Universidad de los Andes

Unit Operations
Course Project
Group 5
Design of a Soft-Served Ice Cream Machine: Part 1

1. Introduction
The texture of a soft serve ice-cream depends greatly upon the size of the crystals in
the ice cream. Understanding the crystallization process will allow to better design
equipment for its manufacturing. The high end quality ice creams tend to have a smooth
and creamy texture which is not only associated with a high fat content, but also with the
average size of crystals (Cook & Hartel, 2010). The crystallization of the ice cream occurs
at a cylindrical Barrel. This process represents a critical stage in the manufacturing of ice
cream. In this process, the mixture is frozen while being agitated in order to incorporate
air into the mixture, to destabilize the fat particles and to scrape the ice crystals formed
near the wall of the Barrel (Cook & Hartel, 2010). The ice cream enters at temperatures
between 2 and 40 C and exits the Barrel at around -5 to 60 C (Cook & Hartel, 2010).
The capacity of the Barrel oscillates between 1.5 L and 4 L depending on the process
specifications (Ballesteros & Quiroga).
However, before the freezing process in the Barrel takes place, a mixing of the ice
cream ingredients must occur in a unit named Hopper. The Hopper is usually a 12 L
center- stirred vessel which mixes all of the ice cream components, including those which
are solid, in order to obtain a homogenous mixture (Ballesteros & Quiroga). Like the
Barrel, the Hopper has a heat exchange unit which takes the ice cream from the
environmental temperature (350 C since the operation occurs at Cartagena) to 40 C.
Now, regarding the process described above, the objective of this project is to
illustrate the first part of the design of a soft serve ice-cream machine, understood as the
selection of the compressors involved in the process, the simulation of the refrigeration
cycles and design of condensers for both Barrel and Hopper units. This design is based
according to the principles of compression, heat exchange and condenser design for two
refrigerants in three states: Superheated vapor, saturated mixture (liquid-vapor), and
subcooled liquid. The document is divided into three parts: methodology, results &
analysis, and conclusions. First, the methodology introduces the main procedure,
assumptions and suppositions took into consideration in order to fulfill the objectives.
Second, the results and analysis show the outcomes according to the design of the required
processes. Finally, the conclusions illustrate the main findings and outcomes of the
project.
2. Methodology
The following section describes the methodology used in order to achieve the
objective of the project. This section contemplates the compressor selection, refrigeration
cycle assumptions, thermo-physical properties calculation and the condenser design for
both processes.
2.1 Selection of compressors

For the selection of the compressors a detailed and careful research of different
providers was carried on, in order to find the compressors that fulfils the desired
parameters. Some of these parameters were type of refrigerant, cooling capacity,
evaporation, condensation and environmental temperature.
2.2 Simulation of refrigeration cycles
Before designing the Barrel and Hopper units it is vital to have a more general
outlook to better understand the cooling mechanism of these units. This paper intends to
design a cooling cycle for each unit. Clearly, since the conditions at which both units are
operated are necessarily different, both cycles will be different. This article will not deal
with the soft serve ice-cream itself, but rather with the thermal conditions to produce it.
With fixed process parameters for the Hopper and the Barrel, two independent cooling
cycles were designed. In order to do so, the CoolPack program developed by the
Technical University of Denmark is used. The cool tools cycle analysis application is
used to fully determine every different operation points on the cooling cycle. The first
step to design each cooling cycle is to determine the optimal cooling capacity along with
evaporation and condensation temperatures which depend solely on the compressors
selected in 2.2. The refrigerant used for the Barrel is R-404a while the Hopper uses the
R-134a refrigerant.
2.3 Polynomic expressions for thermo-physical properties of refrigerants
In order to design heat exchanging units for both refrigeration cycles, it is
important to determine some thermo-physical properties of the refrigerants used in the
process. Specifically, one of the objectives of the project is to determine polynomic
expressions to calculate the density, viscosity, thermal conductivity, heat capacity and
latent heat of vaporization and fusion for refrigerants R404a and R104a depending solely
on the temperature. To do so, the Fluid Property Calculator from the Industrial
Refrigeration Consortium was used. We obtained the value of the properties for a range
of temperatures, afterwards, data was adjusted to a polynomic function.
Now, according to the results of the simulation of the refrigeration cycles the
temperature, pressure, density and enthalpy of each of the eight state points of both
processes were determined. One of the main assumptions in the simulation of the cycles
and in the calculation of the thermo-physical properties is that there is no pressure drop
so the condenser and the evaporator operate at isobaric conditions. Therefore, thermophysical properties will only depend on temperature. The software used consists of three
steps in order to calculate the properties of a specific refrigerant, in this case, R404a and
R134a. First, the selection of the refrigerant to model with the software. Second, the
software asks for two state variables (known from before). This conditions can be the
absolute pressure, temperature, density, quality (superheated vapor, saturated vapor,
saturated liquid, subcooled liquid), enthalpy, internal energy or the entropy of the fluid.
In this case, the pressure and temperature known from the cycle from state points 3-4-5
for the condensation process and 6-7-8-1 for the evaporation were used. Third, the
software returns results for different properties.
In order to conduct the process described before to obtain the data for polynomic
expressions to describe various properties, it is also necessary to acknowledge saturation
2

