Power Management of Domestic Air Condition Units

Abstract

Domestic air conditioner equipment run long time a day to create a comfortable environment during hot summer weather. Instead of this, using such units may involve lots of risks. Air condition unit is one of the high electric power consumption appliances. This power surges each time the refrigerant compressor starts up leads to increase the temperature of electric connections. Coupled with the extreme hot weather put the resident's lives and their properties in real danger. A well-known heating-cooling cycle of the electric connections due to increasing-decreasing electric current cycle passing through the connections as a result of inrush current each time the compressor starting up leads to weak them. With the time, these connections become hotter and hotter to a specific temperature at which fire may ignite and/ or poisoning gases may emit from sockets and joints. Manufacturers start using inrush current limiters in the power circuit and an active bypass circuit that is activated after the inrush current peak decays. This paper presents an investigation of a simple method to manage the inrush current during the compressor starting up each start-stop cycle. This procedure includes switch OFF the unit's fan just before the compressor starting up to provide an extra power to minimising the unit total inrush current. While the fan is continue rotating by its inertia and when the compressor reaches its steady state current or just before it, the fan is reconnected. Inrush current of the fan in this case will significantly reduce because it is continue rotating. High inrush current is needed to start any electrical motor from its idle to rotating state at its steady state speed.