Numerical Investigation of Suction Muffler in Household Refrigerator Compressor

In this study a numerical investigation of a suction muffler in a hermetic reciprocating compressor of a domestic refrigerator is performed using a finite volume based flow solver (Fluent). In order to reveal the behavior of the flow realistically, unsteady experimental pressure data has been used in the outlet boundary condition for the simulations. Detailed investigations are carried out to reveal the instantaneous flow behavior in different muffler sections such as channel and chambers based on the mass flow rate variation with respect to crankshaft angle. It is shown that there is a phase shifting between the mass flow rates through the chamber inlets. Future studies are underway to improve and optimize the muffler design in an effort to maximize the flow rate while keeping the noise levels at a minimum. Keywords—reciprocating compressor; suction muffler; Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD)