A thermodynamic analysis of a transcritical cycle with refrigerant mixture R32/R290 for a small heat pump water heater

In this study, a thermodynamic analysis on the performance of a transcritical cycle using azeotropic refrigerant mixtures of R32/R290 with mass fraction of 70/30 has been performed. The main purpose of this study is to theoretically verify the possibility of applying the chosen refrigerant mixture in small heat pumps for high temperature water heating applications. Performance evaluation has been carried out for a simple azeotropic mixture R32/R290 transcritical cycle by varying evaporator temperature, outlet temperature of gas cooler and compressor discharge pressure. Furthermore, the effects of an internal heat exchanger on the transcritical R32/R290 cycle have been presented at different operating conditions. The results show that high heating coefficient of performance (COPh) and volumetric heating capacity can be achieved by using this transcritical cycle. It is desirable to apply the chosen refrigerant mixture R32/R290 in small heat pump water heater for high temperature water heating applications, which may produce hot water with temperature up to 90 °C.

Research highlights▶ A transcritical cycle with refrigerant mixture R32/R290 is proposed. ▶ Performance evaluation shows the cycle has high COPh and volumetric heating capacity. ▶ The transcritical cycle may be applied in small heat pump water heater. ▶ The hot water with temperatures up to 90 °C can be achieved by using this cycle.