Quote:
Originally Posted by ICanHas
It doesn't get much more credible than ASHRAE Journal.
If you guys have credible references demonstrating propane, HC blends to perform superior to R22, R410A, or F-gas blends after adjustments are made to provide the same capacity under the same usage conditions, please share the sources for discussion.
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Any competent engineer can make numbers on spreadsheets lie in their favor, or set up any test to produce the outcome their customer wants. If at first the testing yields unfavorable results, they just change parameters. At the level of discipline you are describing, these engineers have a whole bag of tricks at their disposal, and can conjure results like wizards.
ASHRAE parameters are what they are: if you have a certain type of system, they have a set of conditions rigged for that type of system. If you have another type, they have another set of conditions. Not surprisingly, the overwhelming majority of shelf parts available are built to conform to one of these standards and drop right in with predictable results. The standards make it easier for the refrigeration techs and engineers to do their jobs.
Most of us in the forums engaged in "hacking" together systems of our own are building custom configurations that do not fall within the standards and guidelines that the ASHRAE have dictated. Especially when natural refrigerants are used, heat exchangers, metering devices, and compressors don't act the same. When you feed them "strange" gases or conditions, the entire system tends to stray from the path well travelled.
Our intentions here are more practical than anything. Trying to prove or argue a theoretical point to some endpoint is way beyond what happens in the garage, workshop, or back yard. I for one don't have the resources, time, or desire to change the world. I am not trying to build things that conform to industry standards in any general way, nor perform standardized, specialized tests to prove that my rig does better than some corporate behemoth. I just want to make my dirt cheap rig perform better than that beige box hooked up to my furnace.