A thrilling, mystery-lifting narrative history of the refrigerator and the process of refrigeration The refrigerator. This white box that sits in the kitchen may seem mundane nowadays, but it is one of the wonders of 20th century science – life-saver, food-preserver and social liberator, while the science of refrigeration is crucial, not just in transporting food around the globe but in a host of branches on the scientific tree. Refrigerators, refrigeration and its discovery and applications provide the eye-opening backdrop to Chilled, the story of how science managed to rewrite the rules of food, and how the technology whirring behind every refrigerator is at play, unseen, in a surprisingly broad sweep of modern life. Part historical narrative, part scientific mystery-lifter, Chilled looks at the ice-pits of Persia (Iranians still call their fridge the 'ice-pit'), reports on a tug of war between 16 horses and the atmosphere, bears witness to ice harvests on the Regents Canal, and shows how bleeding sailors demonstrated to ship's doctors that heat is indestructible, featuring a cast of characters such as the Ice King of Boston, Galileo, Francis Bacon, and the ostracised son of a notorious 18th-century French traitor. As people learned more about what cold actually was, scientists invented machines for making it, with these first used in earnest to chill Australian lager. The principles behind those white boxes in the kitchen remain the same today, but refrigeration is not all about food – a refrigerator is needed to make soap, penicillin and orange squash; without it, IVF would be impossible. Refrigeration technology has also been crucial in some of the most important scientific breakthroughs of the last 100 years, from the discovery of superconductors to the search for the Higgs boson. And the fridge will still be pulling the strings behind the scenes as teleporters and intelligent computer brains turn our science-fiction vision of the future into fact.

For thousands of years, humans coped with heat by harvesting and storing natural ice and devising natural cooling systems that utilized ventilation and evaporation. By the mid 1800s, people began developing huge refrigeration machines to manufacture ice. By the early 1900s, engineers developed electric domestic refrigerators, which by 1927 were affordable convenient household appliances. By then, an increasingly sophisticated public demanded more modern-looking appliances than engineers could produce, and a new breed of designers entered the manufacturing world to provide them. During the Depression, modern designs not only increased sales but resulted in the kitchen appliances we now use. Today refrigeration preserves perishable food for worldwide distribution, makes tropical climates habitable for millions, saves lives with medical applications and enables space flight.

Modern Refrigeration and Air Conditioning is the leader in the refrigeration and air conditioning field! This comprehensive text teaches fundamental principles and service techniques. The text tells and shows how to diagnose and remedy HVAC problems. It provides an excellent blend of theory with job-qualifying skills. This text contains all the most recent information and advances necessary to prepare the technician for today's world. Modern Refrigeration and Air Conditioning provides the foundation on which a solid and thorough knowledge of refrigeration and air conditioning may be based. Students, as well as practicing technicians, will benefit from the topics covered in this book. This edition includes up-to-date information on refrigerant recovery, recycling, and reclaiming. -- Chapters are divided into smaller self-standing modules for ease of use. -- Covers the operation of systems and their specific components. -- Progresses from basic to advanced principles using understandable terminology. -- Current information on the EPA rules, regulations, and guidelines. -- Identification of the various types of new refrigerants such as 134a and 123, and information on equipment needed for refrigerant recovery, recycling, and reclaiming. -- Up-to-date methods of sizing, installing, and maintaining refrigeration and air conditioning systems. -- Proper procedures for using troubleshooting charts. -- Emphasizes procedures that will help the service technician become more efficient. -- Uses both US Conventional and SI Metric units. -- Chapters include Module Title(s), Key Terms, Objectives, Review of Safety (where applicable), and Test Your Knowledge questions.

How we keep food cold while the house stays warm. Only when the power goes off and food spoils do we truly appreciate how much we rely on refrigerators and freezers. In Refrigeration Nation, Jonathan Rees explores the innovative methods and gadgets that Americans have invented to keep perishable food cold—from cutting river and lake ice and shipping it to consumers for use in their iceboxes to the development of electrically powered equipment that ushered in a new age of convenience and health. As much a history of successful business practices as a history of technology, this book illustrates how refrigeration has changed the everyday lives of Americans and why it remains so important today. Beginning with the natural ice industry in 1806, Rees considers a variety of factors that drove the industry, including the point and product of consumption, issues of transportation, and technological advances. Rees also shows that how we obtain and preserve perishable food is related to our changing relationship with the natural world.

* A broad range of disciplines--energy conservation and air quality issues, construction and design, and the manufacture of temperature-sensitive products and materials--is covered in this comprehensive handbook * Provide essential, up-to-date HVAC data, codes, standards, and guidelines, all conveniently located in one volume * A definitive reference source on the design, selection and operation of A/C and refrigeration systems

Covering both the theoretical and practical aspects of refrigeration and air-conditioning.

This textbook offers a comprehensive introduction to the theoretical principles and practical aspects of refrigeration and air conditioning systems. Written by a teacher with 30 years experience, this work is intended to provide students with a deeper understanding and a firm grasp of the basic principles of this exciting subject area. This text is ideally suited for undergraduate education in mechanical engineering programmes and specialised postgraduate education in thermosciences. The text begins by reviewing, in a simple and precise manner, the physical principles of three pillars of refrigeration and air conditioning - thermodynamics, heat transfer, and fluid mechanics. Following an overview of the history of refrigeration, subsequent chapters provide exhaustive coverage of the principles, applications and design of several types of refrigeration systems and their associated components, such as compressors, condensers, evaporators, and expansion devices. Refrigerants are examined in a separate chapter. The second part of the book, beginning with the historical background of air conditioning, discusses the subject of psychrometrics at the heart of understanding the design and implementation of air conditioning processes and systems, which are subsequently dealt with in later chapters. It also explains the design practices for cooling and heating load calculations. Each chapter contains several worked-out examples that clarify the material discussed and illustrate the use of basic principles in engineering applications. Each chapter also ends with a set of review questions.

Refrigeration, Air Conditioning and Heat Pumps, Fifth Edition, provides a comprehensive introduction to the principles and practice of refrigeration. Clear and comprehensive, it is suitable for both trainee and professional HVAC engineers, with a straightforward approach that also helps inexperienced readers gain a comprehensive introduction to the fundamentals of the technology. With its concise style and broad scope, the book covers most of the equipment and applications professionals will encounter. The simplicity of the descriptions helps users understand, specify, commission, use, and maintain these systems. It is a must-have text for anyone who needs thorough, foundational information on refrigeration and air conditioning, but without textbook pedagogy. It includes detailed technicalities or product-specific information. New material to this edition includes the latest developments in refrigerants and lubricants, together with updated information on compressors, heat exchangers, liquid chillers, electronic expansion valves, controls, and cold storage. In addition, efficiency, environmental impact, split systems, retail refrigeration (supermarket systems and cold rooms), industrial systems, fans, air infiltration, and noise are also included. - Full theoretical and practical treatment of current issues and trends in refrigeration and air conditioning technology - Meets the needs of industry practitioners and system designers who need a rigorous, but accessible reference to the latest developments in refrigeration and AC that is supported by coverage at a level not found in typical course textbooks - New edition features updated content on refrigerants, microchannel technology, noise, condensers, data centers, and electronic control