THE JET-PUMP CYCLE - A LOW-COST REFRIGERATOR OPTION POWERED BY WASTE HEAT

A perennial problem with waste heat is the capital cost of plant requi red to make its utilisation justifiable. A good example of this is the use of waste heat to power absorption refrigerators. The capital cost of absorption refrigerators rises sharply as the temperature of the h eat source falls, making waste heat recovery and use uneconomic. This paper describes and evaluates the potential of the jet-pump cycle as a low capital cost option for providing refrigeration utilising low gra de waste heat. A brief literature review is provided. An experimental jet-pump refrigerator is described, experimental results are presented and evaluated and the cost benefits of jet-pump refrigerators compare d with vapour compression systems are discussed.