A Refrigeration System with an Ice-Cooled Condenser

It is very important to utilize the local energy such as the natural cold energy of snow or ice in winter season. In this paper, the author analyzed a refrigeration system in which the condensing heat is cooled by the stored ice, and the refrigerating temperature is less than 0℃, the freezing/melting temperature of water. Any stored ice, for example natural snow/ice or ice made by the refrigerator, may be used in this system. A simple thermodynamic and economic analysis confirmed that this system is useful for reducing the work and size of a refrigerating compressor. This reduction is particularly remarkable in the case of cooling by natural snow/ice. Therefore, this system is suitable for use in a cold/snowfall climatic area utilizing the local cold energy