Jim Dunmyer wrote in a message to Mike Ross:
 > Exactly what is the operating principle of these "Absorbtion"
 > (absorption?) refrigeration devices? Is it convection or is it
 > transition state of a fluid?
 JD> You know, I've read descriptions, looked at diagrams, etc. for 
 JD> years and still don't completely understand their operation. 
 JD> They use ammonia and a bromide solution as I recollect, the 
 JD> ammonia is boiled out of solution by a heat source, and somehow 
 JD> causes the thing to cool.
I guess it all ties in with the fact that it takes a nontrivial amount of 
energy to make that transition from one state to another.  In this case,  for 
the stuff to go from liquid to gaseous state it absorbs a whole lotta heat 
energy.
What gets me is how they found out that the ammonia (or whatever stuff it is 
that they're using) was a good thing to use...
 JD> My mother-in-law has an old gas refrigerator that she's had for 
 JD> many years, and it still works fine. Served her well during the 
 JD> hurricane of '54. 
 JD> The big York chillers (they make cold water that is circulated 
 JD> to heat exchangers for cooling around the building) where I 
 JD> used to work have all sorts of pumps and stuff, but a simple 
 JD> refrigerator needs no power except for the heat source. Camper 
 JD> refrigerators operate the same way, using an electric heater 
 JD> when the camper is operating from 'shore power'.
Yeah,  we've got this RV out in the yard that's got one of those in it,  but 
it bugs me that there's no option to run it off 12 volts,  which I see you 
can get in some instances (listed in the JC Whitney catalog).
email: roy.j.tellason%tanstaaf@frackit.com 
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