Case Studies in Thermal Engineering 9 (2017) 9099

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Case Studies in Thermal Engineering

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/csite

Static analysis of triple-eect adsorption refrigeration with MARK

compressor

Fumi Watanabe, Atsushi Akisawa
Graduate School of Bio-Applications and System Engineering, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, 2-24-16 Naka-cho,
Koganei-shi, 184-8588 Tokyo, Japan

A R T I C L E I N F O ABSTRACT

Keywords: In order to improve the eciency of the adsorption refrigeration cycle, this study proposes a
Adsorption refrigeration triple-eect adsorption refrigeration cycle equipped with a compressor. This cycle can run in
Triple-eect cycle order to create a large variation in adsorbent concentration range by the compressor, even if
Compressor there is little temperature variation in the desorption and adsorption processes. The objective of
Recovered adsorption heat
this study is to clarify the eect that regulating adsorption pressure using a compressor has on
Static analysis
the adsorption refrigeration cycle, and to that end cycle eciency was calculated using a static
analysis based on a state of equilibrium. As a results from the simulation, the triple-eect cycles
can operate by regulating adsorption pressure. Both COP and exergy eciency can be improved
by a factor of 1.2 if the cycled is regulated the adsorption pressure of each cycle rather than using
a shared adsorption pressure. For heat sources in the temperature range of 70100 C, this
method is superior in terms of COP and exergy eciency. COP values of approximately 1.71.8
can be obtained, which is three times higher than single-eect cycles. The triple-eect cycles
have one-third the SCE of single-eect cycles but about the same SCE as double-eect cycles.

1. Introduction

Factory production processes such as steam condensation and heat conversion with combustion exhaust vapors generate hot
water with a temperature of around 90 C, but much of this hot water is discarded. Since the adsorption refrigeration cycle is driven
by this temperature range and can be used for air-conditioning and other cooling processes, it has the potential to use energy more
eciently. The challenge is how to increase the eciency of current implementations of adsorption refrigerators.
To accomplish this, studies are being done on improving the coecient of performance (COP; the ratio of energy input to energy
output), and research into systems that incorporate cascading adsorption refrigeration cycles [1,2] or heat recovery functionality [3]
is underway. Marlinda et al. [4] conducted a static analysis of a double-eect adsorption refrigeration cycle that utilized the heat of
condensation; those results demonstrated that the double-eect cycle has a higher COP than single-eect cycles in the 100150 C
range. In addition, Akisawa [5] performed a statistic analysis of both adsorption heat recovery and condensation heat recovery for a
double-eect adsorption refrigeration cycle with a heat source of 120 C. In that study, the cycle which recovered adsorption heat
had the higher COP of 1.1. The double-eect cycle which recovers the adsorption heat uses two dierent adsorbents, one in the high-
temperature cycle and the other in the low-temperature cycle. Using adsorbents which create large variations in the adsorption and
desorption of refrigerant for each of the temperature and pressure during the adsorption and desorption processes has improved the
eciency of the cycle. Research into the triple-eect cycle has achieved a COP of 1.8 at 170 C for absorption refrigeration cycles [6],

Corresponding author.
E-mail address: akisawa@cc.tuat.ac.jp (A. Akisawa).

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.csite.2017.01.002
Received 15 December 2016; Received in revised form 11 January 2017; Accepted 16 January 2017
Available online 16 January 2017
2214-157X/ 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/BY-NC-ND/4.0/).
F. Watanabe, A. Akisawa Case Studies in Thermal Engineering 9 (2017) 9099

