In the industrial refrigeration industry, water is very common as a refrigerant, but as a refrigerant, it can only be used in an environment where the temperature is above 0 °C, so the air-conditioning system refrigeration industry uses more, of course, in the water-cooled cold water. Use in chillers and air-cooled chillers is also common.

The water is cooled in the evaporator of the industrial chiller, and then sent to the fan coil or directly sprayed into the air to adjust the temperature and humidity of the air. So, what are the advantages and disadvantages of water as a refrigerant?

Advantage:

1. Pure water is used as the refrigerant of the water-cooled chiller, which is less corrosive to the unit and pipeline, and has good system safety.
2. The density of water is small, the viscosity is small, and the relative resistance is small, so the size of the equipment is small.
3. The freezing point of water is 0°C, and the standard evaporation temperature is 100°C.
4. The chemical stability of water is good, and it does not burn or explode.
5. The specific heat capacity of water is large, the heat transfer effect is good, and the amount of circulating water is small.
6. Water is non-toxic and harmless to people, food and the environment, so whether in air conditioning systems or industrial refrigeration systems, water as a refrigerant can also be sprayed into the air for humidity control and scrubbing air, etc.

Shortcoming:

The disadvantage of water is that it has a high freezing point, which limits its application range, and when it is used as a refrigerant near 0 °C, attention should be paid to antifreeze measures for heat exchange equipment such as shell-and-tube evaporators.