Reed valves are commonly used in low-capacity refrigeration compressors due to their simple structure and low cost. The design of these valves requires a multidisciplinary approach to ensure both the thermodynamic performance and structural reliability. This paper proposes an optimization procedure for reed valves based on thermodynamic and bending fatigue criteria. The thermodynamic state of the gas in the compression chamber is evaluated with a lumped simulation model, whereas the bending stresses are predicted using a beam model discretized by the finite element method. The procedure is applied to design the suction valve of a high-efficiency reciprocating compressor used in household refrigeration systems. The influence of the reed thickness and clearance volume is assessed by comparing the compressor efficiency, valve displacement and instantaneous flow rate through the valve for each condition. The results reveal that this computationally inexpensive procedure can be used to find the optimal valve design in terms of thermodynamic efficiency and reliability.
展开▼
