Free Piston Expander-Compressor

The Turboalgor CO₂ solution consists of an additional system consisting of a Free Piston Expander-Compressor and its Control Valve and a Heat Exchanger. The Free Piston Expander consists of a piston free to swing inside a cylinder due to pressure from the refrigeration system. The steam flow is controlled by a specific control valve, the Fluid Control Unit (FCU).The gas available at an intermediate pressure between the Gas Cooler pressure and the Evaporator pressure is used by the Free Piston Expander for the purpose of precompressing the refrigerant fluid directed to the Main Compressor. Therefore, precompression of the refrigerant in the main circuit is made possible without the use of an external power source.

The FPE, with its alternating motion, sends a higher pressure gas to the main compressor than in the configuration without FPE. As a result, the main compressor spends less energy to compress the gas, which results in a reduction in compression work.Turboalgor® CO2 applied to a compressor refrigeration system can achieve energy savings on the order of 19% and cooling capacity savings on the order of 19% and cooling capacity increases of up to 42% under the best operating conditions.

The innovative system makes it possible to recover the potential energy available in the conventional refrigeration cycle, which would otherwise be lost in the expansion valve. The coefficient of performance of conventional refrigeration systems is greatly improved, which means that when applied to a compressor refrigeration system, Turboalgor® CO₂ technology achieves energy savings on the order of 19% and cooling capacity increases of up to 42% at an evaporation temperature of -20°C.