Nomenclature all Total

cond Condenser
c Specic heat, kJ (kg K)1 cool Cooling
COP Coecient of performance (Dimensionless) comp Compressor
H Enthalpy, kJ kg1 cw Cooling water
L Latent heat of vaporization, kJ kg1 des Desorption process
M Mass of adsorbent, kg eva Evaporator
P Pressure, kPa elec Supplied electricity
Pr Relative pressure, (Dimensionless) ex Exergy
qst Adsorption heat, kJ kg1 h High-temperature side
SCE Specic cooling energy, kJ kg1 heat Heating
T Temperature, K l Low-temperature side
x Adsorbent concentration, kg kg1 m Middle
eciency, (Dimensionless) preh Pre-heating process
Pressure ratio, (Dimensionless) r Refrigerant
s Sensible
Subscribe

ads Adsorption process/Adsorbent

but adsorption refrigeration cycles have not been studied. The triple-eect cycle needs to select an adsorbent which allows for
ecient adsorption and desorption at each of the three temperature levels. At temperatures below 100 C, temperature variation
between the adsorption and desorption processes is small and the adsorbent concentration range is too limited, meaning the cycle
cannot operate. And even if the temperature of the heat source is increased to create a larger temperature dierence, there are no
adsorbents which can work eciently at high temperatures. Therefore, in order to make the triple-eect adsorption cycle operate,
the cycle needs to create a large range of adsorption concentration even when temperature variation is low.
Hybrid designs which include compressors within their cycles have already been demonstrated for both absorption [7] and
adsorption [8] refrigerators. These cycles feed a small amount of electricity to their compressors in order to lower the desorption
pressure and enable the refrigerator to be driven by a low-temperature heat source. Also, static analyses have shown that if a
compressor is installed in a double-eect adsorption refrigeration cycle that recovers adsorption heat, and if the heat source is 60
80 C, a COP of about 1.2 can be achieved by regulating the desorption pressure of the areas with large adsorbent concentration
variation [9]. The range of adsorbent concentration will expand by adjusting the pressure, even if temperature variation is low during
the desorption and adsorption processes.
In order to improve the eciency of the adsorption refrigeration cycle, this study proposes a triple-eect adsorption refrigeration
cycle equipped with a compressor. To make the three cycles of a triple-eect cycle work, the temperature range reduces between the
adsorption and desorption processes of one of the cycles, but this decreases the adsorbent concentration range and prevents
operation. If a compressor install in the triple-eect cycle to regulate the pressure, however, this cycle can run in order to create a
large variation in adsorbent concentration. The objective of this study is to clarify the eect that regulating adsorption pressure using
a compressor has on the adsorption refrigeration cycle, and to that end cycle eciency was calculated using a Static analysis based on
a state of equilibrium.

Cooling Cooling
water water
Condenser Condenser
Desorption Adsorption Desorption

Cooling Hot Cooling Cooling Cooling Hot

water water water water water water
HTA MTA LTA HTA MTA LTA
Adsorption Adsorption
heat
Adsorption Desorption
M M

Evaporator Evaporator
Chilled water Chilled water

Fig. 1. Schematic diagram of triple-eect adsorption refrigeration cycle with the mechanical compressor.

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F. Watanabe, A. Akisawa Case Studies in Thermal Engineering 9 (2017) 9099

2. Triple-eect adsorption refrigeration cycle equipped with a compressor

2.1. Cycle conguration

Fig. 1 shows an outline of the cycle proposed by this study: a triple-eect adsorption refrigeration cycle equipped with a
compressor. The cycle consists of a High-Temperature Adsorber (HTA), a Mid-Temperature Adsorber (MTA), a Low-Temperature
Adsorber (LTA), a compressor, an evaporator, and a condenser. Adsorption heat generated during the HTA's adsorption process is
recovered and used to heat water, which is in turn used to heat the MTA. Similarly, adsorption heat generated during the MTA's
adsorption process is recovered and used to heat water, which is then used to heat the LTA. In this cycle, refrigerant vapor generated
in the evaporator is pressurized then discharged into the adsorber. Conventional designs transport refrigerant vapor using
dierences in adsorption equilibrium pressure based on temperature variation, but this cycle creates a pressure dierence using the
compressor and temperature variation.

