In a 10th June 2021 article at the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Spectrum Magazine,
Payal Dhar reports :-
Quote:
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Originally Posted by Payal Dhar, IEEE Spectrum
A team of engineers from Purdue University, in collaboration with Whirlpool and the technology company Air Squared, have designed a refrigerator that cools food with a vapor-compression cycle similar to conventional fridges, but without oil, that could work in zero gravity.
In May 2020, they tested the prototype in a microgravity lab, a specially designed plane for parabolic flights that provides a series of 20-second intervals of weightlessness during which scientists make their observations.
On the flight, they tested the fridge’s vulnerability to liquid flooding the compressor and to check if microgravity affects the vapor-compression cycles. While data analysis is still pending, the tests indicated that the prototype does not show a higher likelihood of flooding in microgravity, and works just as well in those conditions. This microwave-sized design would also fit into the International Space Station’s rack system.
When they started working on the project, says Leon Brendel, a Ph.D. student in mechanical engineering at Purdue, and part of the research team, they weren’t sure what to expect. “One problem was easy to identify, and that is the oil lubrication of the compressor,” says Brendel. Conventional compressors, like the ones in fridges and air conditioners on Earth, pick up oil from a sump at the bottom, where it accumulates because of gravity. Without gravity, that lubrication system would not work.
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That cool story, photos here :-
https://spectrum.ieee.org/tech-talk/...r-space-flight