Disclosed is a valve having: a body that has an upstream end and a downstream end; an inlet orifice; a plurality of passages including: a first outlet passage extending into the body from the downstream end to a location intermediate the upstream end and the downstream end of the body; an inlet passage extending into the body from the upstream end of the body, the plurality of passages extending along mutually parallel axes, wherein the axes are offset radially and/or circumferentially from each other; and the inlet passage being formed in an insert configured for axially moving to: fluidly engage with the first outlet passage to define a continuous fluid passage between the upstream end and the downstream end of the body, wherein: an output flow rate through the body increases or decreases depending on an axial location of the insert.

An air-conditioning apparatus is capable of performing a heating-defrosting operation where a specific one of a plurality of parallel heat exchangers is a heat exchanger to be defrosted and serves as a condenser while at least one parallel heat exchanger other than the heat exchanger to be defrosted serves as an evaporator. The air-conditioning apparatus includes a liquid refrigerant transporting unit for transferring liquid refrigerant from an accumulator to the heat exchanger to be defrosted. To perform the heating-defrosting operation, the air-conditioning apparatus supplies, to the heat exchanger to be defrosted, the liquid refrigerant transferred by the liquid refrigerant transporting unit.

An outdoor unit of an air conditioner having an expansion valve unit. The outdoor unit of the air conditioner includes a compressor, a heat exchanger configured to exchange heat between outdoor air and refrigerant compressed by the compressor, an expansion valve unit configured to decompress the refrigerant discharged from the heat exchanger, a refrigerant pipe configured to deliver the refrigerant, which is decompressed and expanded by the expansion valve unit, to the indoor unit of the air conditioner, and a bracket configured to support the expansion valve unit. The expansion valve unit includes an expansion valve, a first connection portion configured to connect the expansion valve to the heat exchanger, and a second connection portion configured to connect the expansion valve to the refrigerant pipe. The expansion valve, and one of the first connection portion or the second connection portion are fixed to the bracket.

An air conditioner includes a compressor, a condenser, an expansion valve, an evaporator, and a temperature detection unit. The temperature detection unit is attached to the condenser and is configured to detect a temperature of the refrigerant in the condenser. The expansion valve is configured to be capable of adjusting a flow rate per unit time of the refrigerant flowing through the expansion valve by adjusting a degree of opening of the expansion valve. The degree of opening of the expansion valve is increased when the temperature of the refrigerant detected by the temperature detection unit rises, and the degree of opening of the expansion valve is decreased when the temperature of the refrigerant detected by the temperature detection unit falls.

A refrigerator that includes: a storage space configured to be cooled by a refrigeration cycle cooling system; a wall defines a boundary of the storage space; a low temperature case that is arranged adjacent to a portion of a first surface of the wall; a thermoelectric element module (TEM) assembly that is configured to supply cool air to the low temperature case; and a TEM accommodating part that protrudes from the first surface of the wall and that accommodates the TEM assembly, wherein the low temperature case includes an opening through which the TEM accommodating part is inserted, and wherein a sealant is provided between the low temperature case and the wall to couple the low temperature case to the first surface of the wall is disclosed.

The present invention provides a ternary natural refrigerant mixture containing R-600a (isobutane), R-600 (isobutane), and R-290 (propane) that can be used in single or dual evaporator refrigeration systems to provide for more energy efficient cooling than a single refrigerant such as R-134a without having to change the compressor design, which can add to manufacturing costs. For example, the ternary natural refrigerant mixture can be used in a refrigeration system that uses dual evaporators to provide more efficient cooling. The refrigeration system can be used in, e.g., a refrigerator having a fresh food compartment and a frozen food compartment to provide separate cooling to each compartment simultaneously.

Heat pump systems and methods of operating including a first unit having a first unit heat exchanger, a compressor, an accumulator, and a first unit expansion valve, a second unit fluidly connected to the first unit by piping, the second unit having a second unit heat exchanger, and a system controller, the system controller having (I) a PID control element receiving as inputs (i) gain scheduling, (ii) an error signal, and (iii) feedback relating to an opening command of the first unit expansion valve, and (II) a feedforward control element generating a feedforward term that is combined with an output of the PID control element to generate the opening command of the first unit expansion valve. The system controller controls an opening of the first unit expansion valve using the opening command of the first unit expansion valve.

A refrigerator appliance includes a sealed system with a first evaporator connected in series with a first capillary tube and a second evaporator connected in series with second and third capillary tubes such that the second evaporator is between the second and third capillary tubes. The first capillary tube is sized such that the chilled air at the first evaporator is a first temperature during operation of the sealed system. The second capillary tube is sized such that the chilled air at the second evaporator is a second, different temperature during operation of the sealed system.

A refrigerator includes a compressor configured to circulate a refrigerant, a condenser configured to condense the refrigerant circulated by the compressor, a cooling component configured to cool a storage compartment using the refrigerant condensed by the condenser, and a processor configured to control driving of the cooling component, obtain a load variation of the storage compartment of the refrigerator, the load variation comprising a refrigeration cycle, identify a drive value for driving a component forming the refrigeration cycle based on the load variation, drive the cooling component based on the drive value, and obtain the load variation with a lapse of time during at least one cooling period in which the refrigeration cycle cools the storage cornpartment.

A refrigerator appliance includes an icemaker having a mold body that defines an ice cavity. The ice cavity is defined at least in part by a bottom wall positioned at a bottom portion of ice cavity and a back wall positioned at a rear portion of the ice cavity. First and second bottom wall segments are positioned and oriented such that an upper surface of the first bottom wall segment defines a first angle with a front surface of the back wall and such that an upper surface of the second bottom wall segment defines a second angle with the front surface of the back wall.