temperatures. To determine this, a range of temperatures within the initial and final
condition in the condenser and evaporator were introduced to evaluate with the software
the quality of the fluid. After determining the point in which the fluid phase changes,
another range of ten temperatures was created to compute the value of the properties with
the calculator. Ten different temperatures points were obtained for liquid and vapor
density, viscosity, thermal conductivity and heat capacity. At the change of phase
condition, the latent heat of vaporization of fusion was determined by subtracting the
enthalpy of the vapor and the liquid in the saturated condition.
Finally, after obtaining the value of the properties, we plotted from the range of
temperatures the value of the specific property we wanted to adjust. Once we obtained
the graphics for the four properties we adjusted a trend line with a correlation coefficient
greater to 0,97. This coefficient measures the variance of the prediction of the property
according to the temperature, being 1 the value of a perfect fit of the regression with the
data. It is important to state that for the cycle of the refrigerant 404a we experienced a
limitation in the calculation of the properties for below zero (Celsius) temperatures, due
to the fact that the tool did not converge for this values. We iterated the values with the
available data in order to fit a polynomic expression.
2.4 General methodology for the condenser design
The refrigeration cycles involved in the design of the soft served machine contain
two condensers, one for the Barrel and another for the Hopper compression process. One
of the objectives of the projects is the design of a program to size the condensers and
simulate the temperature and pressure profiles across them. The main characteristic of the
condensers is that they are single-row condensers, composed only of one tube that can be
curved in order to reduce the space occupied by the machine. Also, in order to reduce
space, both condenser should be located together, one on top of the other and next to the
machine wall, the fans should be placed in front of them to create forced convection
needed to guarantee the efficiency of the process.
The design of the program was conducted in Matlab including a function to
determine the value of the properties needed in order to conduct mass and energy
balances. Specifically, density, viscosity, thermal conductivity and heat capacity were
needed in the process. The function includes the calculation of the properties of the
refrigerant needed in order to design the condensers for both Barrel and Hopper cycles
according to the correlations of the thermo-physical properties in the needed temperature
range in the condensers. Knowing the value of the properties for both refrigerants in the
condensers was fundamental to design and simulate the process. For the sizing process,
we used the Copper Tube Handbook to choose the most appropriate tube for the
condenser according to the available diameters that allow neglecting the pressure drop
from the compressor to the condenser, taking into account the information already
available about the discharge temperature from the compressor. For the length of the tube,
we used energy balances in the three phases of the refrigerant in the process (subcooled
liquid, saturated mixture, and superheated vapor). The sizing, temperature and pressure
profiles were found individually for each phase of the refrigerant, assuming a linear
behavior between the quality and the length of the tube for the condensation segment of
the condenser. The pressure drop was calculated by assuming a tube without elbows or
3

any other accessory and using friction factor calculation for pure phases and Lockhart &
Martinelli approach with Hiller & Glinsman modifications for the saturated condition
(mixture). The temperature profiles suggest a linear relation between condenser length
and temperatures.
2.5 Condenser designs suppositions and assumptions
The design of the program to size and simulate the conditions inside the
condensers involved several assumptions and suppositions. Most of these assumptions
are consequence of the models used to determine heat transfer coefficients. First, in order
to determine the length of the tube we restrict the selection of the material and
characteristics of the tube to a copper tube type L and we determined the length of the
tube by applying an energy balance to each phase in the process. Linear behavior was
assumed between the quality and the length of the tube and we decided to use a smooth
pipe. Second, depending on the mass flow and the flow regime of the refrigerant in each
condenser, we determined the value of the corresponding thermal properties (and the
applicable correlations for thermal conductivity) for each phase of the refrigerants and
the pressure drop depending. The assumptions, suppositions, and equations used to each
procedure are discussed in the following sections.
2.6 Condenser sizing procedure
Both condensers are composed by a single-row configuration that means a single
curved tube in order to reduce the amount of the space of the heat exchanger. The
recommended material for the condenser is copper tube type L, chosen amongst six
standard types of tubes available in the market. The advantages of using a copper tube in
the condenser relates to the price of the material (one of the cheapest available in the
market), safety, weight and ability to form and deform (in order to form elbows). First, to
determine the diameter and thickness of the pipe we used The Copper Tube Handbook
by the Copper Development Association Inc. which provides the technical characteristics
of the type L tube. Second, in order to determine each condenser length, it was necessary
to use a global energy balance for each part knowing from the refrigeration cycle the
amount of heat needed or removed (Qc). The following equation describes each
condensers segment heat balance in terms of evaporation, mixture, and liquid phases.
= + + (1)
For the pure phases equations 2 and 3 are presented below. It is important to state
that we know from the refrigeration cycle the value of the temperatures. The heat capacity
was calculated using the average Cp of the fluid per phase. We took 30 temperatures for
each phase and calculated an individual heat capacity using the thermo-physical
properties correlations. Afterwards the mean Cp per phase was calculated.The inlet and
outlet temperatures were determined from the refrigeration cycle:
=
( ) (2)

=
( ) (3)
However, it is also important to present another equation in order to determine heat flow
in terms of geometrical parameter:
4

 = (2 ) ( )(4)
The previous equation is the result of the application of a Shell Energy Balance for each
segment of the tube considering the internal, external and the copper tube resistance to
heat transfer. Equation 4 is valid for the three phases. U represents the global transfer
coefficient and it is defined as:

ln ( )
1
1
1

= (
+
+
) (5)

