What’s inside a non-electric refrigerator?
Gas and kerosene refrigerators use a mixture of water, ammonia and hydrogen to create a continuous cooling cycle. The mixture is pressurized so that the ammonia stays in liquid form when it’s at room temperature. The refrigerator has five main parts: • Generator or “boiler” – generates ammonia gas • Separator – separates ammonia gas from water • Condenser – where hot ammonia gas is cooled and condensed to create liquid ammonia • Evaporator – where liquid ammonia evaporates to create cold temperatures inside the refrigerator • Absorber – absorbs the ammonia gas in water How a non-electric refrigerator works Heat provides the energy needed to produce pure liquid ammonia. • Heat is applied to the generator/boiler. • There is a mixture of ammonia and water in the generator/boiler. The ammonia boils at a lower temperature than water and begins to bubble. The bubbles carry a mixture of ammonia gas, liquid ammonia, steam and water up through the pump (C), just the way a coffee percolator work
