WO2018180291A1

WO2018180291A1 - Refrigeration cycle apparatus

Info

Publication number: WO2018180291A1
Application number: PCT/JP2018/008677
Authority: WO
Inventors: 宏已太田; 寛幸小林; 伊藤　誠司
Original assignee: 株式会社デンソー
Priority date: 2017-03-28
Filing date: 2018-03-07
Publication date: 2018-10-04
Also published as: JP2018165604A

Abstract

The purpose of the present disclosure is to provide a refrigeration cycle apparatus that is configured to be able to switch a refrigerant circuit and that is able to sufficiently cool or heat a fluid subjected to heat exchange. This refrigeration cycle apparatus is provided with a compressor (11), heating parts (12, 12a, 12b, 12c, 12d), an outside air heat exchange part (16a), a fluid reception part (16b), a supercooled heat exchange part (16c), an evaporation part (18), a first decompression part (14a), a second decompression part (14b), a bypass passage (21), and refrigerant circuit switching devices (14c, 15). The evaporation part performs heat exchange between a refrigerant and a fluid subjected to heat exchange and evaporates the refrigerant. The bypass passage guides the refrigerant flowing out of the fluid reception part, to the suction side of the compressor. The refrigerant circuit switching devices close the bypass passage at the time of operation condition for condensing the refrigerant at the outside air heat exchange part, and switch to a refrigerant circuit that circulates the refrigerant in order of the compressor, the outside air heat exchange part, the fluid reception part, the supercooled heat exchange part, the second decompression part, the evaporation part, and the compressor. The refrigerant circuit switching devices open the bypass passage at the time of operation condition for evaporating the refrigerant at the outside air heat exchange part, and switch to a refrigerant circuit that circulates the refrigerant in order of the compressor, the heating parts, the first decompression part, the outside air heat exchange part, the fluid reception part, the bypass passage, and the compressor.

Description

Refrigeration cycle equipment

Cross-reference of related applications

This application is based on Japanese Patent Application No. 2017-063531, filed on Mar. 28, 2017, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

The present disclosure relates to a refrigeration cycle apparatus configured to be able to switch a refrigerant circuit.

Conventionally, Patent Document 1 discloses a vapor compression refrigeration cycle apparatus configured to be able to switch a refrigerant circuit. The refrigeration cycle apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 is applied to a vehicle air conditioner, and switches between a cooling mode refrigerant circuit for cooling the vehicle interior, a heating mode refrigerant circuit for heating the vehicle interior, and the like. be able to.

More specifically, the refrigeration cycle apparatus of Patent Document 1 includes an indoor condenser, an outdoor heat exchanger, an indoor evaporator, an accumulator, and the like. The accumulator is disposed on the suction side of the compressor, separates the gas-liquid of the low-pressure refrigerant flowing out from the heat exchanger functioning as an evaporator, stores the separated low-pressure liquid-phase refrigerant as a surplus refrigerant in the cycle, The separated gas-phase refrigerant is caused to flow out to the suction side of the compressor.

Then, when cooling the passenger compartment, the cooling circuit is switched to a cooling mode refrigerant circuit in which the refrigerant is circulated in the order of compressor → outdoor heat exchanger → cooling decompression device → indoor evaporator → accumulator → compressor. In the refrigerant circuit in the cooling mode, cooling of the vehicle interior is realized by dissipating the heat absorbed from the blown air from which the refrigerant is blown into the vehicle interior by the indoor evaporator to the outside air by the outdoor heat exchanger. .

On the other hand, when heating the passenger compartment, the refrigerant circuit is switched to the heating mode refrigerant circuit in which the refrigerant is circulated in the order of the compressor → the indoor condenser → the pressure reducing device for heating → the outdoor heat exchanger → the accumulator → the compressor. In the refrigerant circuit in the heating mode, heating of the vehicle interior is realized by dissipating the heat absorbed by the refrigerant from the outside air in the outdoor heat exchanger to the blown air in the indoor condenser.

JP 2012-225637 A

By the way, in the refrigeration cycle apparatus in the cooling mode, in order to sufficiently improve the cooling capacity of the blown air, the refrigerant is completely evaporated by the heat exchanger functioning as an evaporator (the indoor evaporator in Patent Document 1). It is desirable to make it. More specifically, the cooling capacity of the blown air and the coefficient of performance of the cycle are obtained by evaporating the refrigerant flowing out of the indoor evaporator into a gas phase refrigerant having a certain degree of superheat (for example, about 5 ° C.). (COP) can be improved.

The refrigeration cycle apparatus of Patent Document 1 constitutes a so-called accumulator cycle in which surplus refrigerant in a cycle is stored in an accumulator disposed on the suction side of the compressor when switching to a cooling mode refrigerant circuit. For this reason, it may be difficult for the refrigerant flowing out of the indoor evaporator in the cooling mode to be a gas phase refrigerant having a superheat degree.

On the other hand, as a heat exchanger that functions as a radiator in the cooling mode (Patent Document 1, an outdoor heat exchanger), a so-called subcool condenser can be used.

Here, the subcool condenser is a heat exchanger that has a condensing unit, a receiver unit, a supercooling unit, and the like, and radiates heat until the refrigerant reaches a supercooled liquid phase state. The condensing unit is a heat exchanging unit that condenses the refrigerant by exchanging heat between the refrigerant and the outside air. The receiver unit is a liquid receiving unit that stores the liquid phase refrigerant that has flowed out of the condensing unit. The supercooling unit is a heat exchange unit that supercools the liquid-phase refrigerant by exchanging heat between the liquid-phase refrigerant flowing out from the receiver unit and the outside air.

According to this, it is possible to configure a so-called receiver cycle in which the high-pressure liquid refrigerant condensed in the condensing unit is stored in the receiver unit as a surplus refrigerant in the cycle. Therefore, the refrigerant flowing out from the indoor evaporator can be evaporated until it becomes a gas phase refrigerant having a superheat degree. Furthermore, the enthalpy difference between the enthalpy of the outlet side refrigerant of the indoor evaporator and the enthalpy of the inlet side refrigerant can be increased by supercooling the refrigerant in the supercooling section.

Therefore, by adopting a subcool type condenser as the outdoor heat exchanger of the refrigeration cycle apparatus of Patent Document 1, when switching to the cooling mode refrigerant circuit, the cooling capacity of the blown air and the COP of the cycle are improved. You can aim.

However, if a subcool condenser is used as the outdoor heat exchanger of the refrigeration cycle apparatus of Patent Document 1, the pressure loss of the refrigerant in the outdoor heat exchanger increases when switching to the heating mode refrigerant circuit. There is a fear. The reason for this is that the subcool type condenser is based on the premise that liquid-phase refrigerant is circulated through the supercooling section, so that the refrigerant passage cross-sectional area of the supercooling section is set to be relatively small.

If the pressure of the refrigerant flowing out of the outdoor heat exchanger functioning as an evaporator is reduced due to the pressure loss, the density of the refrigerant sucked into the compressor may be reduced. As a result, the flow rate of the circulating refrigerant that circulates in the cycle during the heating mode decreases, and the heating capacity of the blown air and the COP of the cycle may decrease.

In view of the above points, an object of the present disclosure is to provide a refrigeration cycle apparatus that is configured to be capable of switching a refrigerant circuit and that can sufficiently cool or heat a heat exchange target fluid.

A refrigeration cycle apparatus according to an aspect of the present disclosure includes a compressor, a heating unit, an outside air heat exchange unit, a liquid receiving unit, a supercooling heat exchange unit, an evaporation unit, a first decompression unit, and a second decompression unit. Part, a detour passage, and a refrigerant circuit switching device. The compressor compresses and discharges the refrigerant. The heating unit heats the heat exchange target fluid using the refrigerant discharged from the compressor as a heat source. The outside air heat exchange unit exchanges heat between the refrigerant and the outside air. The liquid receiver stores the liquid-phase refrigerant that has flowed out of the outside air heat exchanger. The supercooling heat exchanger exchanges heat between the refrigerant flowing out of the liquid receiver and the outside air. The evaporating unit evaporates the refrigerant by exchanging heat with the heat exchange target fluid. The first decompression unit decompresses the refrigerant flowing into the outside air heat exchange unit. The second decompression unit decompresses the refrigerant flowing into the evaporation unit. The bypass passage guides the refrigerant flowing out from the liquid receiving part to the suction side of the compressor. The refrigerant circuit switching device switches the refrigerant circuit. The refrigerant circuit switching device closes the bypass passage during an operating condition in which the refrigerant is condensed in the outside air heat exchanging unit, and the compressor, the outside air heat exchanging unit, the liquid receiving unit, the supercooling heat exchanging unit, the second pressure reducing unit, and the evaporation unit. Then, the refrigerant circuit is switched in order of the compressor. The refrigerant circuit switching device opens a bypass passage during an operating condition in which the refrigerant is evaporated in the outside air heat exchange section, and the compressor, the heating section, the first decompression section, the outside air heat exchange section, the liquid receiving section, the bypass passage, and the compressor It switches to the refrigerant circuit which circulates a refrigerant | coolant in this order.

According to this, the heat exchange target fluid is obtained by evaporating the refrigerant depressurized in the second decompression unit in the evaporating unit and exerting an endothermic action at the operating condition for condensing the refrigerant in the outside heat exchange unit. Can be cooled. Furthermore, it is possible to configure a receiver cycle in which the high-pressure liquid-phase refrigerant that has flowed out of the outside air heat exchange unit is stored in the liquid-receiving unit as a surplus refrigerant of the cycle.

Therefore, the receiver cycle can be configured as a refrigerant circuit in an operation mode for cooling the heat exchange target fluid, and the heat exchange target fluid can be sufficiently cooled. Furthermore, since the outside air heat exchanging section, the liquid receiving section, and the supercooling heat exchanging section are provided, the coefficient of performance (COP) of the cycle can be improved similarly to the subcool type condenser.

Also, the heat exchange target fluid can be heated by the heating unit using the high-temperature and high-pressure refrigerant discharged from the compressor as a heat source during the operating condition in which the refrigerant is evaporated in the outside air heat exchange unit. Furthermore, an accumulator cycle can be configured in which the liquid-phase refrigerant that has flowed out of the outside air heat exchanging section is stored in a liquid receiving section that is disposed on the suction side of the compressor.

Therefore, an accumulator cycle can be configured as a refrigerant circuit in an operation mode in which the heat exchange target fluid is heated, and the heat exchange target fluid can be sufficiently heated. That is, according to this one aspect, it is possible to provide a refrigeration cycle apparatus that is configured to be able to switch the refrigerant circuit and that can sufficiently cool or heat the heat exchange target fluid.

Further, the refrigerant circuit switching device opens a bypass passage during an operating condition in which the refrigerant is evaporated in the outside air heat exchange unit, the supercooling heat exchange unit, and the evaporation unit, and the compressor → the heating unit → the first pressure reducing unit → the outside air heat. Switch to refrigerant circuit that circulates refrigerant in the order of exchange part → liquid receiving part → supercooling heat exchange part → second decompression part → evaporation part → compressor, and circulates refrigerant in order of liquid receiving part → bypass path → compressor It may be like this.

