Theoretical design of solar-powered vapor absorption refrigeration system coupled with latent heat energy storage

Abstract

Abstract In this work, the vapor absorption refrigeration system (VARS) with a cooling capacity of 1kW is designed. VARS is designed to be driven by hot water available from the solar thermal collector during the day. In the Sun’s absence, the system is designed to run by a coupled latent heat energy storage system. The unit has three major components: evacuated tube collector, latent heat energy storage, and VARS. The system is designed for a cooling capacity of 1 kW. The size of other components has been calculated by adopting the heat exchanger design approach and the relevant equations presented in the published works. The corresponding size of absorber, generator & condenser comes out to be 1.412kW, 1.46 kW & 0.96 kW, respectively for the cooling capacity of 1 kW. The evacuated tube collector of 100 LPD capacity is sufficient to provide the required heat to run the VARS and charge the thermal energy storage. Latent heat energy storage of 2.25 kW charging and discharging time of 3 hours kW is coupled with the system. The designed system gives the COP of 0.875.