Open Access

ARTICLE

NUMERICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL INVESTIGATION OF NONLUBRICATED AIR SCROLL EXPANDER DERIVED FROM A REFRIGERANT SCROLL COMPRESSOR

Aparna Kottapallia , Ramakrishna Konijeti^b,*

a Research Scholar, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Koneru Lakshmaiah Education Foundation, Guntur-522502, Andhra Pradesh, India
b Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Koneru Lakshmaiah Education Foundation, Guntur-522502, Andhra Pradesh, India
* Corresponding Author Email Address: : konijeti95@gmail.com

Frontiers in Heat and Mass Transfer 2022, 19, 1-11. https://doi.org/10.5098/hmt.19.11

Abstract

Scroll technology is widely used in refrigerators as compressors. This research paper presents the performance of a scroll-type expander derived from a scroll compressor. The research is carried out at low pressures. The effect of mechanical load on performance has been evaluated using compressed air as a working fluid. Two stages of the evaluation process are carried out in this research. In the first stage, the scroll expander model is numerically simulated using the CFD approach to predict the factors influencing the scroll expander performance. In the later stage, an experiment is carried out on a scroll-type expander prototype developed from a scroll compressor. To find the torque fluctuations with load, a rope and brake dynamometer system is adopted. The developed prototype can work as a scroll expander in the low-pressure range which is chosen between 2.75 bars to 4.13 bars. From the simulation analysis, the mass flow rate, speed, and pressure are predicted factors that affect the performance of a scroll-type expander. From the experimental results with varying mechanical loads, the scroll efficiency and volumetric efficiency change with pressure ratios are evaluated. CFD simulation has been repeated with input conditions to validate the developed CFD model. A mesh independency test has been done to confirm the accuracy of the CFD numerical simulation findings.

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