Air Conditioning: Compressor

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Fig 1: Compressor (Not B8444S)

Courtesy of VOLVO CARS CORPORATION

The task of the compressor is to:

draw gaseous refrigerant from the evaporator
compress the gas thereby increasing its pressure and temperature
expel the gas with high pressure and high temperature to the condenser.

The compressor takes in cold refrigerant gas from the evaporator on the intake side through the low pressure connection. In ideal conditions, the compressor compresses the refrigerant from approximately 200 kPa (2 bar) to between 1.2 MPa and 2.1 MPa (12 and 21 bar). During the process, the refrigerant heats up from 0 °C to between 70 °C and 110 °C. These pressure and temperature values apply when the system is operating under optimal conditions.

The relief valve, located on the rear section of the compressor, functions as an additional safety device. The valve opens and releases refrigerant when the pressure in the system is too high. The valve then shuts again when the pressure has returned to normal. The temperature of refrigerant gas can reach as high as 125 °C.

The compressor can only compress gases, as liquid would damage the compressor.