According to this, the heat exchange target fluid can be heated by the heating unit, and at the same time, the heat exchange target fluid can be cooled by the evaporation unit.

It is a whole lineblock diagram showing the refrigerant flow in the air conditioning mode and the 1st dehumidification heating mode of the refrigerating cycle device concerning at least one embodiment. It is a whole lineblock diagram showing the refrigerant flow in the 2nd dehumidification heating mode of the refrigerating cycle device concerning at least one embodiment. It is a whole lineblock diagram showing the refrigerant flow in the 3rd dehumidification heating mode of the refrigerating cycle device concerning at least one embodiment. It is a whole lineblock diagram showing the refrigerant flow in the heating mode of the refrigerating cycle device concerning at least one embodiment. It is a typical sectional view of the outdoor heat exchanger concerning at least one embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the electric control part of the vehicle air conditioner which concerns on at least 1 embodiment. It is a Mollier diagram which shows the change of the state of the refrigerant | coolant in the air_conditioning | cooling mode of the refrigerating-cycle apparatus which concerns on at least 1 embodiment. It is a Mollier diagram which shows the change of the state of the refrigerant | coolant in the 1st dehumidification heating mode of the refrigerating-cycle apparatus which concerns on at least 1 embodiment. It is a Mollier diagram which shows the change of the state of the refrigerant | coolant in the 2nd dehumidification heating mode of the refrigerating-cycle apparatus which concerns on at least 1 embodiment. It is a Mollier diagram which shows the change of the state of the refrigerant | coolant in the 3rd dehumidification heating mode of the refrigerating-cycle apparatus which concerns on at least 1 embodiment. It is a Mollier diagram which shows the change of the state of the refrigerant | coolant in the heating mode of the refrigerating-cycle apparatus which concerns on at least 1 embodiment. It is a whole lineblock diagram of the refrigerating cycle device concerning at least one embodiment.

Hereinafter, a plurality of modes for carrying out the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. In each embodiment, parts corresponding to the matters described in the preceding embodiment may be denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description may be omitted. When only a part of the configuration is described in each mode, the other modes described above can be applied to the other parts of the configuration. Not only combinations of parts that clearly show that combinations are possible in each embodiment, but also combinations of the embodiments even if they are not explicitly stated unless there is a problem with the combination. Is also possible.

(First embodiment)
A first embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to FIGS. In the present embodiment, the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 according to the present disclosure is applied to a vehicle air conditioner 1 mounted on a hybrid vehicle that obtains a driving force for traveling from an internal combustion engine and a traveling electric motor. The vehicle air conditioner 1 includes a refrigeration cycle device 10, an indoor air conditioning unit 30, an air conditioning control device 40, and the like.

The refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 fulfills a function of cooling or heating the air blown into the vehicle interior, which is the air-conditioning target space, in the vehicle air conditioner 1. Accordingly, the heat exchange target fluid of this embodiment is blown air.

Furthermore, the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 can switch the refrigerant circuit in order to perform air conditioning in the passenger compartment. Specifically, the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 includes a refrigerant circuit in a cooling mode (see FIG. 1), a refrigerant circuit in a first dehumidifying and heating mode (see FIG. 1), a refrigerant circuit in a second dehumidifying and heating mode (see FIG. 2), The refrigerant circuit (see FIG. 3) in the third dehumidifying and heating mode and the refrigerant circuit (see FIG. 4) in the heating mode can be switched. In FIGS. 1 to 4, the refrigerant flow in each operation mode is indicated by thick solid arrows.

The cooling mode is an operation mode in which cooling of the vehicle interior is performed by blowing out the cooled blown air into the vehicle interior. The first to third dehumidifying and heating modes are operation modes for performing dehumidifying heating in the vehicle interior by reheating the cooled and dehumidified blown air and blowing it out into the vehicle interior. In the present embodiment, the heating capability for heating the blown air during the dehumidifying heating increases in the order from the first dehumidifying heating mode to the third dehumidifying heating mode. The heating mode is an operation mode in which the vehicle interior is heated by blowing heated air into the vehicle interior.

Further, the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 employs an HFC-based refrigerant (specifically, R134a), and a vapor compression subcriticality in which the pressure of the discharged refrigerant discharged from the compressor 11 does not exceed the critical pressure of the refrigerant. It constitutes the refrigeration cycle. Refrigerating machine oil for lubricating the compressor 11 is mixed in the refrigerant, and a part of the refrigerating machine oil circulates in the cycle together with the refrigerant.

Among the components of the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10, the compressor 11 sucks, compresses and discharges the refrigerant in the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10. The compressor 11 is an electric compressor that rotationally drives a fixed capacity type compression mechanism with a fixed discharge capacity by an electric motor. The compressor 11 has its rotational speed (that is, refrigerant discharge capacity) controlled by a control signal output from an air conditioning control device 40 described later.

The discharge port of the compressor 11 is connected to the inlet side of the refrigerant passage of the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a. The water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a heats the heat medium by exchanging heat between the high-pressure refrigerant discharged from the compressor 11 and the heat medium (in this embodiment, an ethylene glycol aqueous solution) that circulates in the heat medium circuit 12. Heat exchanger.

The heat medium circulation circuit 12 is a heat medium circuit that circulates the heat medium between the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a and the heater core 12b. The heater core 12b is disposed in a casing 31 of an indoor air conditioning unit 30 described later. The heater core 12b is a heating heat exchanger that heats the blown air by exchanging heat between the heat medium heated by the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a and blown air after passing through the indoor evaporator 18 described later.

The heat medium circulation circuit 12 is provided with a water pump 12c that pumps the heat medium flowing out from the heater core 12b toward the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a. The water pump 12c is an electric water pump whose rotational speed (water pressure feeding capacity) is controlled by a control voltage output from the air conditioning control device 40.

When the air conditioning controller 40 operates the water pump 12c, as shown by the thick broken line arrows in FIGS. 1 to 4, in the heat medium circulation circuit 12, the water path of the water pump 12c → water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a. The heat medium circulates in the order of the heater core 12b → water pump 12c. Thereby, the heat medium heated by the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a can be caused to flow into the heater core 12b to heat the blown air.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, the heat medium circulation circuit 12, the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a, the heater core 12b, and the water pump 12c constitute a heating unit that heats the blown air using the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 11 as a heat source. is doing.

The inlet of the first three-way joint 13a having three inlets and outlets communicating with each other is connected to the outlet of the refrigerant passage of the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a. As such a three-way joint, one formed by joining a plurality of pipes or one formed by providing a plurality of refrigerant passages in a metal block or a resin block can be adopted.

Furthermore, the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 includes second and third three-

way joints

13b and 13c, as will be described later. The basic configuration of the second and third three-

way joints

13b and 13c is the same as that of the first three-way joint 13a.

The inlet side of the first expansion valve 14a is connected to one outlet of the first three-way joint 13a. One inlet of the second three-way joint 13b is connected to the other outlet of the first three-way joint 13a. An on-off valve 15 is disposed in the refrigerant passage connecting the other outlet side of the first three-way joint 13a and one inlet side of the second three-way joint 13b.

The on-off valve 15 is an electromagnetic valve that opens and closes a refrigerant passage that connects the other outlet side of the first three-way joint 13a and one inlet side of the second three-way joint 13b. The on-off valve 15 can switch the refrigerant circuit in each operation mode by opening and closing the refrigerant passage. Therefore, the on-off valve 15 constitutes a refrigerant circuit switching device. The operation of the on-off valve 15 is controlled by a control voltage output from the air conditioning controller 40.

The first expansion valve 14a is a first depressurization that depressurizes the refrigerant that flows out of the refrigerant passage of the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a and flows into the outdoor heat exchanger 16a of the outdoor heat exchanger 16, which will be described later, at least in the heating mode. Part.

The first expansion valve 14a is an electric variable throttle mechanism having a valve body that changes the throttle opening and an electric actuator (specifically, a stepping motor) that displaces the valve body. Therefore, the first expansion valve 14a functions as a refrigerant pressure reducing device that depressurizes the refrigerant flowing out to the downstream side, and also functions as a flow rate adjusting device that adjusts the flow rate of the refrigerant flowing out to the downstream side.

Furthermore, the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 includes second and

third expansion valves

14b and 14c, as will be described later. The basic configuration of the second and

third expansion valves

14b and 14c is the same as that of the first expansion valve 14a. The first to

third expansion valves

14a, 14b, and 14c have a fully open function that functions as a simple refrigerant passage without substantially exhibiting a flow rate adjusting action and a refrigerant pressure reducing action by fully opening the valve opening degree, and a valve opening degree. Is fully closed to close the refrigerant passage.

The first to

third expansion valves

14a, 14b, and 14c can switch the refrigerant circuit in each operation mode described above by the fully open function and the fully closed function. Therefore, the first to

third expansion valves

14a, 14b, and 14c also have a function as a refrigerant circuit switching device. The operations of the first to

third expansion valves

14a, 14b, 14c are controlled by a control signal (control pulse) output from the air conditioning control device 40.

The refrigerant inlet 16e side of the outdoor heat exchanger 16 is connected to the outlet of the first expansion valve 14a. The outdoor heat exchanger 16 is a heat exchanger that exchanges heat between the refrigerant flowing out of the first expansion valve 14a and the outside air blown by the outside air fan 16d. The outdoor heat exchanger 16 functions as a radiator that radiates high-pressure refrigerant at least in the cooling mode, and functions as an evaporator that evaporates low-pressure refrigerant at least in the heating mode.

The outdoor heat exchanger 16 includes an outdoor air heat exchange unit 16a, a receiver tank 16b, and a supercooling heat exchange unit 16c. The outside air heat exchanging part 16a is a heat exchanging part that exchanges heat between the refrigerant flowing out of the first expansion valve 14a and the outside air. The receiver tank 16b is a liquid receiver that stores the liquid-phase refrigerant that has flowed out of the outside air heat exchanger 16a. The supercooling heat exchange unit 16c is a heat exchange unit that exchanges heat between the refrigerant flowing out of the receiver tank 16b and the outside air.

Therefore, the outdoor heat exchanger 16 can be used as a subcool type condenser that dissipates heat until the refrigerant is in a supercooled state under the operating conditions in which the refrigerant is condensed in the outdoor air heat exchanger 16a. The outside air fan 16d is an electric blower in which the rotation speed (that is, the blowing capacity) is controlled by a control voltage output from the air conditioning control device 40.

The detailed configuration of the outdoor heat exchanger 16 will be described with reference to FIG. In addition, the up and down arrows in FIG. 5 indicate the up and down directions in a state where the outdoor heat exchanger 16 is mounted on the vehicle.

