Photo courtesy Snap-on Tools

he HVAC system on a modern car is a technologically diverse and fascinating operation. It combines the principles of refrigeration, electricity, vacuum controls, computer programming and the old-fashioned nuts & bolts of a whirling compressor. In the space of this article, we cant examine the fundamentals of all these subsystems, so well concentrate on heating and refrigeration. Heating and refrigeration are two

HVAC SYSTEMS
sides of the same coin, which is heat transfer. In our rush to troubleshoot todays sophisticated climate control systems, we often jump past basic heat transfer principles to the hightech realm of electronic controllers and computer programs. Stop: Lets review the basics. Heat always moves from a hotter object to a colder one. Thats some kind of law of thermodynamics, but you dont have to be a scientist to understand the applications of the idea. The primary cause of common HVAC

complaints is that the heat transfer process has broken down somewhere along the line. Most often, troubleshooting the HVAC system is simply a matter of knowing what a particular symptom means in terms of heat transfer, then recognizing the cause of that symptom.

The Refrigeration Cycle

The a/c system cools the inside of the car by transferring heat from warm air to the cooler tubes and fins of the evaporator and to the refrigerant in-

BY KEN LAYNE
April 1999 37

side the evaporator. Its this refrigerant that makes the operation interesting. Whether its R-12 or R-134a, refrigerant is a unique compound that changes its state from a liquid to a gas as

gas gets drawn from the evaporator by the compressor, where its repressurized into a high-pressure, high-temperature gas. The refrigerant keeps moving and flows to the condenser, where the heat transfer process gets reversed. The condenser is another radiator, and as the refrigerant flows through it, heat is transferred from the refrigerant to the tubes and fins of the condenser and to the cooler airflow over the front of the car. Another thermodynamic law says that as a high-pressure, high-temperature gas gets cooler, it condenses to a liquid. Now the refrigerant is a cooler (but still warm) high-pressure liquid, and it flows back to the evaporator to start the cooling cycle all over A mainstay of technicians for years, a good set of pressure again. It doesnt matter where gauges is indispensable for monitoring a/c system operation. you pick up the its pressurized and depressurized. This cycle as a starting point, as long as refrigerant circulates in a continuous cyyou recognize the heat transfer cle inside a closed system. Before it enprocess and the relationships of temters the evaporator for the cooling operperature, pressure and heat. ation, its a warm high-pressure liquid. Read the Pressure, The refrigerant flows through an expansion valve or a metering orifice, which Know the Temperature quickly depressurizes the liquid, causing Good old R-12 has a characteristic that really helps system maintenance it to vaporize. Another of those thermoand troubleshootingit correlates dynamic laws says that when a liquid pretty closely the relationship bequickly vaporizes to a gas, its temperatween the pressures and temperature drops just as fast, causing it to abtures on the high and low sides of the sorb heat from anything around it. system. With a pressure gauge conThe heat is now in the vapor, and you nected to the low side, normal preshave to get rid of it. The way you do sures should read 20 to 30 psi for an that is to compress the vapor; make it expansion-valve system or 15 to 40 somewhat hotter and a lot denser. To do psi for an orifice-tube system. Those this, the low-pressure, low-temperature
Photos: Ken Layne

pressures correlate numerically 1:1 with the refrigerant temperatures inside the evaporator. Of course, temperature rises from the refrigerant to the evaporator fins and tubes and again to the air blowing through the evaporator. Nevertheless, R-12 at 30 psi and 30F in the evaporator will give you outlet temperatures of 45 to 50Fnot bad on a summer day. For the low side of the system, the old saying was: If you know the pressure, you know the temperature. That 1:1 correlation continues up to about 80F for R-12, which is just below the bottom of the pressure range for the high side of the system. On the high side of an R-12 system, you can relate pressure to the ambient air temperature, rather than to the refrigerant temperature. With an R-12 system working normally, high-side pressure should be roughly twice the ambient air temperature at the condenser. For example, if you put a thermometer in the airflow in front of the condenser and it reads 90F, high-side pressure should be roughly 175 to 195 psi. At 100F, pressure should be 200 to 230 psi. This relationship is approximate, but its still a useful diagnostic yardstick to indicate generally what the pressure should be for a given air temperature. This comparison is based on a properly charged system and a fan creating normal airflow through the condenser. If relative humidity is high, pressures will increase, and as the air temperature rises above 100F, the pressures start to increase faster and rise above the approximate 2:1 ratio. Nevertheless, these temperature-pressure relationships will help get your diagnosis off to a good start.

