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Solubility and Viscosity of Variably Miscible Mixtures of Refrigerant and Lubricant

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13th International Conference on Compressors and Their Systems (ICCS 2023)

Part of the book series: Springer Proceedings in Energy ((SPE))

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Abstract

Achieving appropriate miscibility, solubility, and working viscosity between a lubricating oil and a refrigerant is vital for proper compressor performance. These properties are all interrelated and cannot be optimized independent of one another; the thermodynamics that define one interaction also influence the others. Choosing the best fluid combination is therefore a tradeoff between the different properties, making it critically important to understand their possible behaviors.

This paper will investigate the range of liquid–liquid miscibility behaviors and explore the resulting solubility and working viscosity outcomes. Different lubricant chemistries will be tested to demonstrate the impact of lubricant chemical family on performance, as well as looking within a chemical family to show how finely tuned chemistry choices can shift test results. The outcome from this investigation will help compressor engineers design more reliable and energy-efficient systems.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Lubrizol Corporation, Wickliffe, OH, 44092, USA

    Anthony J. Barthel, Andrew D. Sumner, Haley L. Webster & Matthijs Van De Wall

  2. CPI Fluid Engineering, Midland, MI, 48642, USA

    Andrew D. Sumner, Haley L. Webster & Matthijs Van De Wall

Authors
  1. Anthony J. Barthel
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  2. Andrew D. Sumner
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  3. Haley L. Webster
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  4. Matthijs Van De Wall
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Anthony J. Barthel .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Engineering, School of Science and Technology, City, University of London, London, UK

    Matthew Read

  2. Department of Engineering, School of Science and Technology, City, University of London, London, UK

    Sham Rane

  3. Department of Engineering, School of Science and Technology, City, University of London, London, UK

    Ivona Ivkovic-Kihic

  4. Department of Engineering, School of Science and Technology, City, University of London, London, UK

    Ahmed Kovacevic

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© 2024 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG

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Barthel, A.J., Sumner, A.D., Webster, H.L., Van De Wall, M. (2024). Solubility and Viscosity of Variably Miscible Mixtures of Refrigerant and Lubricant. In: Read, M., Rane, S., Ivkovic-Kihic, I., Kovacevic, A. (eds) 13th International Conference on Compressors and Their Systems. ICCS 2023. Springer Proceedings in Energy. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-42663-6_68

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-42663-6_68

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-031-42662-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-031-42663-6

  • eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)

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