Several years ago, AC was still classified as an expensive item that only existed in offices, hotels, malls, or luxury homes. However, air conditioning has now become a necessity for many people, especially in cities with hot weather.
In addition, air conditioning has become a mandatory facility, especially in hotel rooms, company workspaces, in classrooms or even in cafes.
We will discuss about AC starting from what it is the definition of AC, how it works, the type of ac and also the supporting components.
Definition of AC
An air conditioner (AC) is a machine made to stabilize the temperature and humidity of the air in a room. This tool is used to cool or heat, depending on needs. However, air conditioning is often referred to as air conditioning because it is more widely used to cool the room.
Although air conditioning is a product of modern technology, the concept of air conditioning has been known since the Middle Ages, namely in the days of Ancient Rome and Persia. Willis Haviland Carrier became the first to invent a large-scale modern air conditioner that uses electrical energy in 1902.
AC function
As the name implies, air conditioner, AC has a function to condition the air in a room so that it feels cool, comfortable, and healthy. There are three things that can be conditioned or regulated using air conditioning, namely temperature, humidity, and air cleanliness.
1. Adjust Air Temperature
The main function of the air conditioner is to regulate the temperature in the room. You can set the desired temperature through the numbers printed on the remote control. In general, the lowest temperature of the air conditioner is 180 Celsius and the highest temperature is 300 Celsius.
2. Adjusting Air Humidity
Temperature and humidity are related to each other so that indirectly, AC also functions to regulate humidity. The air conditioner temperature should be set at the ideal temperature, which is 24–26 degrees Celsius because air that is too cold has high humidity which causes the skin to dry out quickly.
3. Clean the Air
The AC machine is equipped with a filter to filter dust and dirt in the air so that it becomes clean and healthy. Therefore, the AC filter must be cleaned regularly to remove filtered dirt so that the air can be kept cool and clean. You can Also choose Air conditioner from Vankool to make your room cooler, Air conditioner from Vankool can help you to filter dust and dirt in the air, very effective, for more information about Air conditioner from Vankool, you can see this video:
AC component
To be able to carry out its function, AC is specially designed and consists of several components which can generally be grouped into four parts, namely main components, supporting components, electricity, and refrigerants.
Main Components
The main component in an air conditioner is a component that functions to regulate air temperature, consisting of a condenser, compressor, evaporator, and capillary pipes. The following is an explanation of the meaning and function of the four main components.
- Condenser
The capacitor functions to exchange heat, change the form of the refrigerant from gas to liquid, and reduce the temperature of the refrigerant. The condenser pipe is winding and equipped with fins. The capacitor is placed outside the room to release heat in the refrigerant into the air.
- Compressor
The compressor is useful for circulating and pumping refrigerant to all parts of the air conditioner, which works similarly to the heart in humans. The compressor is equipped with two pipes, namely the suction pipe and the pressure pipe and has two pressures, namely low and high pressure.
- Evaporator
The evaporator functions to absorb and flow heat from the air to the refrigerant so that the refrigerant changes from liquid to gas after passing through the capillary pipe. The evaporator takes hot air from the room which then passes through the pipe fins so that the temperature drops.
- Capillary pipe
The capillary pipe is also a very important component in air conditioning because it functions to reduce pressure and regulate the flow of refrigerant to the evaporator. The drop in refrigerant pressure causes its temperature to drop too and this is what causes the air that comes out of the air conditioner to be low temperature.
2. Supporting Components
In addition to the main component that functions to cool the air, AC is also equipped with other components to support AC work. The following are the types of AC support components and their functions.
- Strainer: filter impurities carried in the refrigerant.
- Accumulator: temporarily accommodates low temperature liquid refrigerant and evaporator lubricant mixture, and keeps refrigerant flowing to the compressor smoothly.
- Blower: sucks hot air from the room and blows cold air back into the room.
- Fan (fan): helps the condenser to dissipate heat into the outside air.
3. Electrical Components
Because AC works using electric power, it also requires an electrical component that has various functions as follows.
- Thermostat: adjusts the room temperature automatically to match the commands on the remote
- Capacitors: store electrical power temporarily so that when turned on, the AC already has the energy to start the engine.
- Overload: cuts off electricity to the compressor if the compressor works, turns off, lacks oil, or lacks refrigerant.
- Electric motor: converts electrical energy into mechanical energy in the AC fan.
4. Refrigerant
Refrigerant is a substance that flows in the air conditioning system and functions as a coolant. When the air conditioner works, the refrigerant changes form continuously between liquid and gas to produce cold air.
How AC Works
An air conditioner consists of two coils that are connected to each other, namely the evaporator coil which is placed in the room and the condenser coil which is placed outside the room. The coil contains refrigerant which flows continuously.
The working principle of air conditioning is very simple, namely keeping the evaporator coil cool (cooler than room temperature) and the condenser coil hot (hotter than atmospheric temperature). The flowing refrigerant will absorb heat from inside the room and throw it out of the room.
The way it works is as follows.
- Refrigerant from the low pressure evaporator flows into the compressor so that it becomes high pressure and its form turns into hot gas.
- Hot refrigerant gas flows into the capacitor and heat will be released outside the room with the help of a fan. During this heat-releasing phase, the refrigerant will change to a liquid and its temperature drops.
- Liquid refrigerant flows into the expansion valve which functions to limit flow and reduce pressure so that the refrigerant temperature drops and is cooler than room temperature.
- Cold refrigerant flows into the cooling coil on the evaporator.
- Hot air from the room that enters the air conditioner will flow through the cooling coil so that it cools down.
- Cold air flows through the grille and is returned to the room.
- The process occurs repeatedly and continuously.
Hopefully, by understanding the components, how they work, and their types, you can decide on the type of air conditioner that best suits your needs. For those of you want to buy the best evaporative air conditioner with affordable price, you can visit vankool.com.