What About R-134a?

Refrigerant is refrigerantbasicallyand R-134a has to do the same job as R-12. R-134a vaporizes from a liquid to a gas at a slightly higher temperature than R-12, so its heattransfer capabilities are not quite as good. The vaporization (boil-off) temperatures are 21.7F for R-12 and

38

April 1999

 15F for R-134a. Therefore, R134a systems need slightly larger evaporators, condensers and compressors for equal cooling. In terms of human comfort, however, R-12 and R-134a systems are pretty close. Low-side pressures are virtually the same for an R-134a system as for an R-12 system, and the relationships to evaporator temperature are very close. The high-side pressures for an R-134a system are just slightly higher than those for an R-12 system. The table on page 40 lists the high-side pressures at corresponding ambient air temperatures for both R-12 and R-134a systems.

warmer than normal to the touch accompanied by low pressure on the low side confirms that the evaporator is being starved. Its possible for a system to have low pressures but no leakage. Even with a normal refrigerant charge, pressures can stay low if heat transfer is not occurring properly. If you cant find a leak, look at the liquid lines from the condenser to the orifice tube or the expansion valve on the high side. If you find a section of line thats cold to

bleshooting on a logical path, again, think about heat transfer. Lets consider high-side pressures that are higher than normal. Remember that the high side has to transfer heat out of the refrigerant. As heat leaves, pressure should drop. If pressure doesnt come down to where it should be, not all the heat is leaving. The condenser is the outbound heattransfer machine. To do its job, it must have airflow across its fins and tubes. If

Put the Gauges to Work

When you read pressures on the high and low sides of the system, remember what the pressure tells you about the temperature. Most importantly, think about heat transfer and what should be taking place at any point in the system. Lets start with an example of abnormally low pressures on both sides of the system. Lower than normal pressure on the low side means that the refrigerant is vaporizing in the evaporator all right, but theres not enough of it present to pick up as much heat as it should from the evaporator airflow. Remember, heat causes pressure to rise, and less heat transfer results in lower pressures. Now the high side of the system has less heat to get rid of, so the high-side pressures also stay lower. The conclusion at this stage of pressure gauge troubleshooting is that not enough refrigerant is getting into the evaporator. But why? Obviously, the system could simply be undercharged, so take a look at the refrigerant lines, particularly on the high side. You may get lucky and spot a leak. If not, a little dye added to the system or an electronic leak detector will help you along. Suppose you recycle and recharge the refrigerant to verify the proper capacity or just add a can, but the pressures remain low. The next step is to look for some other physical clues. For instance, an evaporator pipe thats

Using optional pressure transducers in tandem with a good graphing multimeter like this one turns traditional pressure readings into graphs that help you monitor both sides of the system over long periods of time.

the touch and perhaps has some condensation or frost on it, youve found a restriction in refrigerant flow. Dirt in the lines can restrict flow and cause a pressure drop where one shouldnt occur. And as the refrigerant pressure drops, it picks up heat under the hood. Then theres less refrigerant to vaporize in the evaporator, less heat transfer for a/c cooling and weve got a customer complaint on our hands. Its not unusual to get confused by high-side pressure readings. Suppose you connect your gauges, look at the pressures and recognize that theyre higher or lower than spec. Now what? To help keep pressure trou-

airflow is restricted or reduced, heat wont transfer out of the refrigerant and high-side pressures stay high. Look for dirt and debris that might block condenser airflow. Also look for vehicle body damage, which can cause air to flow to the wrong placesthat is, away from the radiator and a/c condenser. Besides a blocked condenser, airflow can be reduced by cooling fans that dont work properly. Electric fan circuits are among the most challenging troubleshooting exercises. Here, you get into the world of electricity to solve a heat transfer problem, and you should have the applicable fan circuit description and wiring diagram to do the job right.

