As. J. Energy Env.

2009, 10(03), 165-175

Asian Journal on
Energy and Environment
ISSN 1513-4121
Available online at www.asian-energy-journal.info

Research Article

Optimization of capillary tube in air conditioning system

Akkarat Poolkrajang1* and Nopporn Preamjai2
1
Division of Mechanical Education, Faculty of Technical Education, Rajamangala University
of Technology Thanyaburi, Pathumthani 12110 Thailand.
2
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Rajamangala University of
Technology Thanyaburi, Pathumthani 12110 Thailand.

*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed, email: akkarat8@hotmail.com

This paper was originally presented at the International Conference on the Role of Universities in Hands-On
Education, Chiang Mai, Thailand, August 2009.

Abstract

The objectives of this research were to evaluate the optimization of a capillary tube in a split-
type air conditioning system and to determine the coefficient of performance (COP) of the
system. The optimization was determined by mathematical calculation to evaluate COP of a
split-type air conditioning system within 5 different sizes of capillary tube. Following this,
the experimental equipment was designed and constructed to verify the COP data obtained
from the calculation. The results found that from the theoretical analysis and experiment, the
COP was changing in a direction contrary to the diameter of the capillary tube. When the
capillary tube diameter is smaller, COP values tend to be higher.

Keywords: Optimization, Capillary tube, COP

Introduction

Air conditioning and refrigeration systems play an important role in industry, infrastructure
and households. The industrial sector includes the food industry, textiles, chemicals, printing,
transport and others. Infrastructure includes banks, restaurants, schools, hotels and
recreational facilities. Therefore, installation, repair and maintenance of equipment to function
properly are important for the operations associated with those activities. At present reducing
pressure valves used in air conditioning and refrigeration systems can be classified into two
types: expansion valves and capillary tubes. The capillary tube is made from copper pipe,
with a diameter around 0.5 mm to 5 mm and length around 0.5 m to 5 m. Its use depends on
power and load capacity of the system. The capillary tube is often used with small cooling
As. J. Energy Env. 2009, 10(03), 165-175 166

load or small changing load systems, such as refrigerators, water coolers and small air
conditioners [1].

Problems from the blockage in the capillary tube results in lower injection of refrigerant into
the evaporator, so there will be less cooling. Typically this problem can be solved by
changing a new capillary tube. However, this also results in refrigerant being released from
the system, which makes for higher cost and time wastage. Furthermore, the size of the
replacement capillary tube must be the same and some sizes are difficult to source, which
makes the maintenance cost even higher.

Taking into consideration these problems, the objective of this research is to determine the
appropriate size of a new capillary tube that can replace the old blocked one and to construct
an experimental equipment system with different capillary tubes to measure the real values.
The resulting values will show which size of capillary tube can be used instead of the old one.
This will be more convenient for maintenance and will save costs when fixing air
conditioning and refrigeration systems.

Objective

To evaluate the optimization of the capillary tube in a split-type air conditioning system.
To determine the coefficient of performance (COP) of split-type air conditioning systems.

Mathematical Solution for Capillary Tube

Theoretically, the appropriate size of capillary tube can be calculated from the refrigerant
effect, coefficient of performance (COP) and others. The system is assumed to work as an
isentropic process and there are five different sizes of capillary tubes in this calculation.

To undertake simulation with any value it is necessary to use the results from the previous test
in the real work environment. The compressor information, PCS 859217, is from the
compressor manufacturer and has been adjusted into the theoretical calculation to determine
the value of the variables depending on the different size of capillary tubes by evaluating COP
at the various states of capillary tubes in the isentropic process.

