EXPERIMENTAL AND THEORETICAL STUDY OF HEAT PUMP PERFORMANCE ENHANCEMENT BY USING A NANOREFRIGERANTS

The effect of Al2O3 nanoparticles on the performance of heat pump to improve its operational efficiency was presented in this theoretical and experimental study. In the experimental work the heat pump charged with R600a inclusive with 0.06 % vol. of Al2O3 and used as a nanorefrigerant. Three different nanoparticles size 20nm, 40 nm and 50 nm of Al2O3 have been used for the preparation of nanolubricant in the present study. The theoretical approach includes simulations modeling the heat pump components such as compressor, evaporator, condenser and an expansion valve by computer of the heat pump system by using commercial MATLAB. The results showed that the addition of nanoparticles to the refrigerant will improve its characteristics of refrigeration system heat transfer and thermal properties. Also, it showed that the using nanorefrigerant in refrigeration system will work normally at all conditions employed in this work. The experimental results found that the heat pump coefficient of performance increased by 19.1%, but the power consumption reduced by 21.8 % when using a mineral oil with 20 nm nanoparticles size of Al2O3 instead of the conventional mineral oil only. Finally, the refrigeration effect increased and work of compressor decreased by using a small nanoparticles size of Al2O3.