Types of refrigerators

Compressor class

The operating principle of this type of refrigerator is based on the property of gas to increase its own temperature during compression and sharply decrease it during expansion. Therefore, the components of the device are as follows: a compressor (sometimes two) that ensures the movement of the refrigerant, the refrigerant itself, an evaporator in which the gas expands and cools, and a condenser that ensures the transfer of heat from the carrier to the environment.

The compression system works according to the following scheme. The compressor located at the bottom of the refrigerator supplies freon to the evaporator. The latter is a system of tubes hidden in the walls of the device. There the gas changes its state of aggregation, sharply reducing the temperature.

Heat is removed from products in storage rooms. Next, the freon moves under high pressure into the condenser - a black grille on the back wall of the refrigeration equipment. There it gradually cools down and, returning to a liquid state, again begins its path through the capillary tube to the evaporator. The cycle is repeated exactly until the temperature sensors in the storage chambers give a signal to stop the compressor.

Absorption class

Refrigerators of this class are more familiar to truckers and people living in areas without an organized power supply. The coolant in absorption devices is a concentrated ammonia solution. The principle of operation is quite simple.

Heating the solution in the separation zone causes the evaporation of ammonia, which in this state enters the evaporator. There, due to expansion, it reduces its own temperature and takes on the heat of the food in the chambers.

Next, the refrigerant travels to the absorption chamber, where it mixes with its own less concentrated solution. This area is cooled naturally or thanks to built-in fans. After which the entire mixture is again fed into the heating chamber. The cycle is repeated until the desired temperature is reached in the food storage chambers.

Unlike compression devices, this type of refrigerator has a narrow scope of application. It does not provide high performance and is considered quite dangerous equipment due to the chemical characteristics of the refrigerant. However, its design features make it very convenient in its segment.

Thermoelectric class

The operating principle of this class of refrigeration equipment is direct heat absorption. The absence of a coolant and a circulation system makes thermoelectric devices relatively simple in design. The role of a cooler is played by two semiconductors connected in the form of a plate.

Reference! The operation of thermoelectric installations is based on the Peltier effect, when when an electric current is passed through the contact point of two semiconductors, energy transfer occurs from one to the other.

Thus, the cooling plate, under the influence of electric current, reduces its temperature and takes heat from the food in the refrigerator. It is worth noting that applying voltage with reverse polarity gives the exact opposite effect - the plate heats up.

There are devices in which the plate can cool down to -6 ° C, but they are classified as expensive models. Thermoelectric refrigerators cool food for an extremely long time, however, the devices are very popular. Their volumes vary from small containers for drinks to chambers with a capacity of several tens of liters.