The outdoor heat exchanger 16 includes, in addition to the receiver tank 16b, a plurality of tubes 161, an inlet side tank 162, an outlet side tank 163, and the like for forming the outdoor air heat exchange unit 16a and the supercooling heat exchange unit 16c. Yes. All of the constituent members of the outdoor heat exchanger 16 are formed of a metal (aluminum in the present embodiment) having excellent heat conductivity, and are integrated by brazing.

The tube 161 forms a refrigerant passage through which the refrigerant flows. The tube 161 has a flat cross section perpendicular to the flow direction of the refrigerant flowing inside. In the present embodiment, a multi-hole tube in which a plurality of refrigerant passages are formed is adopted as the tube 161.

The plurality of tubes 161 are stacked in a certain direction (in this embodiment, the vertical direction). More specifically, the plurality of tubes 161 are stacked in a vertical direction with a certain interval so that the flat surfaces (that is, flat surfaces) of the outer surfaces of adjacent tubes 161 are parallel to each other. Yes.

Thereby, an air passage is formed between the adjacent tubes 161 through which the blown air that exchanges heat with the refrigerant flows. That is, in the outdoor heat exchanger 16, a plurality of tubes 161 are stacked and arranged at intervals, thereby forming a heat exchange unit that exchanges heat between the refrigerant and the outside air.

Fins 164 that promote heat exchange between the refrigerant and the blown air are arranged in an air passage formed between adjacent tubes 161. The fin 164 is a corrugated fin formed by bending a thin plate material made of the same material as the tube 161 or the like into a wave shape. In FIG. 5, only a part of the fins 164 is shown for clarity of illustration, but the fins 164 are arranged over the entire heat exchange section.

The inlet side tank 162 and the outlet side tank 163 are connected to the end portions of the plurality of tubes 161 to collect or distribute the refrigerant flowing through the tubes 161. Each of the inlet side tank 162 and the outlet side tank 163 is formed of a bottomed cylindrical member extending in the stacking direction of the tubes 161 (the vertical direction in this embodiment).

In the inlet side tank 162 and the outlet side tank 163, a plurality of separators 165 for partitioning the internal space are arranged. As a result, the internal space of the inlet side tank 162 is partitioned into first to third

inlet side spaces

162a, 162b, and 162c sequentially from above, and the internal space of the outlet side tank 163 is divided into the first and second outlets sequentially from above. It is divided into

side spaces

163a and 163b.

The refrigerant inlet 16e of the outdoor heat exchanger 16 is provided so as to communicate with the first inlet side space 162a of the inlet side tank 162. The refrigerant outlet 16 f of the outdoor heat exchanger 16 is provided so as to communicate with the second outlet side space 163 b of the outlet side tank 163.

The receiver tank 16b is formed of a bottomed cylindrical member extending in the stacking direction of the tubes 161. The receiver tank 16b is brazed to the inlet side tank 162.

At the joint between the receiver tank 16b and the inlet side tank 162, an inlet side communication path 16i that connects the inner space of the receiver tank 16b and the second inlet side space 162b, and the inner space of the receiver tank 16b and the third inlet side An outlet side communication path 16j that communicates with the space 162c is formed. The inlet side communication path 16i is disposed above the outlet side communication path 16j.

For this reason, in the outdoor heat exchanger 16 of the present embodiment, the refrigerant flowing from the refrigerant inlet 16e into the first inlet side space 162a of the inlet side tank 162 flows through the upper tube 161 group, and the outlet side tank 163 It flows into the first outlet side space 163a. Then, the refrigerant that has flowed into the first outlet side space 163a flows through another tube 161 group in the middle portion in the vertical direction and flows into the second inlet side space 162b of the inlet side tank 162.

Furthermore, the refrigerant flowing into the second inlet side space 162b flows into the third inlet side space 162c of the inlet side tank 162 via the receiver tank 16b. The refrigerant that has flowed into the third inlet-side space 162c flows through another group of tubes 161 on the lower side and flows into the second outlet-side space 163b of the outlet-side tank 163. The refrigerant flowing into the second outlet side space 163b flows out from the refrigerant outlet 16f.

As is clear from the above description, in the outdoor heat exchanger 16, the outdoor air heat exchange section 16a is configured by a heat exchange section formed on the upstream side of the refrigerant flow with respect to the receiver tank 16b. Furthermore, the subcooling heat exchange part 16c is comprised by the heat exchange part formed in a refrigerant | coolant flow downstream rather than the receiver tank 16b.

Further, in the outdoor heat exchanger 16 of the present embodiment, the number of the upper tubes 161 connecting the first inlet side space 162a and the first outlet side space 163a is equal to the number of the first outlet side space 163a and the second inlet. It is larger than the number of intermediate tube 161 groups connecting the side spaces 162b. Therefore, the total passage sectional area of the intermediate tube 161 group is smaller than the total passage sectional area of the upper tube 161 group.

Further, the number of intermediate tubes 161 connecting the first outlet side space 163a and the second inlet side space 162b is the lower tube connecting the third inlet side space 162c and the second outlet side space 163b. It is more than the number of 161 groups. Therefore, the total passage sectional area of the lower tube 161 group is smaller than the total passage sectional area of the middle tube 161 group.

That is, in the outdoor heat exchanger 16 of the present embodiment, the passage cross-sectional area of the refrigerant flow path is reduced in the refrigerant flow direction. According to this, when used as a subcool type condenser, the cross-sectional area of the passage can be reduced as the volume of the refrigerant is reduced due to condensation, so that the heat exchanging portion is effective without increasing the pressure loss of the refrigerant. It can be used for.

Further, a gas phase refrigerant outlet 16g and a liquid phase refrigerant outlet 16h are formed in the receiver tank 16b.

The gas-phase refrigerant outlet 16g is formed above the receiver tank 16b in order to cause the gas-phase refrigerant in the receiver tank 16b to flow out preferentially over the liquid-phase refrigerant. A bypass passage 21 for guiding the refrigerant flowing out from the receiver tank 16b to the suction side of the compressor 11 is connected to the gas phase refrigerant outlet 16g.

The bypass passage 21 is a refrigerant passage that connects the gas-phase refrigerant outlet 16g side of the receiver tank 16b and one inlet side of the third three-way joint 13c. A third expansion valve 14 c is disposed in the bypass passage 21. The third expansion valve 14 c is a flow rate adjusting device that functions as a refrigerant pressure reducing device that depressurizes the refrigerant flowing out from the receiver tank 16 b and adjusts the flow rate of the refrigerant flowing through the bypass passage 21.

The liquid-phase refrigerant outlet 16h is formed on the bottom surface of the receiver tank 16b so that the liquid-phase refrigerant mixed with the refrigerating machine oil in the receiver tank 16b flows out preferentially over the gas-phase refrigerant. An oil return passage 21a that guides the liquid-phase refrigerant mixed with refrigerating machine oil to the bypass passage 21 side is connected to the liquid-phase refrigerant outlet 16h. As the oil return passage 21a, a capillary tube having a relatively small passage cross-sectional area can be employed.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the other inflow side of the second three-way joint 13 b is connected to the refrigerant outlet of the outdoor heat exchanger 16 through a check valve 17. The check valve 17 allows the refrigerant to flow from the outdoor heat exchanger 16 side to the second three-way joint 13b side (that is, the second expansion valve 14b side), and from the second three-way joint 13b side to the outdoor heat exchanger 16. It functions to prevent the refrigerant from flowing to the side.

The inlet side of the second expansion valve 14b is connected to the outlet of the second three-way joint 13b. The second expansion valve 14b is a second decompression unit that decompresses the refrigerant flowing out of the outdoor heat exchanger 16 at least in the cooling mode. The refrigerant inlet side of the indoor evaporator 18 is connected to the outlet of the second expansion valve 14b.

The indoor evaporator 18 is disposed in the casing 31 of the indoor air conditioning unit 30. The indoor evaporator 18 is an evaporator that evaporates the low-pressure refrigerant by exchanging heat between the low-pressure refrigerant decompressed by the second expansion valve 14b and the blown air blown from the blower 32 at least in the cooling mode. And it is a heat exchanger for cooling which cools blowing air by evaporating a low-pressure refrigerant and exhibiting an endothermic effect.

The inlet side of the evaporation pressure adjusting valve 19 is connected to the refrigerant outlet of the indoor evaporator 18. The evaporation pressure regulating valve 19 functions to maintain the refrigerant evaporation pressure in the indoor evaporator 18 at a predetermined reference pressure or higher in order to suppress frost formation in the indoor evaporator 18. Thereby, the evaporation pressure regulating valve 19 fulfills the function of maintaining the refrigerant evaporation temperature in the indoor evaporator 18 at or above the reference temperature (1 ° C. in this embodiment) that can suppress frost formation in the indoor evaporator 18.

More specifically, the evaporation pressure adjusting valve 19 is composed of a mechanical variable throttle mechanism that increases the valve opening as the refrigerant pressure on the outlet side of the indoor evaporator 18 increases.

The other inlet side of the third three-way joint 13c is connected to the outlet of the evaporation pressure adjusting valve 19. The inlet side of the accumulator 20 is connected to the outlet of the third three-way joint 13c. The accumulator 20 is a gas-liquid separator that separates the gas-liquid of the refrigerant that has flowed into the accumulator and stores excess liquid-phase refrigerant in the cycle. The suction port side of the compressor 11 is connected to the gas-phase refrigerant outlet of the accumulator 20.

Next, the indoor air conditioning unit 30 will be described. The indoor air conditioning unit 30 is for blowing out the blown air whose temperature has been adjusted by the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 into the vehicle interior. The indoor air conditioning unit 30 is disposed inside the instrument panel (instrument panel) at the forefront of the vehicle interior.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the indoor air conditioning unit 30 includes a blower 32, an indoor evaporator 18, a heater core 12 b and the like in an air passage formed in a casing 31 that forms an outer shell thereof. .

The casing 31 forms an air passage for the blown air blown into the passenger compartment, and is formed of a resin (for example, polypropylene) having a certain degree of elasticity and excellent in strength. An inside / outside air switching device 33 for switching and introducing inside air (vehicle compartment air) and outside air (vehicle compartment outside air) into the casing 31 is disposed on the most upstream side of the blast air flow in the casing 31.

The inside / outside air switching device 33 continuously adjusts the opening area of the inside air introduction port for introducing the inside air into the casing 31 and the outside air introduction port for introducing the outside air, by the inside / outside air switching door, The introduction ratio with the introduction air volume is changed. The inside / outside air switching door is driven by an electric actuator for the inside / outside air switching door. The operation of the electric actuator is controlled by a control signal output from the air conditioning controller 40.

A blower 32 for blowing the air sucked through the inside / outside air switching device 33 toward the vehicle interior is disposed on the downstream side of the blown air flow of the inside / outside air switching device 33. The blower 32 is an electric blower that drives a centrifugal multiblade fan with an electric motor. The number of rotations (that is, the blowing capacity) of the blower 32 is controlled by the control voltage output from the air conditioning control device 40.

