So, what's an inverter compressor?
Older A/C systems use compressors that have two states, either ON or OFF. Imagine getting in your car and driving with your foot flat to the floor, and then stopping immediately, repeating this until you reach your destination. Not only would this be horribly inefficient and use loads of fuel and you would probably end up in a ditch! Whilst your A/C system won't end up in a ditch, it will use a considerable amount of energy.
Inverter compressors have the ability to vary their speed, running slow when cooling/heating demand is low, and fast when demand is high, this more progressive approach results in significant energy savings! A true testament to the evolution of refrigeration.
But modern A/C systems can work in reverse!
Did you know that there is potential heat energy all the way down to -273 °C? That means, theoretically, there is heat available to extract even from extremely cold air.
While we can’t harness all of that energy yet, modern refrigerants allow us to capture heat from the air down to around -25 °C. This means an air conditioner can operate efficiently even in very cold conditions.
This is where SCOP (Seasonal Coefficient of Performance) becomes important. SCOP measures how efficiently a system delivers heat over an entire season, accounting for fluctuating outdoor temperatures. A higher SCOP means more heat output per unit of electricity consumed.
Thanks to advancements in refrigerants and heat pump technology, modern systems maintain high SCOP values even in extreme cold, providing reliable heating while minimizing energy use.
The Compressor
(normally in the outdoor unit) squeezes this special gas making it high pressure and high temperature, converting electrical energy into mechanical energy, with some heat as a by product.
The Condenser
The high pressure, high temperature refrigeration travels to the condenser (normally outside) where a fan blows cool outside air over a set of fins, the heat is transferred from the refrigeration to the air (that's why Air Con units are hot outside). The refrigerant condenses into a liquid.
The Metering Device
This device comes in many forms, but its job is to expand the liquid refrigerant, when this happens, the refrigerant becomes super cool.
The Evaporator
The refrigerant passes through the evaporator (normally indoors) and as the warm indoor air passes over the fins, the heat is absorbed, evaporating the refrigerant and the cycle repeats.
The magic of refrigeration.
Refrigeration is in every home, almost every car, and even in devices like tumble dryers. Why? Because it is efficient, and changes how we live our lives.
When designed correctly, and in the right conditions, refrigeration can be used to heat with outstanding efficiency, often 300% more efficient that a convection heater.
But how do we achieve such efficiency?