The Air Conditioning Laboratory Unit, "TAAB", has been designed to study the change of the air conditions and the refrigeration circuit. The unit consists of a testing tunnel made in stainless steel, in which there have installed two windows. Inside of the tunnel there is an axial fan and two heating elements, one situated at the evaporator inlet and other situated at the evaporator outlet.
The unit has an inclined manometer to measure the air flow and four hygrometers situated along the tunnel. These hygrometers are formed by two temperature sensors (wet and dry bulb).
Two steam lines inject steam from a steam generator (not included) to the tunnel to modify the air characteristics.
The tunnel includes an evaporator in the middle. It consists of a finned radiator through which a coolant flow circulates. This radiator is placed perpendicular to the air flow generated by the fan.
Coolant flows through a closed circuit. It enters to the compressor and circulates through a filter (to retain particles of condensate), a flow meter, an expansion valve, the tunnel evaporator (the coolant absorbs the air heat flowing through the evaporator) and a condenser.
Several temperature sensors, manometers and a flow meter have been strategically located, allowing to study the refrigeration cycle and quantify the evaporation and condensation capacity. In addition, the unit includes a high pressure control to avoid an excess of pressure in the unit.