Evaporator coil - collecting hot air inside the house

Air Conditioning and Heat Pumps · The Basics · printed page 210 (PDF page 211)

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Collecting Hot Air inside the House Evaporator Coil – Collecting Hot Air Inside the House Air Conditioning – Basics

Text in the illustration

refrigerant refrigerant
evaporator coil
warm air from inside house at 75°F
warmer
flow direction
warm refrigerant gas (typically 50°F)
cooler air can now be sent back into the house through the ductwork at 55°F
cold liquid refrigerant (typically 20°F)
the warm house air boils the cold liquid refrigerant into a gas
lots of heat is absorbed in the process - this is called the latent heat of vaporization - and makes for very efficient heat transfer
because the refrigerant is vaporizing in this coil, it is called the evaporator coil
makes an excellent heat transfer material - at atmospheric pressure, it is a colorless gas
when it boils, it absorbs a lot of heat
when it condenses from a gas to a liquid, it gives off a lot of heat (this is helpful when discharging heat to the outside through the condensing coil)

Generated explanation

The illustration shows a finned evaporator coil absorbing heat from indoor air. Red arrows indicate house air at 75°F entering the coil, while blue arrows indicate cooled air at 55°F returning to the house through ductwork. Cold liquid refrigerant, labeled typically 20°F, enters at the bottom and leaves at the top as warmer refrigerant gas, labeled typically 50°F. Notes explain that refrigerant vaporization absorbs latent heat and that condensation releases heat at the outdoor condensing coil. No installation defects are depicted.

Components

evaporator coil coil fins liquid refrigerant line refrigerant gas line

Materials

refrigerant metal coil fins