Approche conceptuelle pour les séparateurs de liquide appliqués aux réfrigérateurs domestiques.

The objective of this study was to develop a methodology for designing T-junction liquid-vapor separators for household refrigerators. The influence of the following independent parameters on the separator performance was studied: i) refrigerant mass flow rate, ii) inlet vapor quality, iii) phase-separation temperature, iv) critical droplet diameter and v) suction ratio. For modeling purposes, the T-junction was divided into three sub-models, namely: inlet, vapor and liquid branches. The inlet branch sub-model revealed that proper phase separation occurs with larger diameters as the refrig-erant mass flow rate and vapor quality increase. The dimensions of the vapor branch are governed by the droplet di-ameter, vapor mass flow rate and phase-separation temperature, while the dimensions of the liquid branch are dictated by residence time, suction ratio and vapor quality. Additionally, a testing facility was designed and constructed to visualize the refrigerant flow through acrylic T-junctions mounted in a novel two-stage cycle architecture. A T-junction with an inlet branch diameter of 7 mm, a vertical branch diameter of 28 mm and total length of 58 mm was tested with compressor speeds ranging from 2000 to 3500 rpm and suction ratios from 10 to 45%. Photographs of the flow pattern through the separator were taken and used to explain the measured results.