OVERVIEW
By navigating through the top bar on this website, you will be following the cycle of a chiller plant through the lens of the refrigerant, starting with the compressor. At the end, there will be a thermodynamic analysis that will provide mathematical insight to all that is going on under the casing.
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The refrigerant is circulated through a cycle, passing through the compressor, condenser, expansion valve, and evaporator. The components of the cycle change the refrigerant from a gas to a liquid by varying the pressure and temperature of the refrigerant.
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Cold refrigerant is used to absorb heat from hot water (cooling the water as a result) and hot refrigerant releases heat (into cold water that has been cooled by the evaporative effect that takes place in large cooling towers) and therefore cools down. This cycle allows the plant to be able to cool water and send it through pipes that are used for cooling systems that provide a comfortable temperature in buildings, cool critical machinery, and that large servers and supercomputers. In other words, cold water from the chiller plant is used to remove heat from other integrated temperature management systems around campus.
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The Oak Street Chiller Plant uses R-134a as their refrigerant, which is a greener alternative.
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Operating Parameters
Additional information about the chiller plant:
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The chilled water is ideally kept at 40 Degrees F. The maximum heat of the water coming into the chiller should not be more than 85 degrees F. The ideal heat for the water entering the chiller is 55 degrees F. 
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The refrigerant used is R-134A  
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A thermal storage plant is used to store cold water that has been cooled at times of the day where electricity needed is lower. 
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4000V motors pump the water into the system. This is a VFD motor which allows for great flexibility in amount of energy being used. 
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Orifice component regulates the amount of water and is one of the most important devices in the chiller. 
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In the summertime all six of the chillers are used, while in wintertime only one chiller is used 
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The water pumps at maximum 30,000 gallons per minute at 110-pound pressure. 
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The refrigerant never has to be replaced, unless it leaks. However, the refrigerant must be kept pure. 
