Dependence of the thermodynamic properties of ice slurries on the characteristics of marketed antifreezes

Cold transport by means of two-phase aqueous secondary refrigerant (mixtures of solid ice and liquid water-antifreeze known as slurries) makes it possible to use a leak-proof and compact refrigerating unit, whereas, thanks to the latent heat of ice, the distribution duct diameters are kept within reasonable limits. In order to design such cold distribution plants efficiently, one must know precisely the thermodynamic properties of the slurries, especially the relations that link the temperature, the ice mass fraction, and the enthalpy. In this paper, we discuss the ways of computing the thermodynamic properties of the slurries and we established a method of measurement for the detection of freezing points of water-antifreeze mixtures. We give the first results (obtained from previously published data and from experiments) for binary mixtures based on four widely distributed antifreezes. The dependence of the thermodynamic properties on the characteristics of the antifreezes is discussed.