Advanced Exergetic Assessment of a Vapor Compression Cycle With Alternative Refrigerants

Abstract

The present study compares the thermal performance of various alternative refrigerants with conventional refrigerant operating on a vapor compression cycle with energetic, exergetic, and advanced exergetic approaches. Appropriate alternative refrigerants are selected for the analysis, and R1234yf is recommended as the best suitable refrigerant to replace the existing refrigerants. By splitting the exergy destruction into endogenous and unavoidable, endogenous and avoidable, exogenous and unavoidable, and exogenous and avoidable parts, an advanced exergy method depicts the real potentials for the improvement in the thermal system. Moreover, a traditional exergy method prefers condenser for performance improvement as it has 18.48% higher exergy destruction than evaporator, whereas the advanced exergy method proposes evaporator rather than condenser since its endogenous and avoidable destruction part is 26.38% more than condenser for R1234yf refrigerant.