Energy optimisation of domestic refrigerators

This paper describes the main results of a research project with the objective of reducing the energy consumption of domestic refrigerators by increasing the efficiency of the refrigeration system. The improvement of the system efficiency was to be obtained by:1) Introducing continuous operation by using a variable speed compressor for controlling the capacity of the refrigeration system.2) Introducing a variable speed fan for enhancing the heat transfer in the evaporator.It was the aim of the project to reduce the energy consumption of a standard refrigerator, available on the market today, by 50 %.