This project is to take an existing expander, reconfigure it as a compressor, and conduct tests in order to tests its feasibility in high temperature heat pumps.
Sponsored by: Echogen Power Systems
Team Members
Michael Lockwood James Riegel Hyun Jae Kim Cristopher Torres Jose Arizaga
Instructor: Chao Wang
Project Poster
Click on any image to enlarge.
Project Video
Project Summary
Overview
Echogen Powers Systems, who are the sponsor of the project, tasked the team to develop a compressor for a waste heat system they are using for power generation. The system Echogen is utilizing involves a high temperature environment so that the compressor had to be oil free. Thus, the team were tasked to develop a lubricant free compressor that can function even in high temperatures
Objectives
The objective of this project was to: Reconfigure an expander as a compressor, Design a testing rig with sensors that can run the compressor, Take data on the compressor output, Determine areas of improvement and investigate solutions to those
Approach
We gathered customer needs by Indepth research within the industry and in discussion with the sponsor company
The team looked for different compressor designs and the angled sliding vane compressor was selected for an oil-free application.
The team reviewed all relevant patents to learn about and investigate the state of the technology.
We did not visit the sponsor’s office, but we did meet with them once every week to tough base and receive instruction.
We used MATLAB to run theoretical tests and determine what our experimental results should be, exploring different configurations and areas of energy loss.
The CAD model of the compressor was given and analyzed and the CAD model of the whole compressor rig along with the sensor was built.
Testing was performed in the lab on a testing rig, built to run and collect all necessary data from the compressor.
Data was collected to measure volumetric efficiency, pressure ratio, and energy efficiency. This data was plotted on a graph, and we validated the results comparing them to the results of other compressors.
Outcomes
Converted Sliding vane expander to compressor,
Pressure ratio of about 1.4 was reached,
Experimentation system for pressure, temperature, and flow was built,
Pressure at different RPM’s was tested,
Tested Feasibility of design for future work in steam generating heat pumps,
Identified the issues regarding the initial compressor model: leakage, size and warping dimensions of graphite,
Analyzed and identified potential solutions for inefficiencies: Utilizing spring loaded vanes, Alternative oil- free lubricants, Increasing the dimensions to relatively reduce the gaps within the compressor.