2.2. Dhring diagram

With its High-Temperature Cycle (HTC), Mid-Temperature Cycle (MTC), and Low-Temperature Cycle (LTC), the triple-eect
adsorption refrigeration cycle repeatedly carries out the processes of precooling, adsorption, preheating, and desorption in sequence.
That behavior is indicated in the Dhring diagram as Fig. 2. The horizontal axis represents the temperature in the adsorber, while
the vertical axis represents the pressure of the refrigerant vapor; the diagonal line is the adsorption isotherm. During the precooling
process of the HTC, the adsorber is disconnected from the evaporator and condenser and a steady adsorbent concentration is
maintained while pressure decreases in accordance with the lowering of temperature. The adsorption process begins once the
pressure inside the adsorber reaches that of the evaporator, at which point the two are connected and the adsorbent concentration
rises due to the state of pressure in the evaporator. In the three-eect cycle, the temperature of the MTC can be arbitrarily
determined; once the adsorber reaches the MTC temperature, the adsorption process ends. The heat that is generated when the
refrigerant is adsorbed by the adsorbent in the HTC is reused as the heat source for the preheating and desorption processes of the
MTC. During the preheating process, the evaporator is disconnected from the condenser and a steady adsorbent concentration is
maintained while the heating causes temperature and pressure to rise. Once the pressure inside the adsorber reaches that of the
condenser, the two are connected and the adsorbent concentration decreases due to the state of pressure in the condenser. The
desorption process ends at the point when the adsorbent matches the temperature of the heat source. The MTC undergoes the same
process, except its adsorption process ends once it reaches the intermediate temperature for the LTC, and its desorption process
ends when it reaches the intermediate temperature for the HTC. The LTC ends its adsorption process once it reaches the
temperature of the cooling water and its desorption process once it reaches the intermediate temperature for the LTC. Cycle
operation is indicated in Table 1. In Cycles 13, HTC adsorption heat is used as the heat source for the MTC, while in Cycles 57 the
MTC's adsorption heat is used as the heat source for the LTC.
Since the adsorbent concentration range of the adsorption and desorption processes is proportional to the amount of refrigerant
evaporated in a single cycle, this range must be increased to improve eciency. Typically, the larger the temperature variation
between the adsorption and desorption processes the greater the increase in adsorbent concentration range will be, but in order to
make the three cycles of the triple-eect cycle work the temperature variation of one of its cycles is decreased, narrowing its
concentration range. This is where the compressor is used to pressurize the refrigerant vapor, thereby increasing adsorbent pressure
and along with it, relative pressure. The compressor allows for regulation of adsorbent pressure, and the relative pressure is the ratio
of this evaporation pressure to the saturated refrigerant vapor in the adsorber. Because the triple-eect cycle is divided into high-
temperature, mid-temperature, and low-temperature sections, the compressor is able to increase the pressure in three locations, and
the adsorption and desorption processes of each cycle are performed with the variations in adsorbent concentration taking place
when the adsorbent is dense. Water is used as the refrigerant and zeolites (FAM Z01, FAM Z02, and FAM Z05) are used as the

Adsorbent
concentration
Pressure

Condenser
Desorption

LTC MTC HTC Adsorption

heat

Adsorption
M M M Compressor

Evaporator
Hot water

Chilled Cooling Temperature

water water

Fig. 2. Dhring diagram of triple eect cycle.

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F. Watanabe, A. Akisawa Case Studies in Thermal Engineering 9 (2017) 9099

Table 1
Operational cycles of triple effect adsorption cycle.

Cycle HTC MTC LTC

1 Preheating Precooling
2 Adsorption
3 Desorption Adsorption
4 Preheating Precooling
5 Preheating
6 Desorption Adsorption
7 Precooling Desorption

adsorbents. These adsorbents have high adsorptivity within a narrow range of relative pressures [1012]. Z02 is used as the high-
temperature adsorbent, Z01 as the mid-temperature adsorbent, and Z05 as the low-temperature adsorbent. One might consider
installing the compressor between the condenser and the adsorber to regulate adsorption pressure, but since the adsorption
isotherm for the adsorbent indicated that positioning it between the evaporator and the adsorber would achieve a greater adsorbent
concentration range, the compressor installed in that location.

