Expansion valve, air conditioner compressor and more: structure and functioning of the air conditioning system
Almost everyone has at least once pressed the button on the dashboard to turn on the air conditioner. However, only few people understand what this triggers. Here we briefly explain the functioning of one of the most common versions of air conditioner, consisting, among other things, of an expansion valve, evaporator, air conditioning compressor, condenser, and pressure switch.
Supply through high pressure line via the expansion valve, controlled by the pressure switch
The high pressure refrigerant is fed via the expansion valve into a lower pressure chamber. Then the refrigerant, at this stage still in liquid form, enters the evaporator, expands and changes its aggregate state. The cold produced by evaporation is now supplied into the passenger compartment through the ventilation and causes the desired effect. The refrigerating agent itself is now gaseous.
The next phase is delivery to the air conditioning compressor. It is driven by the belt and transports the gaseous refrigerant through the system by sucking it in and compressing it. During this process, the temperature can rise to over 50°C.
Next the gas enters the heat exchanger. This is a condenser which cools the hot compressed medium, causing it to liquefy again. Thus it is ideally positioned in the air flow of the driving wind, for example, in the front area or at an exposed point of the undercarriage. Leakage in the condenser caused by stones is, therefore, one of the most common types of damage.
After the refrigerant has been cleaned by a filter dryer, the air conditioning system forwards it to the evaporator - the working cycle starts over. To maintain the pressure in front of the expansion valve within a normal, safe range, it is regulated by means of a pressure switch. This pressure switch fulfills the task of switching on the fan in front of the condenser, if necessary, as well as of disengaging the AC compressor magnetic clutch.
If the pressure switch, expansion valve or another component fails, rexbo auto parts are sure to offer you an adequate replacement.
