SBIR-STTR Award

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project is to design, model and demonstrate the feasibility of, a reversible CO2 heat pump system, including an advanced compressor design, which meets military requirements for a 3-ton capacity Environmental Control Unit. The CO2 system will utilize state-of-the-art system components and computer modeling plus a novel compressor, capable of both variable displacement and compression ratio, to operate more efficiently and provide a wider range of operating conditions for heating and cooling than possible with existing HCFC systems, with HFC systems of the future or with current experimental CO2 systems. Successful completion of Phase I will permit design, fabrication and testing of working component and system prototypes in Phase II. Commercial partners will be involved in the project from the beginning and have the capability and interest in producing commercial units for the military and adapting the system for consumer and industrial markets. Successful introduction of CO2 refrigerants into commercial heat pumps is expected to increase the range of operating conditions over which heat pumps will operate, greatly reduce life-cycle costs of such units and eliminate the environmental burden associated with synthetic refrigerants.

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase II project is to design, model and demonstrate the feasibility of, a reversible CO2 heat pump system, including an advanced compressor design, which meets military requirements for a 3-ton capacity Environmental Control Unit. The CO2 system will utilize state-of-the-art system components and computer modeling plus a novel compressor, capable of both variable displacement and compression ratio, to operate more efficiently and provide a wider range of operating conditions for heating and cooling than possible with existing HCFC systems, with HFC systems of the future or with current experimental CO2 systems.Successful completion of Phase II will permit fabrication and testing of manufacturing prototype Environmental Control Units for the military and prototype heat pumps for commercial markets. Successful introduction of CO2 refrigerants into commercial heat pumps is expected to increase the range of operating conditions over which heat pumps will operate, greatly reduce life-cycle costs of such units and eliminate the environmental burden associated with synthetic refrigerants

Keywords:
carbon dioxide, air-conditioning, refrigerant, compressor, heat pump, refrigeration