What is the difference between the working principles of evaporator and condenser?

In the refrigeration and air conditioning system, the evaporator and condenser are two indispensable key components. Although they both involve the heat transfer process, their working principles and functions are completely different. The main function of the evaporator is to absorb heat from the environment, so that the liquid refrigerant evaporates into a gaseous state to achieve the effect of refrigeration. When the liquid refrigerant enters the evaporator, due to the low pressure, the boiling point of the refrigerant is also reduced accordingly. In this low-pressure and low-temperature environment, the refrigerant begins to absorb the heat around the evaporator. This heat usually comes from the cooled air or liquid. As the heat is continuously absorbed, the liquid refrigerant gradually vaporizes and becomes a gas. This process not only allows the refrigerant to complete the state transition, but also takes away heat from the environment, thereby achieving a cooling effect on the environment. The evaporator is like a "heat absorber". It absorbs the surrounding heat through the vaporization process of the refrigerant, making the cooled space cooler.

The function of the condenser is to cool and condense the high-temperature and high-pressure gaseous refrigerant compressed by the compressor into a liquid state, while releasing heat to the environment. The temperature and pressure of the refrigerant compressed by the compressor rise significantly, carrying a large amount of heat energy. When this part of gaseous refrigerant enters the condenser, the condenser takes away the heat released by the refrigerant through the cooling medium of air or water, so that the temperature of the refrigerant is reduced and gradually condensed into liquid. This heat release process is the key link in the heat release of the refrigeration system. The condenser is like a "heat releaser", which ensures the continuous circulation of the refrigerant by discharging the heat in the system to the outside world. The heat is transferred from the refrigerant to the environment to achieve the overall thermal balance of the system.

The difference between the evaporator and the condenser is mainly reflected in their different refrigerant states and heat flow directions. The evaporator is in a low temperature and low pressure state, responsible for absorbing environmental heat and vaporizing the liquid refrigerant into a gaseous state; while the condenser is in a high temperature and high pressure state, responsible for releasing heat and cooling the gaseous refrigerant into a liquid state. The two complement each other in the refrigeration cycle, and together complete the complete process of absorbing heat from the environment and releasing heat to the environment, ensuring the normal and efficient operation of the refrigeration system.