By using equation 4 along with equations 2 and 3 it is possible to determine the length of
the tube for pure phase sections. Equation 6 describes the relationship between heat and
length of the condenser and equation 7 presents the solution for tube length.
= ((2 ) ( )) (6)
=

(7)
((2 ) ( ))

To determine the length for the mixture section, equation 1 can be rewritten as:
=

Equation 7 may be applied for the mixture segment. The heat transfer coefficients are
different for each sections and require different correlations for their calculations. It is
important to note that the temperature within the pipe is a function of length (for pure
phases), thus is taken as the mean between inlet and outlet temperatures of each
segment. The properties required to calculate heat transfer coefficients were also set at
.
2.6.1

Conductive transfer coefficient

Now, in order to solve the energy balance proposed in the previous section we need to
determine the value of conductive and convective transfer coefficients. For the conductive
transfer coefficient, considering the temperature dependence of the thermal conductivity
of pure metals at low temperatures (< 1000K), we used the following correlation to
determine the conductivity (W/cm K) (Powell, Ho, & Liley, 1966):
=

( 8)

Where:
()

+1

= ( )

=
(10)

(9)

= 293

 = 2.443 108
= 2.443 108

2
(11)
2
2
(12)
2

The constants , m, n are unique for each metal (See Annexes table A1).
2.6.2

Convective transference coefficient

To calculate the convective transference coefficient for each phase, it is necessary to use
various correlations. For a single phase laminar flow, the Nusselt number can be
approximated by the following expression (Wright, 2000):
= 4.36 (13)
This correlation assumes constant surface heat flux which is a reasonable statement
Otherwise, if the flow is turbulent we can approximate the value of the Nusselt number
according to the Dittus-Boelter expression.
= 0.023 0.8 (Pr)0.3 (14)
However, in order to use equation 14, we must assume that in the tube fully developed
flow exist with moderate temperature variations. Also, the expression has proven to be
appropriate for the following conditions which our study fulfill (Wright, 2000):
0.7 160
10000

10

There is another expression for high variations of temperature developed by Sieder-Tate,

mainly for the superheated vapor condition where the temperature between the inlet and
outlet of the condenser can present a higher difference. In our study the assumption of
moderate temperature variation is valid and taken into account in order to estimate the
Nusselt number only with the Dittus-Boelter expression showed above. The precision
given by the Diettus-Boeltter correlation suited our needs well enough. On the other hand,
equation 14 also requires the use of a smooth pipe as we stated previously as one of the
assumptions for the design of the condensers.
To estimate the convective transfer coefficient in the mixture, the literature recommends
the use of equation 15 (Wright, 2000). This equation is the result of the simplification of
the two-phase flow heat transfer correlation developed by Shah. In order to obtain this
simplification, it is important to recall the assumption of linear variation of quality with
length in the tube of the condenser and a complete condensation of the mixture. Equation
15 is shown below:
= (0.55 +

2.09
) (15)
0.38

Finally, in order to obtain the coefficient for the external convection, Churchill and
Bernstein recommended correlating equation for > 0.2 was used. This correlation
is expressed in equation 16 (Welty, 2007).

= 0.3 +

0.620.5 1/3
[1
2 1/4
0.4 3

+(

5 4/5
8

) ]
282000

(16)

[1 + ( Pr ) ]
2.7 Pressure drop

To obtain the pressure drop inside the tubes of the condenser, the main assumption made
was that the tubes were composed of straight portions only. For each of the three phases,
the pressure drop was calculated in order to find the entire pressure profile across the
tube. In the case of pure phases (subcooled liquid and superheated vapor) the pressure
drop can be found applying the definition to a pipe flow using the friction factor:
2
=
(17)

Equation 17 (Wright, 2000) illustrates this definition, where f represents the friction factor
(Darcy). The latter can be estimated using the Colebrook equation for a smooth pipe. In
order to calculate the value of the properties (density) and (viscosity), it was necessary
to employ the mean average of these properties calculated at 30 different temperatures
per phase.
However, if the phase is a mixture (saturated quality mixture), it is necessary to use
another equation. For instance, Lockhart & Martinelli equation with Hiller & Glinsman
modifications is applicable to the case. This equation can be used for the flow regimes, it
assumes that the pressure drop is given by the sum of the gravitational, frictional and
momentum drop components and considers three main assumptions. The first one is that
both phases are in thermodynamic equilibrium. The second one is that velocities of vapor
and liquid phases are constant, not necessarily equal. The third one is again that the quality
varies linearly with the length of the tube, which allows neglecting gravitational pressure
drop terms (Wright, 2000). Equations 18 to 23 resume the pressure drop model for
mixture condition, which at the end is the sum of the frictional pressure drop ( ) and
the momentum pressure drop ( ).
= 2 [0.357 2.8 + 23 (0.429 0.141 0.288 2 ) 2.33
+ 32 (0.538 0.329)1.86 ]
(18)
Where:
1 0.0523 0.262
(19)
3 = 2.85 ( )
( )

2 =

0.09 1.8
(20)
1 1.2
7

1 =

(21)

3
3

3
3
=
[[1 + ( ) ( ) ] [2 ( ) ( ) ( ) ] ] (22)