April 1999

39

High-Side Pressures for R-12 and R-134a Systems

Following is a comparison of normal high-side pressures for both R-12 and R-134a systems. Pressures for R-134a are a little bit higher at any given temperature. Pressure will rise in any system as humidity increases.

Ambient Air Temperature (F) 70 80 90 100 110

Humidity Low High Low High Low High Low High Low High

High-Side Pressure (psi) R-12 R-134a 115-135 130-150 150-170 165-185 175-195 185-205 200-230 230-250 250-270 265-285 140-190 165-220 150-200 190-260 170-220 210-290 195-245 230-320 235-285 260-350

Pressure Testing Summary

The two previous examples of abnormal pressure readings arent the only information your gauge set can give you. Well wrap up this review with a few summary descriptions of abnormal pressure readings and their most likely heat transfer causes. Low Pressures: Both high and low sides slightly below normal. Low refrigerant charge; possible leakage. If the system has a sight glass, youll probably see bubbles in the refrigerant flow. Low side well below normal, high side only moderately or slightly below normal. Heres where you try to pinpoint a restriction by looking for frost or condensation on the high-side liquid lines and the receiver-dryer or for cold spots near the orifice tube or on the expansion valve or its sensing bulb. Both high and low sides well below normal. Two prime possibilities exist here: First, the refrigerant charge may be almost completely lost from serious leakage. In this case, the system obviously will provide little or no cooling. Second, but equally possible, is a frozen

and blocked evaporator. The compressor will be pumping against a blocked system, and low-side pressures will be very low because of it. Heat transfer also will be sharply reduced, so the highside pressures will stay low. If the evaporator is frozen, look for a compressor thats not cycling off when it should. High Pressures: Low side above normal, high side normal or a bit low. If these gauge readings are accompanied by a compressor that cycles off at pressures higher than usual, look for a bad thermostatic or pressure switch that controls the compressor. The low side cant pick up enough heat if the compressor turns off before it should. Both high and low sides well above normal. A restriction in airflow at the condenser will reduce heat transfer and keep the high-side pressure high. Also, an overcharged system can contain too much refrigerant to allow complete vaporization and heat absorption. Both high and low sides steadily above normal. The overall heat-transfer capability of the system is reduced

by the presence of air and moisture that dont pick up and give off heat but do displace refrigerant. Air compresses on the high side, but doesnt condense and release heat at the condenser. Consequently, high-side pressure stays up. Low side steadily above normal, high side normal or slightly above normal. If these pressures are accompanied by condensation on the suction lines and warm discharge air, you have a classic evaporator flooding condition. Remember, if too much refrigerant gets into the evaporator, it remains partially liquid and doesnt absorb as much heat as it should from the evaporator airflow. It then continues to vaporize in the suction lines and picks up heat in the engine compartment, where it shouldnt. All this misplaced heat transfer plus excess liquid on the low side keep low-side pressures high. When a customer says, My air conditioner blows hot air, ask if the problem developed all of a sudden or if the system has been going downhill for a while. Refrigeration problems usually develop gradually over time. Electrical and vacuum control problems, on the other hand, usually occur more suddenly. This little bit of extra insight can help you get off on the right diagnostic path. If it looks like an electrical or vacuum problem, then you have other basic principles to consider...and thats a story for another day.
For a free copy of this article, write to: Fulfillment Dept., MOTOR Magazine, 5600 Crooks Rd., Troy, MI 48098. Additional copies are $2 each. Send check or money order.

Answers to Previous Assessment Quiz (Charging and Starting Systems, Jan. 1999) 1-B 2-D 3-A 4-B 5-D 6-B 7-B 8-B 9-A 10-D

40

April 1999