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PUBLICATIONS

Performance Evaluation of Two Azeotropic Refrigerant Mixtures of HFC-134a With R-290 (Propane) and R-600a (Isobutane)

Published

Author(s)

M S. Kim, W. J. Mulroy, David Didion

Abstract

The reduction in chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) and hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC) production and the scheduled phase-out of these ozone-depleting refrigerants require the development and determination of environmentally safe refrigerants for use in heat pumps, water chillers, air conditioners, and refrigerators. This paper presents a performance evaluation of a generic heat pump with two azeotropic refrigerant mixtures of HFC-134a (1,1,1,2-tetrafluoroethane) with R-290 (propane) and R-600a (isobutane); R-290/134a (45/55 by mass percentage) and R-134a/600a (80/20 by mass percentage). The performance characteristics of the azeotropes were compared with pure CFC-12, HFC-134a, HCFC-22, and R-290 at the high temperature cooling and heating conditions including those using liquid-line/suction-line heat exchange. The coefficient of performance of R-290/134a is lower than that of HCFC-22 and R-290, and R-134a/600a shows higher coefficient of performance than CFC-12 and HFC-134a. The capacity for R-290/134a is higher than that for HCFC-22 and R-290, and R-134a/600a exhibits higher system capacity than CFC-12 and HFC-134a. Experimental results show that the discharge temperatures of the studied azeotropic mixtures are lower than those of the pure refrigerants, CFC-12 and HCFC-22.
Citation
Journal of Energy Resources Technology-Transactions of the ASME
Volume
116
Pub Type
Journals

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Keywords

refrigerants, evaluation, flammability measurements, heat pumps, evaluation, thermodynamic properties, high temperature, cooling, heating, simulation, heat transfer
Buildings and Construction and Fire

Citation

Kim, M. , Mulroy, W. and Didion, D. (1994), Performance Evaluation of Two Azeotropic Refrigerant Mixtures of HFC-134a With R-290 (Propane) and R-600a (Isobutane), Journal of Energy Resources Technology-Transactions of the ASME, [online], https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=910539 (Accessed October 14, 2025)

Issues

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Created June 1, 1994, Updated February 19, 2017
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