= + (23)
3. Results and Analysis
The following section introduces the results according to the objective and the
methodology previously introduced. This section contemplates the compressor selection,
refrigeration cycle results for Barrel and Hopper processes, the thermo-physical
properties correlations calculation for each cycle and each quality of the refrigerant and
the condenser design for both processes, including its sizing and pressure drop.
3.1 Selection of compressors
The desired parameters for the cooling cycle are shown in Table 1. However, these
parameters are fixed by the operation of the compressor. Different compressor
performances from manufacturers Copeland, Embraco and Tecumseh were assessed to
determine which compressor suited the most the needs of each cooling cycle. General
specifications of the chosen compressors are also presented in table 1:
Table 1: Proposed, actual operating conditions for Barrel and Hopper compressors and other
specifications

Both compressors are manufactured by the Brazilian brand Embraco. For the Barrel cycle
the Embraco NT2180GK (Embraco, s.f.) compressor was chosen. It is clear that this
compressor will suit the needs for the cooling capacity along with the desired evaporation
and condensation temperatures. The market price for the barrel compressor is
approximately 220USD including shipping (Mercado Libre, 2016).
The selection for the Hopper cycle compressor could not match all of the parameters
presented in table 1. Thus it was decided that the heat sink function was fundamental for
the process since the cooling capacity determines how much ice cream can be produced
per hour and therefore the cooling capacity should be the priority. To do so, the
EMIS20HHR (Embraco, s.f.) compressor was selected. It is clear that the application for
both compressors must be different, since the Barrel requires a low evaporation
temperature, its operation matches the LBP (low back pressure) setting while the Hopper
uses a slightly higher evaporation temperature, therefore it operates with the criteria of
MBP (medium back pressure) (Embraco, 2013). The market price for the hopper
compressor is approximately 180 USD including shipping from Brazil (Precio D, 2016).
8

The operation of both compressors fixes various parameters. Not only there is a given
cooling capacity according to evaporation and condensing temperatures, but also
Embraco supplies an energetic consumption required to complete the compression
coupled with a maximum mass flow. The energy consumption already fixes the isentropic
efficiency for the compressor while the maximum mass flowrate will serve as a
checkpoint for the simulation of the cooling cycle. Embraco reports values for energy
consumption with a +5% uncertainty. The compressor also specifies inlet and outlet
socket diameters which should ideally match the pipe diameter for the design of the
condensing unit. The variables fixed by both compressors appear in Annexes table 2.
It is not surprising that the energy consumption along with inlet and outlet diameters are
larger for the Barrel compressor since this cycle requires a much larger cooling capacity.
The maximum mass flow rates are different by one order of magnitude; it is expected that
the simulation of the cooling cycle returns a value below each maximum mass flow rate.
Using the data in tables 1 and A2, it is possible to begin with the cooling cycle design.
3.2 Simulation of Refrigeration Cycles
To define every operating point on the cooling cycle some parameters have been fixed
whilst others need to be determined since they are independent. To determine the
compressors heat loss, a value for the discharge temperature was estimated qualitatively.
The greater the discharge temperature, the lower the compressor heat loss will be.
However, foreseeing the design of the condenser, it is convenient to have a low discharge
temperature (close to condensation temperature) since the condenser will require a shorter
length to cool down the vapor. This assumption naturally implies high heat loss
percentages which is not necessarily bad in terms of condenser design.
Another relevant parameter is the option to use a suction gas heat exchanger. It is a heat
exchanger which is added between the condenser and evaporator in the cycle. This unit
will only appear in the Barrel cycle. It allows the hot condensate liquid from the condenser
to heat the cold vapor from the evaporator (Ding, 2014). This device produces a higher
level of level sub-cooling thus the evaporator capacity increases. Also, the superheating
in the inlet current for the compressor increases, preventing slugging (Dover Company
(n.d.)). The value used for the isentropic efficiency for the SGHX in the barrel was 0.2
assuming a pessimistic scenario for its performance.
The next variable which needs to be estimated relates to the temperature for the suction
line for the compressor. It is important to note that this point is between the evaporators
outlet and the compressors inlet, ideally there would be no heat loss and the outlet
temperature from the evaporator would be the same inlet temperature for the compressor.
However, this implies feeding vapor in saturated conditions into the compressor which
may ease slugging in the compressor (Dincer & Kanglu, 2010). It is convenient and safer
to allow the superheating of vapor.
In some refrigeration systems, liquidvapor heat exchangers can be employed to
superheat the saturated refrigerant vapor from the evaporator with the refrigerant liquid
coming from the condenser. The heat exchanger can provide high system COP.
Refrigerant superheating can also be obtained in the compressor (Dincer & Kanglu,
2010). There is an available parameter to quantize the heat loss due to a pressure drop.
Denison states that typically for liquid lines, the pressure drop is not greater than 10 F
9

while in vapor lines it is possible to prevent a pressure drop depending on the capacity
(Denison, NA). Thus deeming pressure drops in both lines as negligible is a realistic
approach. Table 2 shows information regarding Carnot efficiencies and COP for both
cycles:
Table 2: COP and efficiencies for Hopper and Barrel cycles

Cycle

Carnots Efficiency

COP

COP*

Barrel

0.321

1.386

1.435

Hopper

0.394

1.481

1.605

The COP for both cycles are greater than 1 so the operation is fairy efficient. On the other
hand, Carnots efficiency is relatively low. It is reasonable to have low efficiency since
the required work by both compressors already fixes the isentropic efficiency for both
cycles which is fairly low (0.507 for the Hopper and 0.480 for the Hopper). Also, the
SGHX was set to operate at a very low efficiency (20%) so it is understandable why the
Carnots efficiency is low.
Hopper
The figure 1 presents the cycle for the Hopper. The mass flowrate is remarkably lower
than the maximum stablished by the compressor so the operation is possible.