3. Static analysis

3.1. Static analysis method

In order to study the eciency of the adsorption refrigeration cycle, a static analysis was conducted based on the theoretical
values of the Dhring diagram. Using the temperature and pressure of the state of equilibrium on the Dhring diagram, the ideal
adsorption capacity and cooling capacity were calculated by the following assumptions:

The upper limit of the HTC's adsorber is equivalent to the water temperature of the heat source
The lower limit of the HTC's adsorber is equivalent to the intermediate temperature of the high-temperature
The upper limit of the MTC's adsorber is equivalent to the intermediate temperature of the high-temperature
The lower limit of the MTC's adsorber is equivalent to the intermediate temperature of the low-temperature
The upper limit of the LTC's adsorber is equivalent to the intermediate temperature of the low-temperature
The lower limit of the LTC's adsorber is equivalent to the temperature of the cooling water
The precooling process ends when the pressure matches that inside the evaporator
The preheating process ends when the pressure matches that inside the condenser

Table 2
Temperature dependability of constant parameter.

(a) FAM Z01

i= 1 2 3 4

ai 3.74 4.5610 6
1.1010 18
6.501015
bi 5.52101 2.16 6.44 6.80
ci 0 0 0 0

(b) FAM Z02

i= 1 2 3 4

3 1
ai 1.2710 0 6.2410 6.00109
bi 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00
ci 6.75101 3.39 248 8.95102

(c) FAM Z05

i= 1 2 3 4

4 1
ai 3.9510 3.8610 0 0
bi 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00
ci 3.05101 7.34101 1.43102 2.35102

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F. Watanabe, A. Akisawa Case Studies in Thermal Engineering 9 (2017) 9099

3.2. Refrigerant/adsorbent

The adsorbents are Z01, Z02, and Z05. The cycle's adsorption capacity at equilibrium is expressed by the following formula.
Y1
x= + Y4Pr + Y5
1 + exp{(Y2 Y3Pr )} (1)
We performed a regression analysis with respect to temperature on Y1, Y2, Y3, Y4 and Y5, which were set to approximate
literature values [1315]; the generalized function is expressed by the following equation. Utilized parameters are indicated in the
gure.

Yi = aiT bi + ciT (2)

The case of Z05, Y5 was set to the condition of relative pressure. For Z01 and Z02, Y5 =0. Table 2 lists the parameters by
adsorbents.
If Pr > 0. 0029 T 0. 5352;
Y5 = 0. 0384Pr (0. 0029 T 0. 5352) (3)
If Pr 0. 0029 T 0. 5352;
Y5 = 0 (4)

3.3. Cycle calculation

For cooling capacity, the refrigerant's eective adsorption capacity was used as the evaporation amount, and the sensible heat
returning from the condenser when an identical amount was desorbed from the adsorbent was excluded. The cooling capacity of the
cycle was considered to be the total energy output of the HTC, MTC and LTC.
Qcool = M (xads xdes )[L cr (Tcond Teva )] (5)

Qcool, all = Qcool, h + Qcool, m + Qcool, l (6)

The heat input into the cycle is the latent heat of desorption as well as the sensible heat created by temperature variations in the
adsorbent and refrigerant from the adsorption process through the desorption process. For the quantity of heat required to desorb
the refrigerant, the adsorption heat was used to express the heat of desorption. Also, the adsorbent concentration of the refrigerant
uctuates during desorption, but here the average of the concentrations was used at the start and end of desorption. The heat of
desorption and the heating by sensible heat are indicated using the respective formulas below. The adsorbents of adsorption heat
were 3111 kJ/kg for Z01, 3239 kJ/kg for Z02 and 3130 kJ/kg for Z05. Formulas for expressing the preheating and desorption
processes for the adsorption heat and the heating by sensible heat, as well as the amount of heat supplied have also been provided.
Qdes = M (xads xdes )qst (7)