On the downstream side of the blower air flow of the blower 32, the indoor evaporator 18 and the heater core 12b are arranged in this order with respect to the blown air flow. That is, the indoor evaporator 18 is arrange | positioned rather than the heater core 12b at the blowing air flow upstream.

In the casing 31, there is provided a bypass passage 35 through which the blown air after passing through the indoor evaporator 18 flows around the heater core 12b. An air mix door 34 is arranged on the downstream side of the blower air flow of the indoor evaporator 18 in the casing 31 and on the upstream side of the blower air flow of the heater core 12b.

The air mix door 34 is an air volume ratio adjustment unit that adjusts an air volume ratio between the air volume of the blown air that passes through the heater core 12 b and the air volume of the blown air that passes through the bypass passage 35 among the blown air after passing through the indoor evaporator 18. It is. The air mix door 34 is driven by an electric actuator for the air mix door. The operation of the electric actuator is controlled by a control signal output from the air conditioning controller 40.

On the downstream side of the blower air flow of the heater core 12b and the bypass passage 35, a mixing space for mixing the blown air heated by exchanging heat with the refrigerant in the heater core 12b and the blown air not heated through the bypass passage 35 is mixed. Is provided. Furthermore, an opening hole for blowing the blown air mixed in the mixing space (that is, conditioned air) into the vehicle interior, which is the air-conditioning target space, is disposed in the most downstream portion of the blast air flow of the casing 31.

As the opening hole, a face opening hole, a foot opening hole, and a defroster opening hole (all not shown) are provided. The face opening hole is an opening hole for blowing conditioned air toward the upper body of the passenger in the vehicle interior. The foot opening hole is an opening hole for blowing conditioned air toward the feet of the passenger. The defroster opening hole is an opening hole for blowing out conditioned air toward the inner side surface of the vehicle front window glass.

These face opening hole, foot opening hole, and defroster opening hole are respectively connected to a face air outlet, a foot air outlet, and a defroster air outlet (not shown) through a duct that forms an air passage. )It is connected to the.

Therefore, the temperature of the conditioned air mixed in the mixing space is adjusted by the air mix door 34 adjusting the air volume ratio between the air volume passing through the heater core 12b and the air volume passing through the cold air bypass passage 35. Thereby, the temperature of the blast air (air conditioned air) blown out from each outlet into the vehicle compartment is adjusted.

Further, on the upstream side of the air flow of the face opening hole, foot opening hole, and defroster opening hole, a face door for adjusting the opening area of the face opening hole, a foot door for adjusting the opening area of the foot opening hole, and a defroster opening, respectively. A defroster door (both not shown) for adjusting the opening area of the hole is disposed.

These face doors, foot doors, and defroster doors constitute a blower outlet mode switching device that switches the blower outlet mode, and are linked to and linked to an electric actuator for driving the blower outlet mode door via a link mechanism or the like. And rotated. The operation of this electric actuator is also controlled by a control signal output from the air conditioning control device 40.

Specific examples of the outlet mode switched by the outlet mode switching device include a face mode, a bi-level mode, and a foot mode.

The face mode is a blowout mode that blows out air from the face blowout toward the upper body of the passenger in the passenger compartment with the face blowout opening fully open. The bi-level mode is an air outlet mode in which both the face air outlet and the foot air outlet are opened and air is blown toward the upper body and the feet of the passengers in the passenger compartment. The foot mode is a blowout port mode in which the foot blowout port is fully opened and the defroster blowout port is opened by a small opening so that air is mainly blown out from the foot blowout port.

Furthermore, when the occupant manually operates a blow mode switching switch provided on the operation panel 50, the defroster mode can be set, in which the defroster blowout port is fully opened and air is blown from the defroster blowout port to the inner surface of the vehicle windshield.

Next, an outline of the electric control unit of this embodiment will be described. The air conditioning control device 40 includes a known microcomputer including a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like and peripheral circuits thereof. Then, various calculations and processes are performed based on the air conditioning control program stored in the ROM, and various

control target devices

11, 12c, 14a, 14b, 14c, 15, 32, and other various types connected to the output side. Controls the operation of the electric actuator.

On the input side of the air conditioning controller 40, as shown in the block diagram of FIG. 6, the inside air temperature sensor 41, the outside air temperature sensor 42, the solar radiation sensor 43, the water temperature sensor 44, the discharge temperature sensor 45a, the outdoor unit temperature sensor 45b, and the evaporation A temperature sensor 45c, a suction temperature sensor 45d, a discharge pressure sensor 46a, a tank pressure sensor 46b, an outdoor unit pressure sensor 46c, a suction pressure sensor 46d, an air conditioning air temperature sensor 47, and the like are connected. And the detection signal of these sensor groups is input into the air-conditioning control apparatus 40. FIG.

The inside air temperature sensor 41 is an inside air temperature detecting unit that detects a vehicle interior temperature (inside air temperature) Tr. The outside air temperature sensor 42 is an outside air temperature detecting unit that detects a vehicle compartment outside temperature (outside air temperature) Tam. The solar radiation sensor 43 is a solar radiation amount detection unit that detects the solar radiation amount As irradiated into the vehicle interior. The water temperature sensor 44 is a heat medium temperature detector that detects the heat medium temperature Tw of the heat medium that flows out of the water passage of the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a and flows into the heater core 12b.

The discharge temperature sensor 45 a is a discharge temperature detection unit that detects the discharge temperature Td of the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 11. The outdoor unit temperature sensor 45b is an outdoor unit outlet temperature detection unit that detects the outdoor unit outlet temperature Tout of the refrigerant that has flowed out of the outdoor heat exchanger 16 (specifically, the supercooling heat exchange unit 16c). The evaporator temperature sensor 45c is an evaporator temperature detector that detects the refrigerant evaporation temperature (evaporator temperature) Tefin in the indoor evaporator 18. The suction temperature sensor 45 d is a suction temperature detection unit that detects the suction temperature Ts of the refrigerant sucked into the compressor 11.

The discharge pressure sensor 46a is a discharge pressure detection unit that detects the discharge pressure Pd of the refrigerant flowing through the refrigerant flow path from the discharge port side of the compressor 11 to the inlet side of the first expansion valve 14a. The tank pressure sensor 46b is a tank pressure detection unit that detects the tank internal pressure Ptk of the refrigerant in the receiver tank 16b. The outdoor unit pressure sensor 46c is an outdoor unit outlet temperature detection unit that detects the outdoor unit outlet pressure Pout of the refrigerant that has flowed out of the outdoor heat exchanger 16 (specifically, the supercooling heat exchange unit 16c). The suction pressure sensor 46 d is a suction pressure detection unit that detects the suction pressure Ps of the refrigerant sucked into the compressor 11.

The air-conditioning air temperature sensor 47 is an air-conditioning air temperature detector that detects the temperature TAV of the air blown from the mixed space into the passenger compartment.

Further, as shown in FIG. 6, an operation panel 50 disposed near the instrument panel in the front part of the vehicle interior is connected to the input side of the air conditioning control device 40, and various operation switches provided on the operation panel 50 are connected. The operation signal is input.

As various operation switches provided on the operation panel 50, specifically, an auto switch for setting or canceling the automatic control operation of the vehicle air conditioner 1, a cooling switch for requesting cooling of the vehicle interior, There are an air volume setting switch for manually setting the air volume, a temperature setting switch for setting the target temperature Tset in the passenger compartment, and a blow mode switching switch for manually setting the blow mode.

The air-conditioning control device 40 according to the present embodiment is configured such that a control unit that controls various control target devices connected to the output side thereof is integrally configured. However, the configuration controls the operation of each control target device. (Hardware and Software) constitutes a control unit that controls the operation of each control target device.

For example, in the air-conditioning control device 40, the configuration for controlling the refrigerant discharge capacity of the compressor 11 (specifically, the rotational speed of the compressor 11) constitutes a discharge capacity control unit 40a. Moreover, the structure which controls the action | operation of the 3rd expansion valve 14c which is a flow volume adjustment apparatus comprises the flow volume adjustment control part 40b.

Next, the operation of this embodiment in the above configuration will be described. As described above, the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment can switch between the cooling mode, the first to third dehumidifying heating modes, and the heating mode in order to perform air conditioning in the vehicle interior. Switching between these operation modes is performed by executing an air conditioning control program. The air conditioning control program is executed when the auto switch of the operation panel 50 is turned on (ON).

More specifically, in the main routine of the air conditioning control program, the detection signals of the above-described sensor group for air conditioning control and operation signals from various air conditioning operation switches are read. And based on the value of the read detection signal and operation signal, the target blowing temperature TAO which is the target temperature of the blowing air which blows off into the vehicle interior is calculated based on the following formula F1.
TAO = Kset × Tset−Kr × Tr−Kam × Tam−Ks × As + C (F1)
Tset is a target temperature in the vehicle interior (set temperature in the vehicle interior) set by the temperature setting switch, Tr is the internal air temperature detected by the internal air temperature sensor 41, Tam is the external air temperature detected by the external air temperature sensor 42, As Is the amount of solar radiation detected by the solar radiation sensor 43. Kset, Kr, Kam, Ks are control gains, and C is a correction constant.

Then, when the cooling switch of the operation panel 50 is turned on and the target blowing temperature TAO is lower than the predetermined cooling reference temperature α, the operation mode is switched to the cooling mode.

In addition, in a state where the cooling switch of the operation panel 50 is turned on, the target blowing temperature TAO is equal to or higher than the cooling reference temperature α, and the outside air temperature Tam is higher than the predetermined dehumidifying heating reference temperature β. In the case, the operation mode is switched to the first dehumidifying and heating mode.

Further, during operation in the first dehumidifying and heating mode, when the pressure loss ΔP in the supercooling heat exchanging portion 16c becomes equal to or higher than a predetermined first reference pressure loss KΔP1, the operation mode is changed to the second dehumidifying and heating mode. Can be switched. As the pressure loss ΔP, a value obtained by subtracting the outdoor unit outlet pressure Pout detected by the outdoor unit pressure sensor 46c from the tank internal pressure Ptk detected by the tank pressure sensor 46b can be used.

Here, the first reference pressure loss KΔP1 is the lowest value of the pressure loss that occurs when the refrigerant flowing from the receiver tank 16b to the supercooling heat exchange unit 16c during the normal operation is a gas-liquid two-phase refrigerant or a gas-phase refrigerant. Is set to a value corresponding to. For this reason, when the pressure loss ΔP is equal to or greater than the first reference pressure loss KΔP1, the refrigerant flowing into the supercooling heat exchange unit 16c is a gas-liquid two-phase refrigerant or a gas-phase refrigerant.

In the state where the cooling switch of the operation panel 50 is turned on, when the target blowing temperature TAO is equal to or higher than the cooling reference temperature α and the outside air temperature Tam is equal to or lower than the dehumidifying heating reference temperature β, The operation mode is switched to the third dehumidifying and heating mode.