Mathematical model
Mathematical model of capacity, input and flow rate can be expressed as [2] and [3]

Capacity =a1+a2.Tevap+a3.Tevap2+ a4.Tcond+a5.Tcond2+a6.Tevap.Tcond+a7.Tevap2.Tcond+

a8.Tevap . Tcond2+ a9.Tevap2. Tcond2 (1)

Input=b1+b2.Tevap+b3.Tevap2+ b4.Tcond+b5.Tcond2+b6.Tevap.Tcond+b7.Tevap2.Tcond+
b8.Tevap . Tcond2+ b9.Tevap2. Tcond2 (2)

Flow rate=c1+c2.Tevap+c3.Tevap2+ c4.Tcond+c5.Tcond2+c6.Tevap.Tcond+c7.Tevap2.Tcond+

c8.Tevap . Tcond2+ c9.Tevap2. Tcond2 (3)
As. J. Energy Env. 2009, 10(03), 165-175 167

Where C= capacity (x1000 :kcal/h)

Input= energy input (kW)
Flow rate = mass flow rate (kg/h)
ai= constant i= 1,2,3…9
bi= constant i= 1,2,3…9
ci= constant i= 1,2,3…9
Tevap= Temperature at evaporator (oC)
Tcond= Temperature at condenser (oC)

Information regarding the specifications of the compressor, PCS 859217, is shown in Tables 1
to 3.

Table 1. Capacity x 1000(kcal/h) at different temperature of evaporator and condenser.

Condenser Evaporator
Temperature(oC) Temperature ( oc)
0 5 10
40 3.6 4.35 5.25
50 3.25 3.8 4.7
60 2.8 3.4 4.15

Table 2. Input (kW) at different temperature of evaporator and condenser.

Condenser Evaporator
Temperature(oC) Temperature ( oc)
0 5 10
40 1.25 1.26 1.27
50 1.50 1.52 1.55
60 1.75 1.80 1.86

Table 3. Mass flow rate (kg/h) at different temperature of evaporator and condenser.

Condenser Evaporator
Temperature(oC) Temperature ( oc)
0 5 10
40 87.50 103.05 122.21
50 84.72 100 118.05
60 81.94 95.83 113.88

To find the constant values: Substitution a1, a2, a3, …a9 and values from Table 1 into equation
(1) the 9 equations and 9 unknowns are given by:
a1+40 a4+1,600 a5=3.6 (4)
a1+50 a4+2,500 a5=3.6 (5)
a1+60 a4+3,600 a5=2.8 (6)
a1+ 5a2+ 25a3+40a4+1,600a5+ 200a6+1,000a7+8,000a8+40,000a9=4.35 (7)
a1+ 5a2+ 25a3+50a4+2,500a5+ 250a6+1,250a7+12,500a8+62,500a9=3.8 (8)
a1+ 5a2+ 25a3+60a4+3,600a5+ 300a6+1,500a7+18,000a8+90,000a9=3.4 (9)
a1+ 10a2+100a3+40a4+1,600a5+ 400a6+4,000a7+16,000a8+160,000a9=5.25 (10)
As. J. Energy Env. 2009, 10(03), 165-175 168

a1+ 10a2+100a3+50a4+2,500a5+ 500a6+5,000a7+25,000a8+250,000a9=4.7 (11)

a1+ 10a2+100a3+60a4+3,600a5+ 600a6+6,000a7+36,000a8+360,000a9=4.15 (12)

To solve equation (4)-(12) the constant values are given as follows:

a1=4
a2=1.275
a3=-0.093
a4=0.01
a5=-5x10-4
a6=-0.0465
a7=4x10-3
a8=4.5x10-4
a9 =-4x10-5
Substitution of a1, a2, a3,… a9 into equation (1) capacity can be written as:

Capacity =4+1.275Tevap-0.093Tevap2+0.01Tcond - 5x104Tcond20.0465Tevap.