Qs, preh = M (cads + cr xads )(Tpreh Tcw ) (8)

x + xdes
Qs, des = M cads + cr ads (Tcw Tpreh )
2 (9)

Qheat = Qdes + Qs, preh + Qs, des (10)

This cycle recovers the adsorption heat from the higher temperature cycle and supplies it as the heat source for the lower
temperature cycle. To preserve the balance of energy, the adsorption heat from the higher temperature cycle is equivalent to the
amount of heat supplied to the lower temperature cycle.
Qdes, h = Qheat , m (11)

Qdes, m = Qheat , l (12)

The amount of electricity supplied to the compressor is determined using the following formula, which includes shaft eciency
and the enthalpy before and after the compressor. Here, the pressure ratio is the ratio between evaporator pressure and adsorber
pressure.
Qcomp = M (xads xdes )(hcon hmid ) (13)

comp= 0. 0097 20. 0102 +0. 874 (14)

Pcon
=
Pmid (15)

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F. Watanabe, A. Akisawa Case Studies in Thermal Engineering 9 (2017) 9099

Table 3
Simulation condition.

Item Value Unit

Heat source temperature 90 C

Cooling water temperature 30 C
Chilled water temperature 10 C
HTC adsorbent mass 1 kg
Pressure in condenser 4.2 kPa

Qelec = Qcomp, hh + Qcomp, mm + Qcomp, ll (16)

COP, SCE, and exergy eciency were used to evaluate the eect of the compressor on the eciency of the refrigeration cycle. COP
is dened as the cooling capacity achieved within a single cycle divided by the sum of supplied electricity and heat energy. SCE is the
value arrived at by dividing the cooling capacity by the total mass of adsorbent contained in all heat exchangers. Exergy eciency
[16] is the ratio of exergy output by the evaporator to the exergy supplied by the compressor and the desorption process. This puts
the Carnot cycle to work using an amount of heat with temperature, and corresponds to the maximum eective work done when
temperature T0 is released to the external environment. T0 is equivalent to the temperature of the cooling water.
Qcool, all
COP =
Qheat, all + Qelec, all (17)

Qcool, all
SCE =
Mall (18)

T
Qcool, all 1 T 0
eva
ex =
T
Qheat 1 T 0 + Qelec, all
des (19)
The proposed cycle was simulated using the basic conditions listed in Table 3. The intermediate temperature was set in such a
way as to maximize COP. The HTC was loaded with 1 kg of adsorbent. Eqs. (10), (11) was then used to determine load amounts for
the MTC and LTC which would balance their adsorption heat and supplied heat. The saturation pressure of the cooled water was
used as the condenser pressure.

4. Simulation results

4.1. The eect of adsorption pressure

The compressor incorporated into the triple-eect cycle is used to increase the pressure within the adsorber. A static analysis of
the eect was conducted that this adsorber pressure has on adsorbent concentration, COP, SCE, and exergy eciency. Here, the
pressures of the LTC, MTC and HTC are identical following the increase in pressure.
Fig. 3 shows adsorbent concentration ranges for the LTC (Z05), MTC (Z01), and HTC (Z02). The triple-eect cycle begins
operation when the adsorber pressure is increased by 1 kPa to a pressure of 2.2 kPa, creating the adsorbent concentration range. The
more adsorber pressure is increased, the more adsorbent concentration range can also be increased. The eects of adsorption
pressure dier by the adsorbent, with Z01 being aected the most, since the supply of adsorption pressure results in a dense range
with extreme variation in adsorption capacity.
Mass of Adsorbent for the LTC (Z05), MTC (Z01), and HTC (Z02) are indicated in the Fig. 4. Mass of adsorbents for MTC and
LTC were determined which would balance their adsorption heat and supplied heat.
At the pressure of adsorber is 2.2 kPa, adsorption concentration range of MTC is very smaller than that of HTC. The mass of
adsorbent for MTC reached 34 kg in order to balance the adsorption heat of HTC and supplied heat of MTC. The more adsorbent
concentration range of MTC is increased, the less the mass of the adsorbent of MTC, and that mass reached around 1 kg. While the
mass of adsorbent of LTC is, increased adsorbent concentration range of MTC, increased to around 1 kg. Becoming adsorbent
concentration range to reach a nearly same value each cycle, the total of the mass of absorbent is decreased.
COP, SCE, and exergy eciency are indicated in the Fig. 5. Cycle eciency was improved by increasing adsorption pressure and
allowing Z02 to enter a dense range, creating a wide adsorbent concentration range. SCE, which is strongly aected by adsorbent
concentration range, exhibited similar behavior, with Z02 displaying the greatest variation in adsorbent concentration. COP became
roughly constant once a value of about 1.5 was reached. Increasing the adsorbent concentration strengthened the relative eect of
the output's cooling output and the input's heat of desorption while weakening the relative eect of the input's heating by sensible
heat during the preheating process. This resulted in an increase in COP, which is a ratio of input to output. When increasing
concentration range to a certain extent, COP reaches a nearly constant value since the inuence of cooling capacity and desorption
heat is high. Because exergy eciency places a high value on electricity, it did not display the same superiority as COP under an