Further, when the cooling switch of the operation panel 50 is not turned on, the operation mode is switched to the heating mode.

For this reason, the cooling mode is executed mainly when the outside air temperature is relatively high, such as in summer. The first to third dehumidifying heating modes are executed mainly in spring or autumn. The heating mode is executed mainly at the low outdoor temperature in winter. The operation in each operation mode will be described below.

(A) Cooling mode In the cooling mode, the air-conditioning control device 40 sets the first expansion valve 14a to a fully open state, the second expansion valve 14b to a throttled state that exerts a pressure reducing action, and sets the third expansion valve 14c to a fully closed state. The on-off valve 15 is closed. Furthermore, the air conditioning control device 40 stops the water pump 12c.

Thereby, in the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 in the cooling mode, as indicated by the thick solid line arrow in FIG. 1, the compressor 11 (→ water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a → first expansion valve 14a) → outside air of the outdoor heat exchanger 16 Heat exchanger 16a → Receiver tank 16b of outdoor heat exchanger 16 → Supercooling heat exchanger 16c of outdoor heat exchanger 16 → Check valve 17 → Second expansion valve 14b → Indoor evaporator 18 (→ Evaporation pressure adjusting valve 19 → Accumulator 20) → Vapor compression type refrigeration cycle in which refrigerant circulates in the order of compressor 11.

In this cycle configuration, the air conditioning control device 40 determines the operating states of the various control target devices (control signals to be output to the various control target devices) based on the target blowing temperature TAO, the detection signal of the sensor group, and the like.

For example, the refrigerant discharge capacity of the compressor 11, that is, the control signal output to the electric motor of the compressor 11 is determined as follows. First, the target evaporator outlet temperature TEO of the indoor evaporator 18 is determined based on the target outlet temperature TAO with reference to a control map stored in the air conditioning controller 40 in advance.

Specifically, in this control map, the target evaporator blowout temperature TEO is determined to decrease as the target blowout temperature TAO decreases. Furthermore, the target evaporator outlet temperature TEO is determined to be equal to or higher than a reference frost prevention temperature Tdef (for example, 1 ° C.) determined to be able to suppress frost formation in the indoor evaporator 18.

Then, based on the deviation between the target evaporator outlet temperature TEO and the evaporator temperature Tefin detected by the evaporator temperature sensor 45c, the evaporator temperature Tefin approaches the target evaporator outlet temperature TEO using a feedback control method. Thus, the control signal output to the electric motor of the compressor 11 is determined.

As for the control signal output to the second expansion valve 14b, the compressor 11 intake refrigerant is overheated from the intake temperature Ts detected by the intake temperature sensor 45d and the intake pressure Ps detected by the intake pressure sensor 46d. The degree SH is determined so as to approach a predetermined reference superheat degree KSH (5 ° C. in the present embodiment).

Further, the control voltage output to the outside air fan 16d is determined so that the outside air fan 16d exhibits a predetermined blowing capacity according to the operation mode.

Further, the control voltage output to the blower 32 is determined with reference to a control map stored in advance in the air conditioning control device 40 based on the target blowing temperature TAO. Specifically, in this control map, the air volume of the blower 32 is set to the maximum air volume in the extremely low temperature region (maximum cooling region) and the extremely high temperature region (maximum heating region) of the target blowing temperature TAO.

Further, as the target blowing temperature TAO increases from the extremely low temperature range toward the intermediate temperature range, the air blowing amount is decreased according to the increase in the target blowing temperature TAO, and the target blowing temperature TAO is changed from the extremely high temperature range to the intermediate temperature range. As the air pressure decreases, the air flow rate is decreased according to the decrease in the target air temperature TAO. In addition, when the target blowing temperature TAO enters a predetermined intermediate temperature range, the blowing amount is set as the minimum blowing amount.

Also, the control signal output to the electric actuator for driving the air mix door is determined so that the air mix door 34 fully opens the cold air bypass passage 35 and the air passage on the heater core 12b side is fully closed.

Then, the control signals determined as described above are output to various control target devices. After that, until the operation stop of the vehicle air conditioner 1 is requested, the above detection signal and operation signal are read at every predetermined control cycle → the target blowing temperature TAO is calculated → the operating states of various control target devices are determined → control Control routines such as voltage and control signal output are repeated. Such a control routine is repeated in the other operation modes.

Therefore, in the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 in the cooling mode, as shown in the Mollier diagram of FIG. 7, the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 11 (point a7 in FIG. 7) flows to the refrigerant passage of the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a. Inflow. In the cooling mode, since the water pump 12c is stopped, the refrigerant that has flowed into the refrigerant passage of the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a flows out of the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a with little heat dissipation.

The refrigerant that has flowed out of the refrigerant passage of the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a flows into the outdoor air heat exchanger 16a of the outdoor heat exchanger 16 through the first expansion valve 14a that is fully open. The refrigerant flowing into the outdoor heat exchanger 16a of the outdoor heat exchanger 16 exchanges heat with the external air blown from the outdoor air fan 16d, dissipates heat, and condenses (point a7 → d7 in FIG. 7).

The refrigerant condensed in the outside air heat exchanger 16a flows into the receiver tank 16b and is separated into gas and liquid. In the cooling mode, since the third expansion valve 14c is fully closed, the liquid-phase refrigerant stored in the lower side of the receiver tank 16b flows into the supercooling heat exchange unit 16c through the outlet side communication passage 16j. To do. The liquid phase refrigerant flowing into the supercooling heat exchange unit 16c exchanges heat with the outside air blown from the outside air fan 16d, and further dissipates heat to become a supercooled liquid phase refrigerant (point d7 → e7 in FIG. 7).

The refrigerant that has flowed out of the subcooling heat exchanger 16c of the outdoor heat exchanger 16 flows into the second expansion valve 14b through the check valve 17 and is depressurized (point e7 → point f7 in FIG. 7). At this time, the throttle opening degree of the second expansion valve 14b is adjusted so that the superheat degree SH of the refrigerant sucked by the compressor 11 (point g7 in FIG. 7) approaches the reference superheat degree KSH. The low-pressure refrigerant decompressed by the second expansion valve 14b flows into the indoor evaporator 18.

The low-pressure refrigerant flowing into the indoor evaporator 18 absorbs heat from the blown air blown from the blower 32 and evaporates (f7 point → g7 point in FIG. 7). Thereby, blowing air is cooled. The refrigerant that has flowed out of the indoor evaporator 18 is sucked into the compressor 11 via the evaporation pressure adjusting valve 19 and the accumulator 20. The refrigerant sucked into the compressor 11 is compressed again (point g7 → point a7 in FIG. 7).

As described above, in the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 in the cooling mode, a refrigeration cycle is configured in which the outdoor heat exchanger 16 functions as a radiator and the indoor evaporator 18 functions as an evaporator. And the ventilation of a vehicle interior is realizable by blowing the ventilation air cooled with the indoor evaporator 18 in the vehicle interior.

Here, the cooling mode is an operating condition in which the refrigerant is condensed in the outside air heat exchange section 16a. Furthermore, in the cooling mode, as a refrigerant circuit in the operation mode for cooling the blown air, a receiver cycle that stores the high-pressure liquid-phase refrigerant that has flowed out of the outside air heat exchange unit 16a in the receiver tank 16b as a surplus refrigerant in the cycle can be configured. .

Therefore, the refrigerant can be completely evaporated by the indoor evaporator 18, and the blown air can be sufficiently cooled as compared with the case where an accumulator cycle in which the surplus refrigerant is stored in the accumulator 20 is configured.

In the cooling mode refrigerant circuit, the high-pressure liquid-phase refrigerant flowing out from the receiver tank 16b is supercooled by the supercooling heat exchange unit 16c. Accordingly, the coefficient of performance (COP) of the cycle is improved by expanding the enthalpy difference between the enthalpy of the outlet side refrigerant and the enthalpy of the inlet side refrigerant as in the case where a so-called subcool type condenser is employed. Can be made.

(B) 1st dehumidification heating mode In 1st dehumidification heating mode, the air-conditioning control apparatus 40 makes the 1st expansion valve 14a a throttle state, makes the 2nd expansion valve 14b a throttle state, and makes the 3rd expansion valve 14c a fully closed state. Then, the on-off valve 15 is closed. Furthermore, the air-conditioning control device 40 operates the water pump 12c so as to exhibit a predetermined reference pumping capacity. Thereby, in the heat medium circulation circuit 12 in the first dehumidifying and heating mode, the heat medium circulates as shown by the thick broken line arrows in FIG.

Further, in the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 in the first dehumidifying and heating mode, as indicated by the thick solid line arrow in FIG. 1, the outside air of the compressor 11 → the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12 a → the first expansion valve 14 a → the outdoor heat exchanger 16. Heat exchanger 16a → Receiver tank 16b of outdoor heat exchanger 16 → Supercooling heat exchanger 16c of outdoor heat exchanger 16 → Check valve 17 → Second expansion valve 14b → Indoor evaporator 18 (→ Evaporation pressure adjusting valve 19 → Accumulator 20) → Vapor compression type refrigeration cycle in which refrigerant circulates in the order of compressor 11.

In this cycle configuration, the air conditioning control device 40 controls the operations of the compressor 11, the outside air fan 16d, the blower 32, and the like, similarly to the cooling mode.

For the control signals output to the first expansion valve 14a and the second expansion valve 14b, refer to the control map previously stored in the air conditioning control device 40 based on the superheat degree SH of the suction refrigerant and the target blowing temperature TAO. To be determined.

In this control map, the total pressure reduction amount of the first expansion valve 14a and the second expansion valve 14b is determined so that the superheat degree SH of the refrigerant sucked by the compressor 11 approaches a predetermined reference superheat degree KSH. The first expansion valve 14a and the second expansion valve are so configured that the throttle opening of the first expansion valve 14a is decreased and the throttle opening of the second expansion valve 14b is increased as the target blowing temperature TAO increases. The control signal output to 14b is determined.

Also, the control signal output to the electric actuator for driving the air mix door is determined so that the air mix door 34 fully closes the cold air bypass passage 35 and fully opens the air passage on the heater core 12b side.

Therefore, in the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 in the first dehumidifying and heating mode, the state of the refrigerant changes as shown in the Mollier diagram of FIG. In FIG. 8, the state of the refrigerant at the same location in the cycle configuration as the Mollier diagram of FIG. 7 described in the cooling mode is indicated by the same reference numeral (alphabet) as in FIG. 7, and only the suffix (number) is changed. ing. The same applies to other Mollier diagrams described below.

As described above, in the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 in the first dehumidifying and heating mode, the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 11 (point a8 in FIG. 8) flows into the refrigerant passage of the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a. The refrigerant flowing into the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a exchanges heat with the heat medium flowing through the water passage of the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a to radiate heat (point a8 → b8 in FIG. 8). As a result, the heat medium circulating in the heat medium circuit 12 is heated.

