Functional Equations for Calculating the Properties of Low-GWP R1234ze(E) Refrigerant

Abstract

Legal requirements for the use of refrigerants increasingly restrict the use of high-global warming potential (GWP) refrigerants. As a result, there is a growing interest in natural refrigerants and in those belonging to the hydrofluoroolefins (HFO) class, which can be used on their own or in mixtures. One of them is the R1234ze(E) refrigerant, an alternative to the R134a refrigerant as well as being a component of numerous mixtures. The knowledge of thermodynamic and transport properties of refrigerants is required for the analysis and calculation of refrigeration cycles in refrigeration, air conditioning, or heating systems. The paper presents analytical equations for calculating the properties of the R1234ze(E) refrigerant in the state of saturation and in the subcooled liquid and superheated vapour regions that do not require numerical calculations and are characterised by small deviations. The Levenberg–Marquardt algorithm—one of the methods for non-linear least squares estimation—was used to develop them. A total of 26 equations were formulated. The formulated equations were statistically verified by determining absolute and relative deviations between the values obtained from CoolProp software and calculated values. The maximum relative deviation was not higher than 1% in any of them.