Tcond+4x103Tevap2.Tcond+ 4.5x10-4Tevap. Tcond2 -4x10-5.Tevap2. Tcond2 (13)

The accuracy of equation (13) can be checked by the temperature values from Table 1. The
results are the same as in Table 1, so the equation is correct. In a similar way, substitution of
values from Table 2 into equation (2) and values from Table 3 into equation (3):
b1=0.25
b2=0.0176
b3=0
b4=0.025
b5=0
b6=-8.9x10-4
b7=0
b8=1.3x10-5
b9 =0
Input=0.25+0.0176Tevap+0.025Tcond -8.9x104 Tevap.Tcond +1.3x10-5Tevap . Tcond2 (14)
c1=98.608
c2=-1.8031
c3=0.58292
c4=-0.2777
c5=0
c6=0.202671
c7=-0.0216506
c8=-2.2211x10-3
c9 =2.2206x10-4
Flow rate=98.608-1.8031.Tevap+0.58292.Tevap2-0.2777.Tcond+0.202671.Tevap.Tcond-
0.0216506. Tevap2.Tcond-2.2211x10-3Tevap.Tcond2+ 2.2206x10-4Tevap2.Tcond2 (15)

The next step was to find the size of capillary tubes, including diameter and length, that are
available in the market and can be used in the experiment to evaluate the various parameters.
As. J. Energy Env. 2009, 10(03), 165-175 169

The important factor is to know the size of diameter and length of the old capillary tube
before starting to calculate the size of a new capillary tube. The size of a new capillary tube
can be calculated from:
New length = Factor × the old length (16)

Table 4. Length factor for capillary tube calculation [4].

Part No. TC-55 TC-59 TC-64 TC-70 TC-75

Tube Inner 0.055 0.059 0.064 0.070 0.075
Diameter
Factor 0.5 0.69 1 1.5 2.07

Table 5. Dimensions of 5 different capillary tubes used for calculation and experiment.

No. Diameter Length Diameter Length

(Inch) (inch) (mm) (m)
1 0.075 66.24 1.905 1.6824
2 0.07 48 1.778 1.2192
3 0.064 32 1.6256 0.8128
4 0.059 22.08 1.4986 0.5608
5 0.055 16 1.397 0.4064

From equation (15), mass flow rate of refrigerant R-22 can be evaluated as shown in Tables 6
and 7.

Table 6. Mass Flow rate (kg/h) of R-22 at different temperature of evaporator and
condenser.

Condenser Mass flow rate(kg/h)

Temperature Evaporator
(oC) Temperature (oC)
0 5 10
40 87.50 103.05 122.22
45 86.11 101.67 120.14
50 84.72 100.00 118.05
55 83.33 98.06 115.97
60 81.95 95.83 113.89
As. J. Energy Env. 2009, 10(03), 165-175 170

Table 7. Mass Flow rate (g/s) of R-22 at different temperature of evaporator and
condenser.

Condenser Mass flow rate(g/s)

Temperature Evaporator
(oC) Temperature (oC)
0 5 10
40 24.31 28.63 33.95
45 23.92 28.24 33.37
50 23.53 27.78 32.79
55 23.15 27.24 32.21
60 22.76 26.62 31.64

The next step is to find the Coefficient of Performance (COP) of the system. Assuming the
system works as an isentropic process [5, 6].

Refrigerant properties in various conditions when passing through a capillary tube can be
evaluated from [7]:
C C C C × DSC
=CD 2
L 3T 4
10 5
(17)
1

Where = Flow rate R-22 (g/s)

D= Diameter (mm)
L= Length(m)
T= Condenser Temperature (oC)
DSC= Subcool Temperature(oC)
C1= constant = 0.249029
C2= constant = 2.543633
C3= constant = -0.42753
C4= constant = 0.746108
C5= constant = 0.013922

Equation (17) is then rearranged to find the sub-cooled temperature:

o
1 m
DSC = log10 (18)
C5 C C C
C1 D 2L 3T 4

Substituting the values from Tables 4 and 6 into equation (18), the sub-cooled temperature
can be shown as in Table 8.
As. J. Energy Env. 2009, 10(03), 165-175 171

Table 8. Sub-cooled temperature of each capillary tube at different temperature of

evaporator and condenser.