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F. Watanabe, A. Akisawa Case Studies in Thermal Engineering 9 (2017) 9099

LTC(Z05) MTC(Z01) HTC(Z02)

0.25

0.20

0.15

0.10

0.05

0.00
2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5
Adsorption pressure (kPa)

Fig. 3. Eect of adsorption pressure on adsorbent concentration range.

identical pressure ratio, exhibiting almost no variation beyond 2.4 kPa. This is due to the increase in electricity, which has a high
exergy cost; even if COP increases, exergy eciency will show almost no increase.
The cycle eciency was also examined what sort of eect the dierent pressures in each adsorber, and those results are showed
for COP, SCE, and exergy eciency in the respective Fig. 6. For COP and exergy eciency, regulating adsorption pressure for each
cycle obtained higher values, while for SCE maintaining a constant pressure was superior. Those respective states are indicated on
the Dhring diagram as Fig. 7(a) (b). The Dhring diagram shows that regulating the pressure of each cycle allows the cycle to
operate in the area with the largest variation in adsorbent concentration. In addition, COP and exergy eciency showed superior
results because there was little increase in pressure from the evaporator pressure to the adsorber pressure. It is, therefore, possible to
operate the triple-eect cycle more eciently with a small amount of electricity supply by regulating the pressure of each cycle.

4.2. The eect of heat source temperature on the triple-eect cycle

The cycle eciency has performed a simulation on the eect that heat source temperature has on COP, SCE, and exergy
eciency. The eciencies of the single-eect, double-eect, and triple-eect cycles are also compared. The adsorbent selection was
as follows: Z02 for the single-eect cycle; Z01 for the LTC and Z02 for the HTC of the double-eect cycle. With the triple-eect cycle,
the adsorption pressure of each cycle was regulated in such a way as to maximize COP.
As seen in the Fig. 8, COP numbers were highest with the triple-eect cycle, reaching about 1.71.8, or close to three times that of
the single-eect cycle. At 70 C, the temperature range between the HTC and LTC of the double-eect cycle was too narrow,
eliminating the concentration range and making operation impossible. Since the triple-eect cycle uses a compressor to increase
adsorbent pressure, it is able to increase concentration range and thus operate even at low temperatures. As indicated in the Fig. 9,
SCE of the single-eect cycle almost three times greater than that of the triple-eect cycle in the 80100 C temperature range. The
maximum SCE value was 194 kJ/kg at 90 C. Since the triple-eect cycle has three cycles, the adsorbent concentration range per
cycle is smaller than that of the single-eect cycle. The triple-eect cycle had about the same SCE as the double-eect cycle due to the
fact that it increases adsorbent concentration range using its compressor. The Fig. 10 indicates that its exergy eciency was also
roughly the same as the double-eect cycle. That maximum value of the triple-eect cycle was 0.55 at 80 C. Although COP increased
by the factor of about 1.5, exergy eciency did not exhibit the same trend as it is more heavily aected by the amount of electricity.