Figure 1: Cooling cycle for Hopper

There is no subcooling for the points 4 through 5 but there is superheating of vapor for
the state points 7 through 1. Table 3 shows different properties for various state points
and the discharge temperature from the compressor considering reversible (iso) and
irreversible (W) compression.

10

Table 3: Hoppers state points

State
Point

Temperature
(0 C)
1

Pressure
(kPa)
200.7

70

Enthalpy
(kJ/kg)

Density
(kg/m3 )
256.4

22.9

1472.8

291.9

113.9

70

1472.8

291.9

113.9

44.5

1472.8

112.1

911.7

44.5

1472.8

112.1

957.9

-10

200.7

112.1

-5

200.7

245.1

25.1

200.7

256.4

24.5

Compression Ratio (P2 /

P1 )
7.339

T2iso
(0 C)
78.
5

T2W
(0 C)
117.
9

MIX

Since no pressure drops were considered, only two pressures are relevant in the process,
the compressors suction line and discharge. There is an important difference between
reversible compression discharge T and irreversible compression discharge T.
Barrel
Figure 2 and table 4 show the Barrels cooling cycle along with its data points. Because
of the SGHX, there is superheating in state points 7 to 1 and supercooling from points 4
to 5. The heat transfer from the SGHX seems useful to prevent slugging and should make
the process more bearable for the compressor (higher efficiencies).

Figure 2: Cooling cycle for Barrel

The pressure behaves just like in the Hopper. Without any pressure drops, there are only
two existing pressure lines. The pressure ratio for the Barrel is lower than the Hoppers.
Using a SGHX usually increases the discharge temperature, however the actual discharge
temperature (T2W ) is lower for the Barrel.

11

Table 4: Barrels state points

State
Point

Temperature
(0 C)
1

18.1

Pressure
(kPa)
513.8

85

2572.2

85

2572.2

48.7

2572.2

41.4

2572.2

-5.3

513.8

513.8

513.8

Enthalpy
(kJ/kg)

Pressure Ratio (P2 /

P1 )
5.006

Density
(kg/m3 )
237.3

22.9

277.9

113.9

277.9

113.9

128.3

911.7

116

957.9

116

T2iso
(0 C)
81.8

T2W
(0 C)
114.
1

MIX

221.3

25.1

225

24.5

3.3 R134a (Hopper) Physical properties

According to the procedure described in the methodology for the refrigerant R134a, we
obtained the following results for the density, viscosity, heat capacity and thermal
conductivity. It is important to state that for this cycle, in the evaporation process the
change of phase occurs at phase equilibrium, reason why we only adjusted expressions
for the vapor quality. The following equations in sections 3.3.1 to 3.3.3 describe the
polynomic expression to calculate the value of the density, viscosity, heat capacity and
thermal conductivity depending only on the temperature (in C).
3.3.1

Polynomic expressions for the vapor phase in the condenser

Density (kg/m3):
= 0.5467 + 104.51 (36)
Viscosity (microPa*s):
= 0.0408 + 10.979 (37)
Heat Capacity (J/kgK):
= 0.3193 2 48.897 + 3018.9 (38)
Thermal Conductivity (W/mK):
= 1106 2 0.0001 + 0.0197 (39)
3.3.2

Polynomic expression for the liquid phase in the condenser

Density (kg/m3):
= 5.0689 + 1356.7 (40)
Viscosity (microPa*s):
= 2.0055 + 242.77 (41)
Heat Capacity (J/kgK):
12

 = 0.2504 2 16.559 + 1760.9 (42)

Thermal Conductivity (W/mK):
= 0.0005 + 0.0936 (43)
3.3.3

Polynomic expression for the vapor phase in the evaporator

Density (kg/m3):
= 0.047 + 9.5684 (44)
Viscosity (microPa*s):
= 0.0007 2 + 0.0425 + 10.786 (45)
Heat Capacity (J/kgK):
= 0.084 6 + 3.6634 5 + 66.367 4 + 635.05 3 + 3383.6 2 + 9514
+ 11876 (46)
Thermal Conductivity (W/mK):
= 9105 + 0.0115 (47)
3.4 R404a (Barrel) Physical Properties
According to the procedure described in the methodology for the refrigerant R404a, we
obtained the following results for the density, viscosity, heat capacity and thermal
conductivity. The following equations in sections 3.4.1 to 3.4.3 describe the polynomic
expression to calculate the value of the density, viscosity, heat capacity and thermal
conductivity depending only on the temperature (in C).
3.4.1

Polynomic expressions for the vapor phase in the condenser

Density (kg/m3):
= 0.0406 2 7.2544 + 438.27 (24)
Viscosity (microPa*s):
= 7 105 3 + 0.0155 2 1.1267 + 45.204 (25)
Heat Capacity (J/kgK):
= 1.3943 2 222.37 + 10152 (26)
Thermal Conductivity (W/mK):
= 6 106 2 0.0008 + 0.0556 (27)
3.4.2

