This paper describes a quasi-steady-state simulation model for predicting the transient behavior of a household refrigerator subjected to periodic door opening. A semi-empirical steady-state sub-model was developed for the refrigeration loop, and a transient sub-model was devised to predict the energy and mass transfer into and within the refrigerated compartments as well as the evaporator frosting. The key empirical heat and mass transfer parameters required by the model were derived from a set of experiments carried out in a climate-controlled chamber. In general, it was found that the model predictions followed closely the experimental trends for the power consumption (deviations within ±10%) and for the compartment temperatures (deviations within ±2 K).
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