This paper describes the design, simulation, building, and testing of a 10.5 kW (3-ton) residential air conditioner for hot/ dry climates. The unit was optimized to field-measured indoor and outdoor conditions and duct system losses, subject to the same packaging constraints as conventional systems.

A new type of microchannel flat tube plate fin evaporator and condenser were designed and fabricated for this project. The system was tested in a psychrometric room at extreme hot /dry conditions and met the project goal by reducing peak power demand by more than 25% compared to a typical SEER 12, R-410A baseline unit. Component and system performance data were compared to the results of simulation modeling conducted during the design process. Results suggest that additional performance improvements might be obtainable with minor changes in system configuration.

Units: Dual