Polynomic expressions for the liquid phase in the condenser

Density (kg/m3):
= 7.858 + 1298.5 (28)
Viscosity (microPa*s):
13

 = 1.7268 + 176.69 (29)

Heat Capacity (J/kgK):
= 1.7742 2 137.55 + 4343.6 (30)
Thermal Conductivity (W/mK):
= 0.0004 + 0.0764 (31)
3.4.3

Polynomic expression for the vapor phase in the evaporator

Density (kg/m3):
= 0.1326 + 25.328 (32)
Viscosity (microPa*s):
= 0.041 + 12.53 (33)
Heat Capacity (J/kgK):
= 0.0491 2 1.6021 + 961.25 (34)
Thermal Conductivity (W/mK):
= 9 105 + 0.0145 (35)
The polynomic equations for both refrigerants are described mainly by linear or second
order polynomic functions. For a R2 greater than 0.97, the trend line fits the polynomic
equation properly which means that the regression fits the data for the expression of the
liquid quality in the condenser and evaporator for both Barrel and Hopper cycles.
3.5 Latent heat of vaporization and fusion of both processes
The following table summarize the results for the enthalpy in the phase change condition
for the compressor and the evaporator of both processes the Hopper and the Barrel:
Table 5: Enthalpy of refrigerant R134a in the phase condition state in the condenser and the evaporator

Hopper
Condenser
Temperature (C):
Enthalpy Vapor (J/kg):
Enthalpy Liquid (J/kg):
Latent heat of fusion (J/kg):

Evaporator
54,45
Temperature (C):
277000
Enthalpy Vapor (J/kg):
130000
Enthalpy Liquid (J/kg):
147000
Latent heat of vaporization
(J/kg):
Barrel
Condenser
Evaporator
Temperature (C):
54,9
Temperature (C):
Enthalpy Vapor (J/kg):
231000
Enthalpy Vapor (J/kg):
Enthalpy Liquid (J/kg):
137000
Enthalpy Liquid (J/kg):
Latent heat of fusion (J/kg):
94000
Latent heat of vaporization
(J/kg):

-9,99
245000
38600
206400

-5,05
214000
43500
170500

14

The results in the Table 5 showed that the evaporator needs more energy per kilogram
of fluid to change the liquid phase into the gas phase.
3.6 Condenser design program operation
In order to determine the results required for the user, it is necessary to introduce the inlet,
outlet and condensers temperature, the condensers heat removed, the mass flowrate and
the wind speed, into the interface shown in figure A1 (Annexes).
3.7 Sizing of condensers
One of the main objectives of the project is the design of the process minimizing when is
possible the pressure drops, in order to design the condensers, we chose a tube that allows
us to neglect the pressure drop between the discharge of the compressors and the inlet to
the condensers. According to The Copper Tube Handbook we selected a cooper tube with
an internal diameter of 0.008m and an outside diameter of 0.00095m, in order to match
the discharge diameter of the condensers previously mentioned. After choosing the
diameter for the tubes, we proceeded to calculate the length according to the energy
balance proposed in previous sections. The table below illustrates the result for the sizing
of both condensers. The table presents the length of each of the sections (conferring to
the quality) in each tube and the overall heat transfer coefficient. We assumed a wind
speed of 10 m/s for convective heat transfer coefficient for air.
Table 6: Sizing of the condensers

Hopper
Length
Superheated Vapor (m)
Mixture (m)
Subcooled Liquid (m)
Total length (m)
Length
Superheated Vapor (m)
Mixture L (m)
Subcooled Liquid (m)
Total length (m)

Overall heat transfer coefficient

Superheated Vapor (W/m2 K)
53.84
2
Mixture (W/m K)
65.98
Subcooled Liquid (W/m2 K)
27.10
1.323
Weight of the condenser (kg)
Barrel
Overall heat transfer coefficient
8.035
Superheated Vapor (W/m2 K)
114.72
14.391
Mixture (W/m2 K)
123.46
2
4.552
Subcooled Liquid (W/m K)
113.18
26.978
4.984
Weight of the condenser (kg)
0.983
4.520
1.660
7.164

The table above show the results of the length for both condensers. The total length of the
tube for each condenser is the sum of the length of each phase of the refrigerant. For the
Hopper cycle, we have that the mixture composed of the two-phase equilibrium is the
section of the tube with the highest value of the length and highest overall heat transfer
coefficient as well. With a higher heat transfer coefficient, the length of a section should
be smaller. Nevertheless, it is important to remember that phases changes will require
more energy to complete the condensation, which is why the mixed-phase segments
require larger lengths.
On the other hand, according to the results shown in the table above, the Barrels
condenser length is almost four times longer the Hoppers condenser. This results can be
explained with the idea that the heat that has to be removed in the Barrel process is almost
15

11 times the heat that has to be removed in the Hopper cycle and the diameter of both
tubes is the same. The pressure drop also is expected to be higher in the Barrel due to the
length of the tube, this idea is going to be discussed in the next sections. Finally, regarding
the weight, due to the fact that the diameter is the same for the tubes in both condensers,
it is expected that the weight of the Barrel condenser is higher due to the impact of the
length of the tube in the calculation of the weight.
3.8 Hoppers pressure drop, pressure profile, and temperature profile
To determine the pressure drop, it was necessary to use equation 23, once the length was
calculated. As we can see below, figure 3 shows the behavior between the pressure drop
and the length in the condenser.

