#receiver

Tech Tips:

Receivers, which we sometimes call “liquid receivers,” are components that store refrigerant. You'll see it on everything from small self-contained refrigeration units to very large commercial and industrial systems. Many new techs who are used to residential air conditioning confuse receivers with accumulators. It's an understandable error, as they both contain liquid refrigerant. However, you'll […]

Know the Limits of Subcooling

This article was written by RSES CM and excellent market refrigeration tech Jeremy Smith. Thanks, Jeremy! I frequently see techs online struggling with charging or troubleshooting refrigeration equipment and using subcooling as a diagnostic or charging method. Please don't do this unless you understand it fully. Many times, trying to charge a refrigeration system to […]

Rack Refrigeration Cycle Part 5 – Liquid Receiver w/ Matthew Taylor

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In this short Q&A podcast episode, Bryan answers a listener-submitted question about superheat, including what it is and how we measure it.

Superheat is the number of degrees a refrigerant is above its saturation point. The saturation point is where you will have a liquid-vapor mix, so superheat only exists when a substance is a vapor. Saturated refrigerant should only exist in the evaporator and condenser, during which it is being boiled or condensed.

We usually measure superheat at the evaporator coil outlet and compressor inlet. The superheat at the evaporator outlet is usually around 5-14 degrees Fahrenheit, and it’s often between 10 and 20 degrees at the compressor inlet (compressor superheat). However, many systems try to get lower superheat values, and some manufacturers may require higher superheat values at the compressor inlet to prevent liquid refrigerant from getting into the compressor. Accumulators can help keep liquid refrigerant out of the system as well. We may also measure superheat coming out of the compressor on the discharge line (discharge superheat); this superheat may exceed 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Discharge superheat can let you know if the compressor is overheating the oil and causing breakdown or carbonization.

We use superheat to set the charge for fixed-orifice metering devices (as opposed to subcooling for TXVs), as superheat is a measure of how well we’re feeding our evaporator coil. When the system is off, the superheat will be 0. A system will equalize, and the refrigerant will be at saturation when that happens.

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