The heat medium heated by the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a flows into the heater core 12b. In the first dehumidifying and heating mode, since the air mix door 34 opens the ventilation path on the heater core 12b side, the heat medium flowing into the heater core 12b and the blown air after passing through the indoor evaporator 18 exchange heat. Thereby, the temperature of the blown air cooled and dehumidified by the indoor evaporator 18 is reheated so as to approach the target blowing temperature TAO.

The refrigerant flowing out of the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a flows into the first expansion valve 14a and is depressurized until it becomes an intermediate pressure refrigerant (b8 point → c8 point in FIG. 8). The intermediate pressure refrigerant decompressed by the first expansion valve 14 a flows into the outdoor air heat exchange unit 16 a of the outdoor heat exchanger 16.

Here, in the first dehumidifying heating mode, the temperature of the intermediate pressure refrigerant is higher than the outside air temperature Tam. The reason is that if the temperature of the intermediate pressure refrigerant is lower than the outside air temperature Tam, the operation mode is switched to the second dehumidifying heating mode.

For this reason, the refrigerant that has flowed into the outside air heat exchanging portion 16a exchanges heat with the outside air blown from the outside air fan 16d, dissipates heat, and condenses (point c8 → d8 in FIG. 8). The refrigerant condensed in the outside air heat exchanging portion 16a flows into the receiver tank 16b and is separated into gas and liquid as in the cooling mode. The liquid-phase refrigerant stored on the lower side of the receiver tank 16b flows into the subcooling heat exchange unit 16c through the outlet side communication path 16j.

The liquid phase refrigerant flowing into the supercooling heat exchange unit 16c exchanges heat with the outside air blown from the outside air fan 16d, and further dissipates heat to become a supercooled liquid phase refrigerant (point d8 → e8 point in FIG. 8). The subsequent operation is the same as in the cooling mode.

As described above, the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 in the first dehumidifying and heating mode has a refrigeration cycle in which the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a and the outdoor heat exchanger 16 function as radiators and the indoor evaporator 18 functions as an evaporator. Is done. And the dehumidification heating of a vehicle interior is realizable by reheating the ventilation air cooled with the interior evaporator 18 by the heater core 12b, and blowing it out into a vehicle interior.

Further, in the first dehumidifying and heating mode, the temperature of the refrigerant (point c8 in FIG. 8) flowing into the outdoor heat exchanger 16a of the outdoor heat exchanger 16 is lower than that in the cooling mode due to the pressure reducing action of the first expansion valve 14a. . For this reason, the heat release amount of the refrigerant in the outside air heat exchanging portion 16a can be reduced and the heat release amount of the refrigerant in the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a can be increased.

Therefore, in the first dehumidifying and heating mode, the water pump 12c is operated with the same refrigerant circuit configuration as in the cooling mode, and the blown air is reheated by adjusting the opening degree of the air mix door 34, thereby dehumidifying and heating the vehicle interior. The heating capability of the blown air in the heater core 12b can be improved as compared with the case.

In the first dehumidifying and heating mode, a receiver cycle can be configured as in the cooling mode. Therefore, similarly to the cooling mode, the cooling capacity of the blown air (dehumidifying capacity in the first dehumidifying and heating mode) can be improved. Furthermore, COP can be improved similarly to the case where a subcool condenser is employed.

(C) Second Dehumidification Heating Mode In the second dehumidification heating mode, the air conditioning control device 40 places the first to

third expansion valves

14a, 14b, and 14c in the throttle state and closes the on-off valve 15. Furthermore, the air-conditioning control device 40 operates the water pump 12c so as to exhibit a predetermined reference pumping capacity. As a result, in the heat medium circulation circuit 12 in the second dehumidifying and heating mode, the heat medium circulates as shown by the thick broken line arrows in FIG.

Further, in the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 in the second dehumidifying and heating mode, as indicated by the thick solid arrow in FIG. 2, the compressor 11 → the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a → the first expansion valve 14a → the outside air heat exchanging portion 16a → the receiver. The refrigerant circulates in the order of the tank 16b → the supercooling heat exchanging portion 16c → the check valve 17 → the second expansion valve 14b → the indoor evaporator 18 (→ the evaporation pressure adjusting valve 19 → the accumulator 20) → the compressor 11 and the receiver tank. A vapor compression refrigeration cycle in which the refrigerant circulates in the order of 16b → the bypass passage 21 in which the third expansion valve 14c is arranged (→ accumulator 20) → the compressor 11 is configured.

In this cycle configuration, the air-conditioning control device 40 is electrically driven for driving the compressor 11, the first expansion valve 14a, the second expansion valve 14b, the outside air fan 16d, the blower 32, and the air mix door, as in the first dehumidifying and heating mode. Control the operation of actuators.

As for the control signal output to the third expansion valve 14c, a temperature difference ΔT (= Tam−Tout) obtained by subtracting the outdoor unit outlet temperature Tout detected by the outdoor unit temperature sensor 45b from the outdoor temperature Tam is determined in advance. It is determined to be equal to or less than the reference temperature difference KΔT.

Thus, in this embodiment, the pressure loss ΔP obtained by subtracting the outdoor unit outlet pressure Pout from the tank internal pressure Ptk is set to be equal to or smaller than a predetermined second reference pressure loss KΔP2. Here, although the second reference pressure loss KΔP2 is larger than the first reference pressure loss KΔP1, the second reference pressure loss KΔP2 is set to a relatively small value that can suppress the decrease in the COP of the cycle in the second dehumidifying heating mode. .

Therefore, in the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 in the second dehumidifying and heating mode, as shown in the Mollier diagram of FIG. 9, the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 11 (point a9 in FIG. 9) is supplied to the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a. It flows into the refrigerant passage. Thereby, the heat medium which circulates through the heat medium circulation circuit 12 is heated similarly to 1st dehumidification heating mode (a9 point-> b9 point of FIG. 9). The blown air after passing through the indoor evaporator 18 is heated by the heater core 12b using the heated heat medium as a heat source.

The refrigerant flowing out of the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a flows into the first expansion valve 14a and is depressurized until it becomes an intermediate pressure refrigerant (b9 point → c9 point in FIG. 9). The intermediate pressure refrigerant decompressed by the first expansion valve 14 a flows into the outdoor air heat exchange unit 16 a of the outdoor heat exchanger 16.

Here, in the second dehumidifying and heating mode, the temperature of the intermediate pressure refrigerant is lower than the outside air temperature Tam. The reason is that the operating condition in which the second dehumidifying and heating mode is executed is an operating condition in which the pressure loss ΔP in the supercooling heat exchange unit 16c is equal to or greater than the first reference pressure loss KΔP1, so This is because the refrigerant that functions and flows from the receiver tank 16b to the supercooling heat exchange unit 16c is a gas-liquid two-phase refrigerant or a gas-phase refrigerant.

For this reason, the refrigerant that has flowed into the outside air heat exchanging portion 16a evaporates by absorbing heat from outside air blown from the outside air fan 16d (point c9 → d9 in FIG. 9). The refrigerant that has flowed out of the outside air heat exchange unit 16a flows into the receiver tank 16b and is separated into gas and liquid.

The gas-phase refrigerant (dG9 point in FIG. 9) separated in the receiver tank 16b flows into the bypass passage 21 via the gas-phase refrigerant outlet 16g. The refrigerant flowing through the bypass passage 21 is decompressed by adjusting the flow rate by the third expansion valve 14c (point dG9 → point g9 in FIG. 9). At this time, the throttle opening degree of the third expansion valve 14c is determined so that the temperature difference ΔT1 is equal to or less than the reference temperature difference KΔT1. The refrigerant flowing out from the third expansion valve 14c is guided to the accumulator 20 side.

A small amount of liquid-phase refrigerant mixed with refrigerating machine oil also flows from the liquid-phase refrigerant outlet 16h via the oil return passage 21a to the bypass passage 21 and is guided to the accumulator 20 side. The same applies to the third dehumidifying heating mode and the heating mode described later.

Further, the gas-liquid two-phase refrigerant or the liquid-phase refrigerant (point dL9 in FIG. 9) flowing out from the outlet side communication passage 16j of the receiver tank 16b and having a relatively low dryness flows into the supercooling heat exchange section 16c. The refrigerant that has flowed into the supercooling heat exchanger 16c absorbs heat from the outside air and evaporates (dL9 point → e9 point in FIG. 9).

The refrigerant that has flowed out of the supercooling heat exchanger 16c of the outdoor heat exchanger 16 flows into the second expansion valve 14b via the check valve 17 and is depressurized (point e9 → point f9 in FIG. 9). The low-pressure refrigerant decompressed by the second expansion valve 14b flows into the indoor evaporator 18. The low-pressure refrigerant flowing into the indoor evaporator 18 absorbs heat from the blown air blown from the blower 32 and evaporates (point f9 → point g9 in FIG. 9).

The refrigerant that has flowed out of the indoor evaporator 18 merges with the gas-phase refrigerant that has flowed out of the bypass passage 21 and is sucked into the compressor 11. The refrigerant sucked into the compressor 11 is compressed again (point g9 → point a9 in FIG. 9).

As described above, the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 in the second dehumidifying and heating mode has a refrigeration cycle in which the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a functions as a radiator and the outdoor heat exchanger 16 and the indoor evaporator 18 function as an evaporator. Is done. And the dehumidification heating of a vehicle interior is realizable by reheating the ventilation air cooled with the interior evaporator 18 by the heater core 12b, and blowing it out into a vehicle interior.

Furthermore, in the second dehumidifying and heating mode, the outdoor heat exchanger 16 functions as an evaporator, so that the heat absorbed by the refrigerant in the outdoor heat exchanger 16 is dissipated to the heat medium in water-refrigerant heat exchange 12a. Can do. As a result, in the 2nd dehumidification heating mode, the heating capability of the blowing air in the heater core 12b can be improved rather than the 1st dehumidification heating mode.

Here, the second dehumidifying heating mode is an operating condition in which the refrigerant is evaporated in the outside air heat exchanging portion 16a, the supercooling heat exchanging portion 16c, and the indoor evaporator 18. As described above, in the outdoor heat exchanger 16, the passage cross-sectional area of the refrigerant flow path is reduced in the refrigerant flow direction. For this reason, if a refrigerant is evaporated in the supercooling heat exchange part 16c, there exists a possibility that the pressure loss at the time of a refrigerant | coolant distribute | circulating the supercooling heat exchange part 16c may increase, and COP may be reduced.

On the other hand, in the second dehumidifying heating mode, the third expansion valve 14c is operated so that the temperature difference ΔT is equal to or less than the reference temperature difference KΔT, so that the pressure loss ΔP can be equal to or less than the reference pressure loss KΔP2. . As a result, in the 2nd dehumidification heating mode, it can control that the COP of a cycle falls greatly.

