Performance comparison of R410A and R32 in vapor injection cycles

As global warming has raised more critical concerns in recent years, refrigerants with high global warming potentials (GWP) are facing the challenges of being phased out. R410A, with a GWP of 2088, has been widely used in residential air-conditioner and heat pump systems. A potential substitute for R410A is R32, which has a GWP of 675. This paper investigates the performance difference using R410A and R32 in a vapor-injected heat pump system. Through experimentation, it was found that the capacity and coefficient of performance (COP) improvements using R32 can reach up to 10% and 9%, respectively, as compared to an identical cycle using R410A. It is concluded that R32 is an excellent alternative to replace R410A in terms of performance and can be further enhanced by component optimization.

► Experimentally investigated R410A and R32 in a vapor-injected heat pump system.
► Capacity and COP improvements were observed comparing R32 to R410A.
► No improvement at extreme cooling and heating conditions comparing R32 to R410A.
►  Compressor efficiency degradation at extreme conditions was observed.