All courses › Thermodynamics › Refrigeration COP

Refrigeration COP

A refrigerator is a heat pump used the other way round: the goal is to remove heat from the cold space. The useful effect is the heat removed, and the refrigeration COP is that heat divided by the compressor work.

COP_{R} = \frac{Q_C}{W}

refrigeration COP

COP_{HP} = COP_{R} + 1

relation for the same machine

Symbols

$Q_C$	heat removed from the cold side	J
$W$	work	J

Example

A fridge removes 300 J using 100 J of work:

$COP_R = 300/100 = 3$ .

The heating and cooling COP of the same machine always differ by exactly 1.

Practise heat pumps and refrigeration for free →

← Coefficient of performance (COP) · The Carnot limit →

Part of Thermodynamics: Heat pumps and refrigeration.