How Air-Conditioners and Heat Pumps Work
Steve Kavanaugh, Professor of Mechanical Engineering, University of Alabama
An air-conditioner consists of several primary components as shown in Figure 1:
• A compressor that is driven by an electric motor (typically located outdoors)
• A condenser (or outdoor) coil with tubing and many fins to transfer heat to the air
• An outdoor fan to circulate air over the hot condenser fins and tubing
• An expansion device (usually located indoors) to lower system pressure
• An evaporator (or indoor) coil with tubing and many fins to cool the air
• An indoor fan to circulate air over the cold evaporator tubing and fins
• A refrigerant fluid to operate at the needed pressures and temperatures
Condenser Hot Gas
2
Compressor
Warm and Motor
Liquid Outdoor Cool Gas
3 Fan* 1
Expansion
Device Indoor
Fan
FAN
4
Cold Low Evaporator
Pressure Mixture
* In water cooled or "geothermal" systems,
a pump is used rather than an outdoor fan.
Figure 1
• The compressor “sucks” the refrigerant from point 4 through tubing in the evaporator
coil. This action causes the liquid refrigerant to “evaporate” and become cold (≈45ºF).
The evaporating refrigerant inside the tubes cools the air being circulated over the outside
of the tubes and fins by the indoor fan.
• In order to move the refrigerant from point 1 to point 2, it must be raised to a higher
pressure by the “compressor”. The compressing causes the refrigerant to become hot (a
similar effect occurs with an air compressor and this can be verified by quickly and
carefully touching the discharge line).
• The hot refrigerant is sent through the tubing inside the condenser. Outdoor air circulated
by the fan cools the refrigerant and causes it to return to a liquid (condense). Even
though the air may be warm (80-100ºF) it is cooler than the hot refrigerant (100-160ºF).
In some cases, water can be used to cool the hot refrigerant if higher efficiency is needed.
• The warm liquid leaving the condenser (point 3) passes through an expansion device
which lowers the refrigerant pressure before it returns to point 4 to repeat the cycle.
How a Heat Pumps Heats
A heat pump is merely an air-conditioner with one extra valve that allows the condenser (hot
coil) and evaporator (cold coil) to reverse places in the winter. Figure 2 shows close-ups of this
“reversing” valve and where it is located in the heat pump system. In the cooling mode, the
valve slides to a position that permits the hot gas from the compressor to flow through the top
port to the left bottom port to the condenser. Thus, the heat pump will act like the air-conditioner
described in the previous page. Note the valve permits the refrigerant to travel from the indoor
coil to the compressor in cooling and from the outdoor coil to the compressor in heating.
From Compressor From Compressor
Discharge Reversing Valve Discharge
Outdoor Coil Cooling
Heating
Bi-Flow
Thermostatic
Expansion
Valve (TXV) Compressor
Heating FAN
Indoor Coil
Cooling
From Indoor Coil
From Outdoor To Indoor Coil To Outdoor Coil
Coil
Heating Mode Cooling Mode
To Compressor To Compressor
Suction Suction
Figure 2
In the heating mode the reversing valve slides to a position that routes the hot refrigerant from
the compressor through the top port to the indoor coil (which is now the condenser) through the
right bottom port of the reversing valve. Thus the air circulated by the indoor fan will be heated.
After passing through the expansion device, the refrigerant enters the evaporator coil at a low
temperature. Because the temperature is so low, heat can be transferred from the outside air to
the refrigerant inside the evaporator. However, this process is not very effective when outdoor
temperatures are low (<30 - 40ºF). Therefore, backup heat is often used. The recent natural gas
price increase makes electric resistance a more attractive choice for backup heat. Again if higher
efficiency is needed, water can be used rather than outdoor air in both heating and cooling
modes. If the water loop is connected to a properly size ground coil, the heating efficiency is
exceptionally high compared to conventional systems.
Figure 3 is a closer representation of the layout of a typical “split-system” heat pump. An air
conditioner is identical in exterior appearance since the only significant difference is the
relatively small reversing valve. Some heat pumps and air-conditioners are arranged in a single
package, which usually located on the exterior of a building or in a wall penetration. Ductwork
for distributing the indoor air is non-existent or is routed through the wall or roof.
Finally Figures 4 and 5 are provided to demonstrate the components of a ground source or
geothermal heat pump (GHPs). These systems incorporate a piping loop buried in the ground,
which is considerably warmer than the outdoor air in the winter. Water is circulated through the
loops and a modified heat pump removes the heat from the water as it circulates through the low
temperature water coil inside the home. Since the low temperature coil is relatively warm (it is
in contact with the water being circulated through the ground), the COP of a GHP is much
higher. GHPs can have COPs above 4.0 when the loops are with a good connection between the
ground and piping loop. GHPs also provide high efficiency in the cooling season. As shown in
Figure 5, a heat recovery coil can also be added to heat domestic water with waste heat in the
summer and with excess heating capacity in the winter.
Supply
Air
Supply Duct
*The outdoor coil is condenser in the Emergency Heat
cooling mode and the evaporator in Auxiliary Heat
the heating mode. The indoor coil is (Electric Furnace)
the evaporator in the cooling mode
and the condenser in the heating mode.
Indoor Unit
Outdoor Indoor
Coil Fan Fan
Bi-Flow Return
TXV Air
Reversing
Valve
Outdoor Filter
Indoor Coil*
Coil*
Condensate
Liquid
Compressor H C
C H
Vapor
Outdoor Unit
Figure 3. Split-System Heat Pump
Hot Air Delivered Heat Pump Removes
Cool Air Delivered Heat from Water Loop
to House to House
Heat Pump Delivers and Delivers it to Air
Heat Removed from
Air to Water Loop Winter
Heat in Ground Extracted
Pump
Summer by Water Loop
Electricity Powers
Electricity Powers Heat Pump
Heat Pump
Heat Added in Summer
Heat in Water Loop
is Balanced by Heat
Transferred to Ground
Removal in Winter
Figure 4 Ground Source “Geothermal” Heat Pump System
Supply
Air
Supply Duct
Auxiliary Heat Air Coil
(Electric Furnace) Condenser in Heating
Evaporator in Cooling
Indoor
Fan Return
Air
Bi-Flow
TXV Filter
Reversing
Valve Condensate
To Hot Water
Pump From Tank
Heat Recovery Coil
Compressor
Primary Water Coil
Condenser in Cooling
Evaporator in Heating
(replaces outdoor coil)
To Ground Heat Exchanger
Figure 5. Ground Source “Geothermal” Heat Pump Unit
Reference:
Kavanaugh, S. P., HVAC Simplified, American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-
Conditioning and Engineers (ASHRAE), Atlanta. www.ashrae.org