Figure 3: From left to right: Hoppers condenser pressure drop vs. length, Hoppers pressure profile

As we can see in Figure 3 (left), during the interval of 1 to 5.5 meters, the pressure drop
reaches its highest value because of the phase change. However, after 5.5 meters, pressure
stabilizes presenting a similar behavior as the one presented in the range of values
between 0 to 1 meters. During the phase change, the temperature is constant and the
pressure decreases. On the other hand, figure 4 shows the pressure profile for the process
in the Hopper condenser.
Figure 3 (right) shows that for the process the pressure is almost constant between 0 to 1
meters and between 5.5 to 7.16 meters (total length). However, there is a large change
between 1 to 5.5 meters, where the pressure decreases considerably because of the change
of phase that occurs in the condenser from vapor to liquid. It is important to control the
head pressure hence the pressure differential is minimum across the orifice of the
thermostatic expansion valve and the capacity can match the load and produce the system
overload (Archnews, 2016). Nevertheless, it is necessary to use a pressure regulating
valve to guarantee the security of the process. For this specific case, we used a fan to
control condensers conditions but it only worked to keep the required mass flow and the
air cooled.
3.9 Barrels pressure drop, pressure profile, and temperature profile
As for the Hopper condenser, to determine the pressure drop, it was necessary to use
equation 23, once the length was calculated with equation 7. As we can see below, figure
4 shows the behavior between the pressure drop and the length in the condenser.

16

Figure 4: From left to right: Barrel condenser pressure profile, Barrels condenser pressure profile

We can see in Figure 4 (left), that in the section by which the change of phase from vapor
to liquid is taking place, the pressure decreases considerably. This pressure drop occurs
between the interval of 8 to 22.3 meters. By the time the fluid stays in a liquid and in a
vapor phase, pressure decrease but not as much as when the phase change happened, the
pressure drop gave only by the frictional factor consider in the pure phases is less than
the other approximation, this can be explained by the consideration of the momentum
pressure drop in the mixture and only the friction in pure phases. On the other hand, figure
4 (right) illustrates the pressure drop profile for the Barrel. Itis possible to appreciate how
the pressure drop increase from 8 to 22.3 meters, consistently with the decrease or drop
in the pressure profile shown before. As we mentioned above, during this interval, the
phase change from the vapor phase to the liquid phase, and, as long as the pressure
decrease, the pressure drop increases considerably.
3.10

Temperature profile for the Hopper and Barrel Cycle

The following figure shows the temperature profile behavior for the Hopper and the
Barrel cycle.

Figure 5: Hopper (left) and Barrel (right) condenser temperature profile

The condensers main function is to decrease a fluids temperature. In a condenser, when

the length increases, the time required for a fluid to go throw the process increases as
17

well. Hence, when the fluid travels through the entirety of the condenser, at the outlet, the
fluid temperature is reduced, also a change of phase occurs from a fluid that enters in a
vapor condition and leaves in a liquid one. In figure 5, it is possible to observe that at the
beginning when the fluid is in a vapor phase, the temperature decreases more than when
the phase change occurred or when the fluid gets into a liquid phase, this is related to the
heat capacity and thermal conductivity of the condition of the fluid. This behavior is
shown for both the Hopper and Barrel cycle. In the change of phase stage, the temperature
remains constant until the fluid fulfills correctly the condensation process. The figure
above shows that the change of phase occurs between 1 and 5.5m of the tube for the
Hopper cycle and between 8 and 22.3m for the Barrel cycle.
4. Conclusions
The Embraco compressors selected resembled precisely the required operation
conditions, thus the designed cycles should be able to perform adequately on both Barrel
and Hopper. Both cycles have a COP higher than 1 but their Carnot efficiencies are
inevitably low. Since the selected discharge temperature is fixed a reasonably low value,
thus Coolpack reports a high loss heat percentage which eases the condenser design but
hinders the cycles efficiency. For the condenser design, it is important to remember that
the inlet temperature used corresponded to the isentropic compression discharge
temperature which is lower than the real discharge temperature. The actual condenser
length will be larger.
Both condensers exhibit the same behavior, the greater portion of each condenser is
dedicated to condense the mixture which is the region with greater pressure drop in the
system as well. For the design of both condensers, considering the coppers conductive
coefficient had little effect upon the global heat transfer coefficient (U), but, considering
the airs convective coefficient had an important effect upon the total resistance. The U
coefficient fell considerably when the outer heat convection of air was included in the
shell balance, thus both condensers length grew largely. In order to increase the value of
U, the wind speed needs to rise. With a wind speed of 10 m/s, logical lengths for both
condensers where obtained, nevertheless, this wind speed will require fans likely to be
larger than computer ones. The use of inner and outer fins will cause a further decrease
in the length for condenser sizing since there is more available area for heat transfer.
During the design of the whole process, use of correlations in every stage naturally
implies dealing with a certain amount of error for the calculation of the properties of the
refrigerant for each quality condition, especially in the pure phases were the DiettusBoeltter correlation may underestimate Nusselts number and give a higher variance than
the results for the mixture condition.
The challenges to be analyzed in future studies relapse in the design of the whole process
by easing some of the assumptions made in this project. First, according to the
compression of the refrigerants, the compressor selection is a limitation due to the fact
that, for instance, in the Hopper cycle the conditions differ a bit from the required for the
soft-served ice cream machine design. Second, as stated before the use of the isentropic
compression discharge temperature in the compression process gives different results
than for a process in which the real discharge temperature is used. On the other hand,
according to the condenser design, the assumption of the linear variation between the
18