Condenser Evaporator Sub-cooled Temperature (oC)

Temperature Temperature Tube1 Tube2 Tube3 Tube4 Tube5
(oC) (oC)

40 0 12.848 14.027 15.730 17.236 18.511

5 17.951 19.129 20.832 22.338 23.613
10 23.267 24.446 26.149 27.655 28.930
45 0 9.602 10.781 12.484 13.990 15.265
5 14.781 15.960 17.663 19.169 20.446
10 19.988 21.167 22.870 24.376 25.651
50 0 6.637 7.816 9.519 11.025 12.300
5 11.817 12.996 14.699 16.205 17.480
10 16.989 18.168 18.871 21.377 22.652
55 0 3.911 5.090 6.793 8.299 9.574
5 8.986 10.165 11.868 13.374 14.649
10 14.214 15.393 17.096 18.602 19.877
60 0 1.356 2.535 4.238 5.744 7.019
5 6.243 7.422 9.125 10.630 11.906
10 11.636 12.811 14.514 16.020 17.295

The inlet temperature of refrigerant entering the capillary tube can be calculated from:

Inlet temperature of refrigerant entering capillary tube (oC) = Condenser temp. – sub-cooled temp. (19)

The results from equation (19) can be expressed as in Table 9.

Table 9. Inlet temperature of refrigerant entering capillary tube.

Inlet temperature of refrigerant

Condenser Evaporator entering
Temperature Temperature capillary tube (oC)
o o
( C) ( C) Tube1 Tube2 Tube3 Tube4 Tube5
40 0 27.151 25.972 24.269 22.763 21.488
5 22.049 20.870 19.167 17.661 16.386
10 16.732 15.553 13.850 12.344 11.069
45 0 35.397 34.218 32.515 31.009 29.734
5 30.218 29.039 27.336 25.830 24.554
10 25.011 23.832 22.129 20.623 19.348
50 0 43.362 42.183 40.480 38.974 37.699
5 38.182 37.003 35.300 33.795 32.52
10 33.010 31.831 31.128 28.622 27.347
55 0 51.088 49.909 48.206 46.700 45.425
5 46.013 44.834 43.131 41.625 40.350
10 40.785 39.606 37.903 36.397 35.122
60 0 58.643 57.464 55.761 54.256 52.98
5 53.756 52.577 50.874 49.369 48.094
10 48.363 47.188 45.485 43.979 42.704
As. J. Energy Env. 2009, 10(03), 165-175 172

Results and Discussion

Analysis of the results from the theoretical calculation of COP

Inlet temperature of refrigerant entering capillary tube from Table 8 is used to analyze COP
by assuming the isentropic process. The results can be expressed as in Table10.

Table 10. COP of each capillary tube at different temperature of evaporator and
condenser.

Condenser Evaporator COP

Temperature Temperature Tube1 Tube2 Tube3 Tube4 Tube5
(oC) (oC)
40 0 6.087 6.124 6.199 6.266 6.322
5 7.552 7.613 7.701 7.779 7.844
10 10.081 10.158 10.269 10.366 10.449
45 0 5.125 5.174 5.244 5.305 5.357
5 6.296 6.352 6.469 6.502 6.562
10 7.746 7.810 7.903 7.984 8.053
50 0 4.362 4.407 4.473 4.531 4.579
5 5.316 5.367 5.441 5.506 5.561
10 6.464 6.522 6.557 6.724 6.782
55 0 3.737 3.780 3.843 3.898 3.944
5 4.527 4.576 4.646 4.707 4.758
10 5.463 5.517 5.595 5.663 5.720
60 0 3.449 3.495 3.560 3.618 3.666
5 4.201 4.251 4.324 4.387 4.441
10 5.108 5.164 5.244 5.315 5.374

From Table 10 it is found that the capillary Tube No.5 has the maximum COP. The smaller
diameter and shorter length of Tube No.5 causes the mass flow rate of refrigerant to be high,
so the cooling capacity of the evaporator is high. In other words, the refrigerant effect of small
tube size will be higher than the large tube size.
As. J. Energy Env. 2009, 10(03), 165-175 173

Analysis of the experimental results for COP

Table 11. Experimental results in average view.