(D) Third Dehumidification Heating Mode In the third dehumidification heating mode, the air conditioning control device 40 sets the first expansion valve 14a to the throttle state, sets the second expansion valve 14b to the throttle state, and sets the third expansion valve 14c to the fully open state. Then, the on-off valve 15 is opened. Furthermore, the air-conditioning control device 40 operates the water pump 12c so as to exhibit a predetermined reference pumping capacity. Thereby, in the heat medium circulation circuit 12 in the third dehumidifying and heating mode, the heat medium circulates as shown by the thick broken line arrows in FIG.

Furthermore, in the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 in the third dehumidifying and heating mode, as indicated by the thick solid arrow in FIG. 3, the compressor 11 → the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a → the first expansion valve 14a → the outside air heat exchanging portion 16a → the receiver. The refrigerant circulates in the order of the tank 16b → the bypass passage 21 where the third expansion valve 14c is arranged → the accumulator 20 → the compressor, and the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a (→ the open / close valve 15) → the second expansion valve 14b → the indoor A vapor compression refrigeration cycle in which the refrigerant circulates in the order of the evaporator 18 → the evaporation pressure adjusting valve 19 → the accumulator 20 → the compressor 11 is configured.

In this cycle configuration, the air conditioning control device 40 controls the operation of the compressor 11, the outside air fan 16d, the blower 32, the electric actuator for driving the air mix door, and the like, as in the first dehumidifying and heating mode.

For the control signals output to the first expansion valve 14a and the second expansion valve 14b, referring to a control map stored in advance in the air conditioning control device 40 based on the target blowing temperature TAO and the like, The COP is determined so as to approach the maximum value. Specifically, in this control map, the throttle opening of the second expansion valve 14b is determined so as to be a predetermined reference opening. Furthermore, it determines so that the throttle opening degree of the 1st expansion valve 14a may be decreased with the raise of the target blowing temperature TAO.

Therefore, in the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 in the third dehumidifying and heating mode, as shown in the Mollier diagram of FIG. 10, the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 11 (point a10 in FIG. 10) is transferred to the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a. It flows into the refrigerant passage. Thereby, similarly to the 1st and 2nd dehumidification heating modes, the heat carrier which circulates through the heat carrier circuit 12 is heated (point a10 → b10 in FIG. 10). The blown air after passing through the indoor evaporator 18 is heated by the heater core 12b using the heated heat medium as a heat source.

The flow of the refrigerant flowing out of the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a is branched at the first three-way joint 13a because the on-off valve 15 is open.

One refrigerant branched by the first three-way joint 13a flows into the first expansion valve 14a and is decompressed until it becomes a low-pressure refrigerant (b10 point → c10 point in FIG. 10). The low-pressure refrigerant decompressed by the first expansion valve 14a flows into the outside air heat exchange unit 16a, absorbs heat from the outside air blown from the blower fan, and evaporates (point c10 → d10 in FIG. 10). The refrigerant that has flowed out of the outside air heat exchange unit 16a flows into the receiver tank 16b and is separated into gas and liquid.

The gas-phase refrigerant (dG10 point in FIG. 10) separated by the receiver tank 16b flows into the bypass passage 21 through the gas-phase refrigerant outlet 16g. In the third dehumidifying heating mode, the third expansion valve 14c is fully opened, so that the refrigerant flowing through the bypass passage 21 is led to the accumulator 20 side with almost no pressure reduction. The liquid-phase refrigerant separated in the receiver tank 16b does not flow out to the supercooling heat exchange unit 16c side due to the action of the check valve 17.

On the other hand, the other refrigerant branched at the first three-way joint 13a flows into the second expansion valve 14b via the on-off valve 15 and the second three-way joint 13b and is decompressed until it becomes a low-pressure refrigerant (FIG. 10). B10 point → f10 point). At this time, the refrigerant evaporating temperature is maintained at a reference temperature (1 ° C. in the present embodiment) or higher by the throttle opening degree of the evaporating pressure adjusting valve 19 so that frosting of the indoor evaporator 18 can be suppressed.

The low-pressure refrigerant decompressed by the second expansion valve 14b flows into the indoor evaporator 18 and absorbs heat from the blown air blown from the blower 32 to evaporate (f10 point → g10 point in FIG. 10). Thereby, blowing air is cooled. The refrigerant flowing out of the indoor evaporator 18 is decompressed when passing through the evaporation pressure adjusting valve 19 (g10 point → dG10 point in FIG. 10), and is equivalent to the refrigerant flowing out from the receiver tank 16b of the outdoor heat exchanger 16. It becomes pressure.

The refrigerant decompressed by the evaporation pressure adjusting valve 19 joins the refrigerant that has flowed out of the receiver tank 16b of the outdoor heat exchanger 16 and flows into the accumulator 20. The gas-phase refrigerant flowing out of the accumulator 20 is sucked into the compressor 11 and compressed again (dG10 point → a10 point in FIG. 10).

As described above, in the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 in the third dehumidifying and heating mode, the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a functions as a radiator, and the outdoor heat exchanger 16a and the indoor evaporator 18 of the outdoor heat exchanger 16 are used as evaporators. A functioning refrigeration cycle is configured. And the dehumidification heating of a vehicle interior is realizable by reheating the ventilation air cooled with the interior evaporator 18 by the heater core 12b, and blowing it out into a vehicle interior.

Furthermore, in the third dehumidifying and heating mode, the refrigerant evaporation temperature in the outdoor air heat exchange unit 16a can be made lower than the refrigerant evaporation temperature of the indoor evaporator 18. Accordingly, the amount of heat absorbed by the refrigerant from the outside air can be increased in the outside air heat exchanging portion 16a, and the heating capacity of the blown air in the heater core 12b can be improved as compared with the second dehumidifying heating mode.

(E) Heating mode In the heating mode, the air-conditioning control device 40 sets the first expansion valve 14a to the throttle state, the second expansion valve 14b to the fully closed state, the third expansion valve 14c to the fully open state, and the on-off valve 15 to close. Furthermore, the air-conditioning control device 40 operates the water pump 12c so as to exhibit a predetermined reference pumping capacity. Thereby, in the heat medium circulation circuit 12 in the heating mode, the heat medium circulates as shown by the thick broken line arrows in FIG.

Furthermore, in the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 in the heating mode, as indicated by a thick solid line arrow in FIG. 4, the compressor 11 → the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a → the first expansion valve 14a → the outside air heat exchanger 16a → the receiver tank 16b → A vapor compression refrigeration cycle is configured in which the refrigerant circulates in the order of the bypass passage 21 where the third expansion valve 14c is arranged, the accumulator 20, and the compressor.

In this cycle configuration, the air conditioning control device 40 determines the operating states of the various control target devices (control signals output to the various control target devices).

For example, the refrigerant discharge capacity of the compressor 11, that is, the control signal output to the electric motor of the compressor 11 is determined as follows. First, the target condensing pressure PDO in the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a is determined based on the target blowing temperature TAO with reference to a control map stored in the air conditioning controller 40 in advance.

Specifically, in this control map, the target condensing pressure PDO is determined to increase as the target blowing temperature TAO increases. Then, based on the deviation between the target condensing pressure PDO and the discharge pressure Pd detected by the discharge pressure sensor 46a, the feedback control method is used so that the discharge pressure Pd approaches the target condensing pressure PDO. A control signal output to the electric motor is determined.

Further, the control signal output to the first expansion valve 14b is determined so that the supercooling degree SC of the refrigerant flowing into the first expansion valve 14b becomes the target supercooling degree SCO. The target supercooling degree SCO is determined with reference to a control map stored in advance in the air conditioning control device 40 based on the discharge pressure Pd. Specifically, in this control map, the target supercooling degree SCO for heating is determined so that the COP of the cycle approaches the maximum value.

Therefore, in the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 in the heating mode, as shown in the Mollier diagram of FIG. 11, the refrigerant discharged from the compressor 11 (point a11 in FIG. 11) flows to the refrigerant passage of the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a. Inflow. As a result, the heat medium circulating in the heat medium circuit 12 is heated (point a11 → b11 in FIG. 11). The blown air after passing through the indoor evaporator 18 is heated by the heater core 12b using the heated heat medium as a heat source.

The refrigerant flowing out of the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a flows into the first expansion valve 14a and is depressurized until it becomes a low-pressure refrigerant (b11 point → c11 point in FIG. 11). The low-pressure refrigerant decompressed by the first expansion valve 14a flows into the outside air heat exchange unit 16a, absorbs heat from the outside air blown from the blower fan, and evaporates (point c11 → d11 in FIG. 11). The refrigerant that has flowed out of the outside air heat exchange unit 16a flows into the receiver tank 16b and is separated into gas and liquid.

The gas-phase refrigerant (dG11 point in FIG. 11) separated in the receiver tank 16b flows into the bypass passage 21 via the gas-phase refrigerant outlet 16g. In the third dehumidifying heating mode, the third expansion valve 14c is fully opened, so that the refrigerant flowing through the bypass passage 21 is led to the accumulator 20 side with almost no pressure reduction. Since the second expansion valve 14b is fully closed, the liquid phase refrigerant separated in the receiver tank 16b does not flow out to the supercooling heat exchange unit 16c side.

The gas-phase refrigerant that has flowed out of the accumulator 20 is sucked into the compressor 11 and compressed again (dG11 point → a11 point in FIG. 11).

As described above, in the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 in the heating mode, a refrigeration cycle is configured in which the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a functions as a radiator and the outdoor heat exchanger 16a of the outdoor heat exchanger 16 functions as an evaporator. . And the heating of a vehicle interior is realizable by blowing the ventilation air heated with the heater core 12b into the vehicle interior.

Here, the heating mode is an operating condition in which the refrigerant is evaporated in the outside air heat exchanger 16a. Furthermore, in the heating mode, as a refrigerant circuit in the operation mode for heating the blown air, the liquid phase refrigerant that has flowed out of the outside air heat exchanging portion 16a is used as a surplus refrigerant in the cycle, and the receiver tank 16b disposed on the suction side of the compressor 11 and An accumulator cycle stored in the accumulator 20 can be configured. Accordingly, the blown air can be sufficiently heated.

In the heating mode refrigerant circuit of the present embodiment, the refrigerant pressure in the receiver tank 16b and the refrigerant pressure in the accumulator 20 are substantially equal, and both the receiver tank 16b and the accumulator 20 store the excess refrigerant in the cycle. ing.

The reason is that the volume in the refrigeration cycle apparatus when switched to the refrigerant circuit in the heating mode is smaller than the volume when switched to the refrigerant circuit in another operation mode, and the amount of surplus refrigerant in the heating mode is This is because the amount of surplus refrigerant in the other operation modes becomes larger. Therefore, the accumulator 20 may be abolished if it is possible to store surplus refrigerant only with the receiver tank 16b when the refrigerant circuit is switched to the heating mode.

Therefore, in the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 of the present embodiment, the receiver cycle can be configured as a cooling mode refrigerant circuit for cooling the blown air, and the blown air can be sufficiently cooled. Furthermore, the outdoor heat exchanger 16 can be made to function as a subcool type heat exchanger, and the COP of a cycle can be improved.

