Experimental development of an intelligent refrigeration system

In this study, an alternative solution to reduce energy consumption in industrial refrigeration systems is proposed and introduced. A typical industrial refrigeration system was conceived, built and modified in the laboratory, receiving a novel power law control system, which utilizes a frequency inverter. The operation and energy consumption of the system operating either with the new control system or with the traditional on–off control were compared to realistically quantify the obtained gains. In this manner, the measured temperature data acquired from several points of both systems and the energy consumption in kW h during a 24 h experimental run period are compared. The closed-loop power law controlled system shows a much smaller variation of the cold chamber internal temperature and electrical energy consumption economy of 35.24% in comparison with the traditional on–off system, under the same operating conditions.