Liquid-Flooded Ericsson Cycle Cooler: Part 1 – Thermodynamic Analysis

A novel implementation of a gas Ericsson cycle heat pump is presented. The concept uses liquid flooding of the compressor and expander to approach isothermal compression and expansion processes. A thermodynamic analysis of the cycle was performed using an EES-based computer model. In the ideal case with reversible components, the coefficient of performance (COP) of the cooler approaches the Carnot COP as the liquid flooding is increased. However, in the nonideal case when the rotating machinery operates irreversibly, there is an optimal liquid flooding rate and pressure ratio that produces the best performance. As with all gas cycles, the performance of the liquid flooded Ericsson cycle cooler is very sensitive to the efficiency of the compressor and expander. Results for two cycle configurations are presented.