LTC(Z05) MTC(Z01) HTC(Z02)

100.00

10.00

1.00

0.10

0.01
2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5
Adsorption pressure (kPa)

Fig. 4. Eect of adsorption pressure on mass of adsorbent.

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F. Watanabe, A. Akisawa Case Studies in Thermal Engineering 9 (2017) 9099

COP SCE ex
1.80

1.50

ex (-)
COP (-), SCE (MJ/kg),
1.20

0.90

0.60

0.30

0.00
2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5
Adsorption pressure (kPa)

Fig. 5. Eect of adsorption pressure on COP, SCE and Exergy eciency.

Type A Type B
2.0
ex (-)

1.6
COP (-), SCE (MJ/kg),

1.2

0.8

0.4

0.0
COP SCE ex
Fig. 6. Shared the pressure of each cycle (Type A: LTC 2.9 kPa, MTC 2.9 kPa, HTC 2.9 kPa) and regulated the pressure of each cycle (Type B: LTC 1.4 kPa, MTC
2.7 kPa, HTC 1.7 kPa).

10 10
Pressure (kPa)

Pressure (kPa)

1 1
0 50 100 0 50 100
Temperature (degC) Temperature (degC)

(a) Sheared the pressure of each cycle (Type A: (b) Regulated the pressure each cycle(Type B:
LTC 2.9kPa, MTC 2.9kPa, HTC 2.9kPa). LTC 1.4kPa, MTC 2.7kPa, HTC 1.7kPa).
Fig. 7. Dhring diagram (a) Sheared the pressure of each cycle (Type A: LTC 2.9 kPa, MTC 2.9 kPa, HTC 2.9 kPa). (b) Regulated the pressure each cycle(Type B: LTC
1.4 kPa, MTC 2.7 kPa, HTC 1.7 kPa).

5. Conclusion

This study proposed a triple-eect adsorption refrigeration cycle equipped with a compressor. With the objective of clarifying
what eect the regulation of adsorption pressure has on eciency, a static analysis was conducted based on a state of equilibrium to
calculate the eect that adsorption pressure has on COP, SCE, and exergy eciency and arrived at the following results.

Triple-eect cycles can operate by regulating adsorption pressure.

Both COP and exergy eciency can be improved by a factor of 1.2 if the cycle is regulated the adsorption pressure of each cycle
rather than using a shared adsorption pressure.
For heat sources in the temperature range of 70100 C, this method is superior in terms of COP and exergy eciency. COP
values of approximately 1.71.8 can be obtained, which is three times higher than single-eect cycles.
Triple-eect cycles have one-third the SCE of single-eect cycles but about the same SCE as double-eect cycles.

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F. Watanabe, A. Akisawa Case Studies in Thermal Engineering 9 (2017) 9099

Single effect Double effect Triple-effect with compressor

2.0

1.6

COP (-)
1.2

0.8

0.4

0.0
70 80 90 100
Heat source temperature (degC)

Fig. 8. COP.

Single effect Double effect Triple-effect with compressor

800

600
SCE (kJ/kg)

400

200

0
70 80 90 100
Heat source temperature (degC)

Fig. 9. SCE.

Single effect Double effect Triple-effect with compressor

0.8
Exergy efficiency (-)

0.6

0.4

0.2

0.0
70 80 90 100
Heat source temperature (degC)

Fig. 10. Exergy eciency.

COP can be improved by using a triple-eect adsorption refrigeration cycle equipped with a compressor. Utilizing the highly
ecient triple-eect adsorption refrigeration cycle should contribute to promoting the use of waste heat. This was a static analysis,
however, which does not take heat loss into consideration. Since COP is expected to decline in a dynamic analysis, the next challenge
is to perform cycle benchmarks that take heat transfer performance and heat capacity into account.

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