Experimental Investigation into the Effects of Al-composite Nanolubricants on the Energy and Exergy Performance of Vapour Compression Refrigerator Compressor
Nanofluids played significant role in enhancing the thermophysical properties of a refrigerant which can lead to an improved performance of the refrigerator compressor. This study investigated the performances of four Aluminium based nanolubricants in a vapour compression refrigeration compressor system. Various tests which include evaluation of the thermophysical properties and the determination of thermodynamic parameters such as exergy, power consumption, cooling load and coefficient of performance of the refrigerator compressor system were carried out. The outcome showed that the nanoparticles influenced greatly the thermophysical properties of the base oil (Capella D) and improved its thermodynamic properties. All the nanolubricants showed improved better results in terms of thermal conductivity and salinity, depicting better heat transfer and thermal capacity. Also, the results of the viscosity tests showed that the nanolubricants have lower values than the conventional base oil, indicating good pumping ability of the compressor and lower energy consumption. In addition, the results of exergy analyses reveal that most of the nanofluids systems generally showed better performance with higher values. It thus can be concluded that the nanofluids systems seem to provide better compressor/refrigerator working fluid alternative with careful selection