Further, an accumulator cycle can be configured as a refrigerant circuit in a heating mode for heating the blown air, and the blown air can be sufficiently heated. That is, according to the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 of the present embodiment, the refrigerant circuit is configured to be switchable, and the blown air that is the heat exchange target fluid can be sufficiently cooled or heated.

Further, according to the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 of the present embodiment, the refrigerant circuit that evaporates the refrigerant in the outdoor air heat exchange unit 16a, the supercooling heat exchange unit 16c, and the indoor evaporator 18 as in the second dehumidifying heating mode. Can be configured. According to this, the blown air can be heated by the heater core 12b, and at the same time, the blown air can be cooled by the indoor evaporator 18.

At this time, in the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 of the present embodiment, the operation of the third expansion valve 14c is controlled so that the pressure loss ΔP of the refrigerant in the supercooling heat exchange unit 16c is equal to or less than the reference pressure loss KΔP2. A decrease in the COP of the cycle can be suppressed. Further, since the operation of the third expansion valve 14c is controlled so that the temperature difference ΔT is equal to or less than the reference temperature difference KΔT, a refrigeration cycle apparatus that does not have a relatively expensive tank pressure sensor 46b with respect to the temperature sensor. Even so, it is possible to easily suppress a decrease in the COP of the cycle.

(Second Embodiment)
Compared with the first embodiment, the present embodiment eliminates the heat medium circulation circuit 12, the water-refrigerant heat exchanger 12a, the heater core 12b, and the water pump 12c, as shown in the overall configuration diagram of FIG. The example which employ | adopted the condenser 12d is demonstrated. In FIG. 12, the same or equivalent parts as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals.

The indoor condenser 12d is a heating unit that heats the blown air by exchanging heat between the high-pressure refrigerant discharged from the compressor 11 and the blown air that has passed through the indoor evaporator 18. The indoor condenser 12d is disposed in the casing 31 of the indoor air conditioning unit 30 in the same manner as the heater core 12b described in the first embodiment. Other configurations and operations of the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 are the same as those in the first embodiment.

As in the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 of the present embodiment, even if the configuration is such that the blown air that is the heat exchange target fluid is directly heated by the high-pressure refrigerant without interposing a heat medium, the same as in the first embodiment. In addition, the blown air can be sufficiently cooled or heated even when the refrigerant circuit is switched.

The present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be made as follows without departing from the spirit of the present disclosure.

In the above-described embodiment, an example in which the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 is applied to a hybrid vehicle has been described, but application of the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 according to the present disclosure is not limited to this. For example, you may apply to the normal vehicle which obtains the driving force for driving | running | working from an internal combustion engine. When applied to a vehicle having an internal combustion engine, the engine coolant may be allowed to flow into the heat medium circulation circuit 12 described in the first embodiment. Further, the present invention is not limited to a vehicle and may be applied to a stationary air conditioner or the like.

The control mode of the air conditioning control device 40 in each operation mode is not limited to that disclosed in the above-described embodiment.

In the above-described embodiment, an example of switching to the second dehumidifying heating mode when the pressure loss ΔP in the supercooling heat exchange unit 16c becomes equal to or higher than the first reference pressure loss KΔP1 during the operation in the first dehumidifying heating mode will be described. However, the switching of the operation mode is not limited to this.

For example, during operation in the first dehumidifying and heating mode, when the temperature of the refrigerant flowing into the outside air heat exchanging portion 16a of the outdoor heat exchanger 16 becomes lower than the outside air temperature Tam, the mode is switched to the second dehumidifying and heating mode. May be. According to this, even in a refrigeration cycle apparatus that does not have a tank pressure sensor 46b that is relatively expensive with respect to the temperature sensor, switching between the first dehumidifying heating mode and the second dehumidifying heating mode can be performed. .

In the first embodiment, the example in which the air conditioning control device 40 stops the water pump 12c in the cooling mode has been described, but the water pump 12c may be operated in the same manner as in other operation modes. In the cooling mode, the air mix door 34 fully closes the ventilation path on the heater core 12b side, so that the blown air is not heated even when the water pump 12c is operated. Furthermore, by operating the water pump 12c and heating the heat medium in the heat medium circuit 12, the blown air can be quickly heated when switching from the cooling mode to another operation mode. .

In the above-described embodiment, the example in which the reference superheat degree KSH in the cooling mode is set to 5 ° C. has been described. However, according to the study by the present inventors, the cooling capacity in the cooling mode and the COP of the cycle are improved. It is known that the reference superheat degree KSH should be set to about 5 ° C. to 15 ° C.

In the second dehumidifying and heating mode of the above-described embodiment, the operation of the third expansion valve 14c is controlled such that the temperature difference ΔT obtained by subtracting the outdoor unit outlet temperature Tout from the outside air temperature Tam is equal to or less than the reference temperature difference KΔT. However, the control mode of the third expansion valve 14c in the second dehumidifying and heating mode is not limited to this.

For example, the operation of the third expansion valve 14c may be controlled using the detected values of the tank internal pressure Ptk and the outdoor unit outlet pressure Pout so that the pressure loss ΔP is equal to or less than the second reference pressure loss KΔP2. In the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 that does not include the tank pressure sensor 46b, a tank temperature sensor that detects the tank internal temperature Ttk of the refrigerant in the receiver tank 16b is provided, and the tank internal pressure Ptk is estimated and used from the tank internal temperature Ttk. Also good.

Further, in each operation mode of the above-described embodiment, an example in which the opening degree of the air mix door 34 is not adjusted has been described. However, in the cooling mode and the first to third dehumidifying heating modes, the air-conditioning wind temperature sensor 47 detects the air mix door 34. You may adjust the opening degree of the air mix door 34 so that the ventilation air temperature TAV approaches the target blowing temperature TAO.

Each configuration of the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 is not limited to that disclosed in the above-described embodiment.

For example, in the above-described embodiment, an example in which an electric compressor is employed as the compressor 11 has been described. However, when applied to a vehicle having an internal combustion engine, an engine-driven compressor may be employed. . Furthermore, as the engine-driven compressor, a variable capacity compressor configured to be able to adjust the refrigerant discharge capacity by changing the discharge capacity may be adopted.

Moreover, although the above-mentioned embodiment demonstrated the example which employ | adopted the outdoor heat exchanger 16 which comprised the outdoor air heat exchange part 16a, the receiver tank 16b, and the subcooling heat exchange part 16c integrally, of course, outdoor air heat exchange is carried out. The unit 16a, the receiver tank 16b, and the supercooling heat exchange unit 16c may be configured separately.

In the above-described embodiment, the example in which the refrigerant circuit is configured to be switchable as the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 has been described. However, in order to obtain the effect of the temperature adjustment apparatus according to the present disclosure, Switching is not mandatory.

In the above-described embodiment, the example in which R134a is adopted as the refrigerant of the refrigeration cycle apparatus 10 has been described, but the refrigerant is not limited to this. For example, R1234yf, R600a, R410A, R404A, R32, R407C, etc. may be adopted. Or you may employ | adopt the mixed refrigerant | coolant etc. which mixed multiple types among these refrigerant | coolants.

Although the present disclosure has been described based on the embodiments, it is understood that the present disclosure is not limited to the embodiments and structures. The present disclosure includes various modifications and modifications within the equivalent range. In addition, although various combinations and forms are shown in the present disclosure, other combinations and forms including only one element, more or less than them are also included in the scope and concept of the present disclosure. Is.

Claims

A compressor (11) for compressing and discharging the refrigerant;
A heating unit (12, 12a, 12b, 12c, 12d) for heating the fluid to be heat exchanged using the refrigerant discharged from the compressor as a heat source;
An outside air heat exchanging section (16a) for exchanging heat between the refrigerant and the outside air;
A liquid receiving part (16b) for storing the liquid phase refrigerant flowing out of the outside air heat exchange part;
A supercooling heat exchange section (16c) for exchanging heat between the refrigerant flowing out of the liquid receiving section and the outside air;
An evaporating section (18) for evaporating the refrigerant by exchanging heat with the heat exchange target fluid;
A first decompression section (14a) for decompressing the refrigerant flowing into the outside air heat exchange section;
A second decompression section (14b) for decompressing the refrigerant flowing into the evaporation section;
A bypass path (21) for guiding the refrigerant flowing out from the liquid receiving section to the suction side of the compressor;
A refrigerant circuit switching device (14c, 15) for switching the refrigerant circuit,
The refrigerant circuit switching device is
During an operating condition for condensing the refrigerant in the outside air heat exchange section, the bypass passage is closed, the compressor, the outside air heat exchange section, the liquid receiving section, the supercooling heat exchange section, the second decompression section, the Switch to the refrigerant circuit that circulates the refrigerant in the order of the evaporator, the compressor,
During the operating conditions for evaporating the refrigerant in the outside air heat exchanging section, the bypass path is opened, the compressor, the heating section, the first pressure reducing section, the outside air heat exchanging section, the liquid receiving section, the bypass path, A refrigeration cycle apparatus that switches to a refrigerant circuit that circulates refrigerant in the order of the compressor.
Furthermore, the refrigerant circuit switching device includes:
During the operating conditions for evaporating the refrigerant in the outside air heat exchange unit and the supercooling heat exchange unit, the bypass passage is opened, the compressor, the heating unit, the first decompression unit, the outside air heat exchange unit, A refrigerant that circulates the refrigerant in the order of the liquid receiver, the subcooling heat exchanger, the second decompression unit, the evaporator, and the compressor, and that circulates the refrigerant in the order of the liquid receiver, the bypass passage, and the compressor The refrigeration cycle apparatus according to claim 1, which is switched to a circuit.
The refrigeration cycle apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the refrigerant circuit switching device includes a flow rate adjusting device (14c) for adjusting a flow rate of the refrigerant flowing through the bypass passage.
A flow rate adjustment control unit (40b) for controlling the operation of the flow rate adjustment device;
The flow rate adjustment control unit is configured to calculate the supercooling heat exchange unit from the tank pressure (Ptk) of the refrigerant in the liquid receiving unit during an operating condition in which the refrigerant is evaporated in the outside air heat exchange unit and the supercooling heat exchange unit. The operation of the flow rate adjusting device is controlled so that the pressure loss (ΔP) obtained by subtracting the outdoor unit outlet pressure (Pout) of the refrigerant flowing out from the refrigerant becomes equal to or less than a predetermined reference pressure loss (KΔP2). 3. The refrigeration cycle apparatus according to 3.
In the flow rate adjustment control unit, a temperature difference (ΔT) obtained by subtracting an outdoor unit outlet temperature (Tout) of the refrigerant flowing out from the supercooling heat exchange unit from an outside air temperature (Tam) is equal to or less than a predetermined reference temperature difference (KΔT). Thus, the operation of the flow rate adjusting device is controlled so that the pressure loss (ΔP) is equal to or less than the reference pressure loss (KΔP2).