Abstract: The performance of the suction and discharge processes in a refrigerator reciprocating compressor is largely determined by the movement pattern of the valve plate. Traditional analytical methods generally assume uniform flow at the suction port. However, during the suction process, the geometry of the suction valve plate results in varying instantaneous flow patterns at the valve port. Different flow patterns lead to significant differences in suction losses, thereby affecting compressor performance. By applying the fluid-structure interaction (FSI) model validated through experimental studies, the influence of the suction valve assembly structure on valve plate movement and fluid performance during the compressor’s suction process was investigated. The results demonstrate that optimizing the design of the suction port and valve plate shape can effectively increase suction volume, reduce flow losses, and minimize backflow caused by delayed closure. Performance test results show significant improvements compared to the original design. The two optimized suction structure schemes achieve high-frequency cooling capacity increases of 9.9% and 8.5%, respectively, and low-frequency COP improvements of 2.2% and 3.1% over the conventional solution.

Key words: Reciprocating compressor, Suction structure design, FSI, Experimental study