quality of the refrigerant and the length of the tube was key in order to size and simulate
the conditions in both the Barrel and Hopper condensers. This assumption had an impact
in the length and in the pressure profile and drop between the heat exchanger, but in a
condenser, the variation of the quality does not necessary present a linear relationship
with the length. Finally, the pressure profile and pressure drop results for the condenser
were found assuming the straight tube condition only, this neglect the effect of elbows
and accessories in the pressure drop in both condensers, future studies can focus on an
approximation for these matters using empirical correlation to combine straight tubes and
tube bends.
5. References
Achrnews.com. (2004). Controlling Condenser Pressure. [online] Available at:
http://www.achrnews.com/articles/93556-controlling-condenser-pressure [Accessed 9
Oct. 2016].
Ballesteros, M. ., & Quiroga, I. V. (s.f.). Modelamiento y Simulacin en CFD de la
Transferencia de Momento y Calor en. Departamento Ingeniera Qumica Universidad
de los Andes.
Cook, R., & Hartel, R. (2010). Mechanisms of Ice Crystallization in Ice Cream
Production. Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety, 9(2), 213-222.
Denison, G. (s.f.). Refrigerant Piping Handbook. DuPont.
Dincer, I., & Kanglu, M. (2010). Refrigeration Systems and Applications. Chennai,
India: Wiley.
Ding, G. (2014). Investigation of application of suction line heat exchanger in R290 air
conditioner with small diameter copper tube .(pp. 3-4). .
Dover Company (n.d.). (s.f.). Swep Handbooks. Retrieved from Refrigerant Handbook:.
Obtenido de http://handbooks.swep.net/RefrigerantHandbook/chapter_10/Pages/10.7Suction-Heat-Exchanger.aspx
Embraco. (2013). LBP, MBP AND HBP APPLICATIONS. (Embraco) Recuperado el 28
de September de 2016, de http://www.clubedarefrigeracao.com.br/en/downloads/lbpmbp-and-hbp-applications
Embraco. (s.f.). EMIS20HHR. Recuperado el 16 de September de 2016, de
http://www.embraco.com/catalog/Compressors.aspx?idProduto=457924&idCapacidade
=1995016&idOleo=37&tipoTeste=ASHRAE32&aplicacao=5&frequencia=60&capacid
adeFuncionamento=&paginaAnterior=ResultsCompressors.aspx?m=Model|qtdregistrospagina=20|p=|s=C|model=EMIS20
Embraco. (s.f.). NT2180GK. Recuperado el 15 de September de 2016, de
http://www.embraco.com/catalog/Compressors.aspx?idProduto=458682&idCapacidade
=1997518&idOleo=37&tipoTeste=EN12900&aplicacao=6&frequencia=50&capacidade
Funcionamento=17.5&paginaAnterior=ResultsCompressors.aspx?m=Model|qtdregistrospagina=20|p=|s=C|model=NT2

19

Gabrieli, C. &. (1998). Changes in optimal distribution of heat exchanger area between
the evaporator and suction gas heat exchanger when replacing R22 with R407C.
Hultn, M. &. (1999). The compression/absorption cycle influence of some major
parameters on COP and a comparison with the compression cycle. International Journal
of Refrigeration, 91-106.
Mercadolibre.com &. (2016). Mexico. Embraco 1 Hp Compresor Nt2180gk R404 115v
R 404. [Electronic source]. Available in: http://articulo.mercadolibre.com.mx/MLM549781791-embraco-1-hp-compresor-nt2180gk-r404-115v-r-404-_JM
PrecioD.com &. (2016). Brazil. Compressor Embraco Emis20hhr Original P Bebedouro
220v R134a. [Electronic source]. Available in: http://preciod.com/br/compressorembraco-emis20hhr-original-p-bebedouro-220v-r134a-kFvNi/preco-html
Wright, M. F. (2000). Plate-Fin-And-Tube Condenser Performance and Design for
Refrigerant R410A Air-Conditiones. Master thesis of Science in Mechanical
Engineering. Georgia Institute of Technology: May 2000.
6. Annexes
Table A1: Copper parameters in order to determine the conductive transfer coefficient

Element
Copper

m
2.63

N
2.21

0.0423

(cm)
0.000579

0.0237

Table A2: Compressor specifications

Compressor

NT2180GK
EMI20SHHR

Energy
Inlet
Consumption (W Diameter
+5%)
(mm)
741.45
9.60
86.35
6.50

Outlet
Diameter
(mm)
6.42
4.94

Maximum
mass
flow
rate (kg/s)
0.397
0.0426

Figure A1: Programs interface

20

7. Word, tables and figures control

The following table presents the number of words contained in the document, the
number of figures and tables.
Table A3: Word count control

# Tables/Figures Word count

6086
Document
5
1750
Figures
6
2100
Tables
Total
9936

21