An experimental comparison of the use of R134a and R1234ze(E) in a semi-hermetic reciprocating compressor is presented in this paper.

The comparison deals with the mass flow rate at compressor suction, the compressor power consumption and refrigerant temperature at compressor discharge. These parameters are measured using a dedicated experimental set-up.

Twenty-five experimental working conditions that cover a large part of the compressor envelope are considered and a fitting procedure as per international standards is carried out for a deeper comparison.

The results show that the use of the refrigerant R1234ze(E) leads to an average reduction of the sucked mass flow rate equal to 19.4%, to an average reduction of the compressor power consumption equal to 24.4% and to an average reduction of refrigerant temperature at compressor discharge equal to 9.2 °C.