RE: [MLUG - DISCUSSION] Great explanation of AC systems for dummies

["Ross, Matthew" <EMAIL:PROTECTED>]

> The amount of power required to compress a refrigerant to sufficiently
> cool the air precludes any thing smaller than a good sized backpack. 
> And I would like to point out an error. The A/C process is the closest
> thing you can get to a purely thermodynamic process. It's not a
> mechanical process any more than the generation of sparks of static
> electricity generated from a condenser charged with a Van De Graf
> generator. 

AC is a combination of two thermodynamic processes with mechanical processes in between. One thermo process captures the heat energy in the form of vapor, the mechanical process takes it outside the insulated area (via the tubes and vapor pressure), and then another thermo process releasing the energy through condensation, and depending on your system, either using the vapor pressure, or a pump, to push the lower energy fluid back into the system. Were it left entirely to thermodynamics, the evaporation phase would be more than cancelled out by the condensation phase, resulting in a very inefficient heating system. 

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