in cold and hot heat exchangers

Fig. 9.4. Comparison of ideal and actual Brayton cycles T-s plane

Due to these irreversibility, the compressor work input increases and turbine work
output reduces.
The actual work transfer rates of compressor and turbine are then given by:

Where: ηc,isen and ηt,isen are the isentropic efficiencies of compressor and turbine,
respectively. In the absence of pressure drops, these are defined as:

The actual net work input, wnet,act is given by:

• In practice, reverse Brayton cycles can be open or closed. In open systems, cold air at
the exit of the turbine flows into a room or cabin (cold space), and air to the
compressor is taken from the cold space. In such a case, the low side pressure will be
atmospheric.
• In closed systems, the same gas (air) flows through the cycle in a closed manner. In
such cases it is possible to have low side pressures greater than atmospheric. These
systems are known as dense air systems.
• Dense air systems are advantageous as it is possible to reduce the volume of air
handled by the compressor and turbine at high pressures. Efficiency will also be high
due to smaller pressure ratios. It is also possible to use gases other than air (e.g.
helium) in closed systems.
Aircraft cooling systems
• In an aircraft, cooling systems are required to keep the cabin
temperatures at a comfortable level. Even though the outside
temperatures are very low at high altitudes, still cooling of cabin is
required due to:
i. Large internal heat generation due to occupants, equipment etc.
ii. Heat generation due to skin friction caused by the fast moving aircraft
iii. At high altitudes, the outside pressure will be sub-atmospheric. When air at this
low pressure is compressed and supplied to the cabin at pressures close to
atmospheric, the temperature increases significantly. For example, when outside air
at a pressure of 0.2 bar and temperature of 223 K (at 10000 m altitude) is
compressed to 1 bar, its temperature increases to about 353 K. If the cabin is
maintained at 0.8 bar, the temperature will be about 332 K.
This effect is called as ram effect. This effect adds heat to the cabin, which needs to
be taken out by the cooling system.
iv. Solar radiation
For low speed aircraft flying at low altitudes, cooling system may not be required,
however, for high speed aircraft flying at high altitudes, a cooling system is a must.
• Even though the COP of air cycle refrigeration is very low compared to vapour
compression refrigeration systems, it is still found to be most suitable for aircraft
refrigeration systems as:

I. Air is cheap, safe, non-toxic and non-flammable. Leakage of air is not a problem
II. Cold air can directly be used for cooling thus eliminating the low temperature heat
exchanger (open systems) leading to lower weight
III. The aircraft engine already consists of a high speed turbo-compressor, hence
separate compressor for cooling system is not required. This reduces the weight
per kW cooling considerably. Typically, less than 50% of an equivalent vapour
compression system
IV. Design of the complete system is much simpler due to low pressures. Maintenance
required is also less.
Advantages And Disadvantages Of Air Cycle For Airplane
Refrigeration
Advantages Disadvantages
• No cost of refrigerant involved, • Low coefficient of performance
quite cheap • Sensible heating of refrigerant
• Main compressor of gas turbine is • Freezing of moisture
used
• Chilled air is directly used for
cooling
• Minor leakage is not a problem
• low pressure (1-6 bar) in the system

• W/ton of refrigeration
• Air is non-toxic and non-flammable
• Refrigeration system is light in wait
Simple Aircraft Refrigeration Cycle

Fig. a. Schematic of a simple aircraft refrigeration cycle

Simple air cooling system
• Simple aircraft refrigeration system is an open system. As shown in the
T-s diagram, the outside low pressure and low temperature air (state 1)
is compressed due to ram effect to ram pressure (state 2). During this
process its temperature increases from 1 to 2. This air is compressed in
the main compressor to state 3, and is cooled to state 4 in the air
cooler. Its pressure is reduced to cabin pressure in the turbine (state 5),
as a result its temperature drops from 4 to 5. The cold air at state 5 is
supplied to the cabin.

• It picks up heat as it flows through the cabin providing useful cooling

effect. The power output of the turbine is used to drive the fan, which
maintains the required air flow over the air cooler. This simple system is
good for ground cooling (when the aircraft is not moving) as fan can
continue to maintain airflow over the air cooler.
• By applying steady flow energy equation to the ramming process, the temperature rise at
the end of the ram effect can be shown to be:

• where M is the Mach number, which is the ratio of velocity of the aircraft (C) to the sonic
velocity a, , i.e.,

• The ratio of actual pressure rise to the isentropic pressure rise is called as ram efficiency,
ηRam,

• The refrigeration capacity of the simple aircraft cycle is given by:

Ti = cabin temperature
Simple air evaporative cooling system
Bootstrap system
• A bootstrap system is a modification of the simple system.
• This system consists of two heat exchangers (air cooler and after cooler), in stead of
one air cooler of the simple system. It also incorporates a secondary compressor,
which is driven by the turbine of the cooling system. This system is suitable for high
speed aircraft, where in the velocity of the aircraft provides the necessary airflow for
the heat exchangers, as a result a separate fan is not required.
• As shown in the cycle diagram, ambient air state 1 is pressurized to state 2 due to
the ram effect. This air is further compressed to state 3 in the main compressor.
• The air is then cooled to state 4 in the air cooler. The heat rejected in the air cooler
is absorbed by the ram air at state 2. The air from the air cooler is further
compressed from state 4 to state 5 in the secondary compressor.
• It is then cooled to state 6 in the after cooler, expanded to cabin pressure in the
cooling turbine and is supplied to the cabin at a low temperature T7.
• Since the system does not consist of a separate fan for driving the air
through the heat exchangers, it is not suitable for ground cooling. However,
in general ground cooling is normally done by an external air conditioning
system as it is not efficient to run the aircraft engine just to provide cooling
when it is grounded.
• Other modifications over the simple system are: regenerative system and
reduced ambient system. In a regenerative system, a part of the cold air
from the cooling turbine is used for precooling the air entering the turbine.
As a result much lower temperatures are obtained at the exit of the cooling
turbine, however, this is at the expense of additional weight and design
complexity.
• The cooling turbine drives a fan similar to the simple system. The
regenerative system is good for both ground cooling as well as high speed
aircrafts. The reduced ambient system is well-suited for supersonic aircrafts
and rockets.
Fig. Schematic of a bootstrap system
Boot-strap air cooling system Boot-strap air evaporative cooling system
Reduced ambient air cooing system Regenerative air cooling system
 Dry Air Rated Temperature (DART):
• The concept of Dry Air Rated Temperature is used to compare different
aircraft refrigeration cycles. Dry Air Rated Temperature is defined as the
temperature of the air at the exit of the cooling turbine in the absence of
moisture condensation. For condensation not to occur during expansion
in turbine, the dew point temperature and hence moisture content of
the air should be very low, i.e., the air should be very dry.
• The aircraft refrigeration systems are rated based on the mass flow rate
of air at the design DART. The cooling capacity is then given by:
Performance curves for different Air cooling system
 A comparison between different aircraft refrigeration systems based on
DART at different Mach numbers shows that:

I. DART increases monotonically with Mach number for all the systems
except the reduced ambient system
II. The simple system is adequate at low Mach numbers
III. At high Mach numbers either bootstrap system or regenerative system
should be used
IV. Reduced ambient temperature system is best suited for very high Mach
number, supersonic aircrafts