A Comparative Study on the Condensation Heat Transfer of R-513A as an Alternative to R-134a

Abstract

This paper presents the two-phase condensation heat transfer and pressure drop characteristics of R-513A as an alternative refrigerant to R-134a in a 9.52-mm OD horizontal microfin copper tube. The test facility had a straight, horizontal test section with an active length of 2.0 m and was cooled by cold water circulated in a surrounding annular space. The annular-side heat transfer coefficients were obtained using the Wilson plot method. The average heat transfer coefficient and pressure drop data are presented at the condensation temperature of 35 °C in the range of 100–440 kg·m−2·s−1 mass flux. The test data of R-513A are compared with those of R-134a, R-1234yf, and R-1234ze(E). The average condensation heat transfer coefficients of the R-513A and R-1234ze(E) refrigerants were similar to R-134a at the lower mass flux (100~150 kg·m−2·s−1), while they were up to 10% higher than R-134a as the mass flux increased. The pressure drop of R-513A was similar to R-1234yf and 10% lower than that of R-134a at the higher mass flux. The R-1234ze(E) pressure drops were 20 % higher compared to those of R-134a at the higher mass flux.

Keywords

• condensation heat transfer
• microfin tube
• low-GWP refrigerant
• R-513A
• R-1234yf
• R-1234ze(E)