Capillary tube
Measurement
Symbol Unit Tube Tube Tube Tube Tube
position
1 2 3 4 5
Compressor P1 bar 4.14 4.21 4.07 4.13 4.14
pressure P2 bar 16.90 16.55 16.14 16.36 16.21
Cap tube P3 bar 16.55 15.86 16.07 16.22 16.21
pressure P4 bar 5.48 6.26 6.17 5.94 5.56
Compressor T1 °C 1.00 1.00 0.40 1.00 1.00
temperature T2 °C 44.50 43.80 43.00 43.40 43.00
Cap tube T3 °C 44.00 42.40 42.00 43.50 43.80
temperature T4 °C 8.30 12.20 11.80 11.00 9.00
Condenser
31.10 32.40 30.60 31.40 30.80
temperature T5 °C
Evaporator
8.20 8.20 9.80 9.40 8.80
temperature T6 °C
Ambient T7 °C 17.00 16.60 17.00 17.00 16.60
temperature T8 °C 30.00 29.00 29.00 29.00 29.00
Mass flow rate g/s 13.70 16.60 15.80 15.80 14.70
COP. COP. - 4.37 4.35 4.37 4.33 4.42
NB. In the experiment, COP is calculated from saturated pressure by using the saturated
properties of the refrigerant.

From Table 11 it is found that the capillary Tube No.5 has the maximum COP (4.42). COP of
the smaller sized capillary tube will be higher than the larger one because the mass flow rate
of the smaller size is too high when compared with each other. These experimental results
correspond with the results from the calculation in Table 9, or at least they indicate the same
trend.

4.45

4.4
COP

4.35

4.3
0 1 2 3 4 5
Capillary tube (No.)

Figure 1. COP of experimental results in average view compared with capillary tube
number.
As. J. Energy Env. 2009, 10(03), 165-175 174

4.5
4.4 y = -0.1117x + 4.5648
R2 = 0.6684
4.3

COP
4.2
4.1
4
1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 2
Tube diameter (mm)

Figure 2. COP of experimental results in average view compared with capillary tube
diameter.

From Figures 1 and 2 it is apparent that when the capillary tube diameter is smaller, the value
of COP is higher. Furthermore, the capillary Tube No.5, with a diameter of 0.055 inches or
0.1397 mm, has the maximum COP. The size of this capillary tube is small in diameter and
short in length, so mass flow rate of refrigerant will be high. Therefore, COP of the air
conditioning system is high.

Conclusions

The diameter and the length of capillary tube have a direct relationship. If the diameter is
smaller, the length is shorter. If the diameter is larger, the length is longer. All of these factors
enable the exit pressure from the capillary tube to be reduced corresponding with the cooling
requirements. COP of system will be constant or changed in the required interval.

Refrigerant effect (Qin) changes in the opposite direction with diameter of capillary tube.
When the diameter of capillary tube decreases, refrigerant effect increases.

Compressor work (Win) will be constant or unchanged when compared with the capillary
tube diameter. When the diameter of capillary tube decreases, compressor work is constant or
nearly constant.

Coefficient of performance (COP) changes direction in contrast to capillary tube diameter.

When the diameter of capillary tube decreases, COP tends to be higher.

Acknowledgment

The authors would like to express gratitude to the Faculty of Technical Education,
Rajamangala University of Technology Thanyaburi for supporting this research by the
research funds in year 2008. Acknowledgement is also due to the Division of Mechanical
Education, Faculty of Technical Education, Rajamangala University of Technology
Thanyaburi, for allocating the experimental equipment and space for conducting the
experiments.
As. J. Energy Env. 2009, 10(03), 165-175 175

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