Performances Investigation of the Eco-friendly Refrigerant R13I1 used as Working Fluid in the Ejector-Expansion Refrigeration Cycle

Knowing that from 2030 refrigerants used in refrigerating engineering should have a global warming potential (GWP) of less than 150. Searching for eco-friendly refrigerants with good performance and minimal environmental impact to substitute conventional working fluids such as R134a (GWP=1430) represents a great challenge for researchers. The present research aims to investigate and compare the performances of the eco-friendly refrigerant R13I1 (Zero GWP) used as a possible new working fluid in the ejector-expansion refrigeration cycle (EERC) with the commonly used R134a which has good performances but a high GWP. To reach this objective, a numerical program was developed using MATLAB software to evaluate the coefficient of performance (COP), the entrainment ratio (µ), the exergy destruction and the exergy efficiency for both refrigerants. Furthermore, the effect of the diffuser efficiency of the ejector on the COP and the compressor work was explored. Furthermore, the effect of the diffuser efficiency of the ejector on the COP, and the compressor work were explored. The simulation was realized for Tc selected between 30 and 55 °C and Te ranging between -10 and 10 °C. Results proved that the use of R13I1 as a working fluid in the EERC system exhibited a higher COP, µ, and exergy efficiency, as well as lower exergy destruction compared with R134a under the same operating temperatures. On another hand, the energetic analysis revealed that as Tc increases the COP and µ decrease. However, as Te varies from -10 and 10 °C, the COP and µ increase. Regarding exergy analysis, it should be noted that both exergy destruction and exergy efficiency are sensitively influenced by Tc more than Te. Overall, the study confirms that R13I1 could be a suitable substitute for the phase-out R134a in terms of performance and environmental protection.