An air conditioning (AC) system is designed to cool and dehumidify the air inside a building or a vehicle. The key components of an AC system work together to achieve this goal. Here are the main components and how they work together to provide cooling:
Compressor: The compressor is the heart of the AC system. It is typically located in the outdoor unit (for central AC systems) or under the hood (for car AC systems). The compressor's main function is to compress and raise the pressure of the refrigerant gas, which increases its temperature.
Condenser: The condenser is also located in the outdoor unit (for central AC) or in front of the car's radiator (for car AC). It dissipates heat by allowing the hot, high-pressure refrigerant gas to release heat to the surrounding air, causing it to condense and turn into a high-pressure liquid.
Expansion Valve (Orifice Tube or Thermal Expansion Valve): The high-pressure liquid refrigerant then passes through an expansion valve or orifice tube. This component reduces the pressure of the refrigerant and allows it to expand rapidly. As it expands, the refrigerant's temperature drops significantly.
Evaporator: The cold, low-pressure liquid refrigerant now enters the evaporator, which is typically located inside the indoor unit (for central AC systems) or inside the car's dashboard (for car AC systems). The warm air from the space being cooled is blown over the evaporator coils, causing the refrigerant to absorb the heat from the air and evaporate into a low-pressure gas.
Blower Fan: The blower fan is responsible for circulating air over the evaporator coils in the indoor unit (for central AC systems) or inside the car's cabin (for car AC systems). It blows the cooled air back into the room or vehicle.
Refrigerant: The refrigerant is a special chemical fluid with high heat absorption and release capabilities. It is the medium that carries heat from inside to outside, facilitating the cooling process.
Working together, these components create a continuous cycle where the refrigerant absorbs heat from the indoor air (or car cabin), releases it to the outdoor air (or car radiator), and then starts the process again.
In summary, the AC system works by compressing and circulating refrigerant, allowing it to absorb heat from the indoor air, and then releasing that heat to the outside. This process continuously cools the indoor space or the car cabin until the desired temperature is achieved.