AIR CONDITIONING TECHNOLOGY

PART 11
IN LAST months article we studied Capillary Tubes, Restrictor Expansion
Devices and the Thermostatic Expansion Valve (TEV). In this months article
we continue our study of the range of expansion devices available.

EXTERNALLY EQUALISED THERMOSTATIC EXPANSION VALVE

The general operating function of this valve is identical to the Thermostatic
Expansion Valve (Internally Equalised) covered in last months article in that
refrigerant flow to the evaporator is continuously regulated in accordance with
thermal load changes on the evaporator. Modulation of refrigerant flow in both
types of valve is controlled by maintaining a constant superheat setting at the
outlet of the evaporator coil.
If the evaporator coil is constructed from a substantial length of tube and / or
small internal tube diameter, a substantial pressure drop between the inlet and
outlet will result. All evaporators experience a pressure drop,. However, if this
is excessive, the saturation temperature of the refrigerant at the evaporator
outlet will be considerably lower than the saturation temperature at the inlet
due to the differences in pressure. Under these circumstances, an increase in
the amount of superheat is required to produce a condition of equilibrium at
the expansion valve diaphragm and this can only be achieved by allocating
more of the evaporator coil surface to producing superheated vapour.
Increased superheat within the evaporator reduces capacity since a lower
amount of liquid refrigerant will be vaporised.
The effects of severe pressure drop can be offset by using an Externally
Equalised Thermostatic Expansion Valve. In this type of valve, the underside
of the diaphragm is isolated from the evaporator inlet pressure. An external
equaliser line connects the underside of the diaphragm to the outlet of the
evaporator instead thus ensuring that the superheat measured by the phial
(bulb) relates correctly to the saturation temperature and pressure at the
evaporator outlet. The external equaliser cannot reduce the pressure drop
experienced through the evaporator coil but ensures that the coil area is fully
utilised for effective evaporation of liquid thereby maintaining high system
capacity and efficiency.
A schematic drawing of the Externally Equalised Thermostatic Expansion
Valve is shown in Figure 1. Compare this to the Thermostatic Expansion
Valve (Internally Equalised) shown in last months article.
FIGURE 1

The pressure drop through the evaporator is 0.9 bar resulting in a reduction is
saturation temperature for refrigerant HCFC22 of 5 K (5 Deg C - 0 Deg C).
The external equalisation line reads the lower pressure at the evaporator outlet
(3.9 bar and 0 Deg C saturation temperature) and transfers this to the
underside of the diaphragm. The bulb senses a leaving coil temperature of 7
Deg C (7 K superheat) and the refrigerant charge develops a pressure in the
bulb and over the diaphragm of 5.2 bar.
If an external equalising line had not been used, a pressure of 4.8 bar instead
of 3.9 bar would be exerted on the underside of the diaphragm. More
superheat (12 K instead of 7 K) would then be required to develop sufficient
pressure in the bulb to open the valve with a subsequent reduction in
evaporator and system capacity and efficiency.
Construction
The construction of a typical Thermostatic Expansion Valve can consist of the
following. The diaphragm housing, capillary and phial can be constructed from
stainless steel and the valve body from brass. The capillary tube is often the
most vulnerable part of the valve as it is often subject to vibration and flexing.
The use of stainless steel would eliminate this weakness. The same
philosophy can be applied to small pipes connecting statically mounted HP
and LP (High and Low Pressure) switches to vibrating parts of refrigeration
circuits. This is particularly critical on large installations with a large refrigerant
charge where such a fracture could lead to product stock losses and
substantial release of refrigerant to atmosphere resulting in either
stratospheric ozone depletion and / or global warming.
The illustrations in Figure 2 below simplify the theoretical principles behind the
internally and externally equalised Thermostatic Expansion Valve:
Pb = Bulb Pressure (downward)
Pe = Evaporating Pressure (upward) (at evaporator inlet or outlet according to
valve type)
Ps = Spring Pressure (upward)

FIGURE 2

Compressor Protection
Thermostatic Expansion Valves maintain a given superheat in accordance with
the spring pressure setting irrespective of evaporator pressure and loading.
This key feature also has the disadvantage of allowing the compressor to

become overloaded as a result of too high a pressure and entering gas

temperature under peak load conditions.
When the air conditioning system is first started, the temperature and therefore
pressure in the bulb may be quite high. This causes the expansion valve to be
partially or fully open when the compressor is started. This can lead to liquid
flooding and damage to the compressor, particularly if the suction line is short
or if the system is over-charged with refrigerant. As the evaporating pressure
and temperature drop, the expansion valve begins to regain control. Even
under normal running conditions, the load at start up may be substantial and
this is particularly true of pull-down situations in refrigeration applications
where the evaporator pressure and temperature are well above normally
acceptable limits. Whilst it can be argued that a larger compressor will deal
with this situation, a cheaper solution can be found in the selection of the
correct Expansion Valve unless rapid pull down to the desired temperature is
essential.
Many expansion valves are fitted with a pressure-limiting feature (Maximum
Operating Pressure - MOP), which modulates the flow of refrigerant through
the valve when the evaporating pressure rises above a pre-set level,
irrespective of the bulb pressure and action of the diaphragm on the needle
valve. This solves both of the aforementioned problems.

Maximum Operating Pressure (MOP)

This defines the level of the pressure-limiting characteristic of the Expansion
Valve. This pressure-limiting feature can be achieved by use of a spring
positioned between the diaphragm and the needle valve stem, which opposes
the action of the bulb. Certain types of valve allow adjustment of this spring
pressure.
An alternative method utilises a collapsible chamber (cartridge), which is
positioned between the diaphragm and the valve stem. The cartridge is filled
with a non-condensable gas, which virtually remains at constant pressure
regardless of temperature changes. The cartridge transmits the pressure
exerted by the bulb directly to the diaphragm. If the evaporator pressure
below the diaphragm becomes too high, this will overcome the pressure in the
cartridge and the valve will tend to close. When the evaporator pressure falls
below the pressure of the gas in the cartridge, the cartridge expands to the
original size, transmits normal bulb pressure to the diaphragm and control of
the valve returns to normal.
Another method of achieving a MOP threshold is to limit the amount of liquid
refrigerant placed in the bulb. In a normal Expansion Valve there will always
be a residue of sufficient liquid refrigerant in the bulb to maintain a mix of
saturated liquid and saturated vapour and any increase in temperature at the
bulb will bring about an increase in pressure. However, when the amount of
liquid is precisely limited, all the liquid will evaporate at higher bulb
temperatures leaving only saturated or partially superheated vapour. Under

these circumstance, much greater rises in temperature are needed at the bulb
to develop higher pressure in order to open the valve. This self-limiting feature
is an excellent way of attaining a Maximum Operating Pressure characteristic
for the expansion valve.
As a guide, it is common practice to select a valve with a MOP of 0.3 to 0.7
bar above the normal evaporating pressure to ensure that the pressure limiting
feature is activated soon after excessive evaporator pressure is encountered.
Low Temperature Applications
A study of the pressure-temperature relationship of HCFC22 in Figure 1 shows
how the rate of change of pressure diminishes in relation to temperature as
the temperature is reduced. The following table for HCFC22 illustrates this:
TABLE 1
Clearly, a greater amount of superheat is required at low temperatures to bring
about a change in bulb pressure than is required at high evaporating
temperatures. If the evaporating temperature were 5.0 Deg C, an increase in
superheat temperature of 5 K will result in a pressure increase of 0.97 bar
(5.76 - 4.79). However, if the evaporating temperature were -40.0 Deg C, an
increase in superheat temperature of 5 K will result in a pressure increase of
only 0.27 bar (0.31 - 0.04). This is a common characteristic of many
refrigerants

Cross-Charged Expansion Valves

Clearly, in low temperature applications, too much superheat is required to
operate the vale resulting in a loss of valuable evaporator surface area and
capacity. In order to avoid this situation, a Cross-Charged Expansion Valve
Bulb can fitted in which another fluid is used instead of the system refrigerant
type. This is normally a fluid with a much lower saturation temperature than
the refrigerant used in the system to ensure adequate pressure change with
temperature at the desired operating conditions.
The term Cross-Charged arises from the fact that the pressure-temperature
curve of the system refrigerant is crossed by the pressure-temperature curve
of the fluid in the bulb as illustrated in Figure 3.
FIGURE 3

Capacity Range
There are limits to level of modulation to refrigerant flow that an expansion
valve can satisfactorily control. In many systems there is a single, fixed speed
compressor and the expansion valve ensures that the correct refrigerant mass
flow rate is delivered to the evaporator to meet the instantaneous and

constantly varying thermal load. If the thermal load in an application is likely to

fall to low levels, good practice demands the consideration of a split
evaporator coil with an expansion valve for each circuit. Care must therefore
be exercised in selecting the correct valve for the operating range of the
application.
NEXT MONTH: Part 12 - Automatic and Electronic Expansion Valves.