Information on Refrigeration Compressor Oil

A refrigeration compressor is responsible for controlling the temperature of your refrigerator. When the compressor's oil heats up, the liquid begins to expand and move toward the lower pressure compartment of your refrigerator. The liquid then converts into a gas and releases heat from the refrigeration compressor.

The refrigeration compressor is the single most important part of your refrigerator. It allows the refrigeration system to cool by expanding and expelling gas from it. The refrigeration compressor also provides air conditioning and a way to keep the refrigerator from becoming too cold. The oil that is used in modern day refrigerators is known as liquid HFC.

Liquid HFC works when the liquid begins to boil and expands due to heat. Heat causes gas and vapors. This particular liquid travels from the low-pressure system and turns into a gas, moving into the high-pressure system of the refrigeration unit. As that gas that was once an oil or liquid expands, it begins to cool. This is why the refrigerator is cold at the very top where the freezer is located, and why the refrigerator is warmer at the bottom.

The liquid is what contributes to the defrosting of the device as well the cooling. In defrost mode the liquid moves to the high-pressure compartment of the refrigerator and begins to compress as it cools down. Once it begins to cool down enough to freeze, it then turns into a vapor. As that vapor cools further, it begins to rise and release water, which results in frost in the refrigerator.

When the liquid moves to the low-pressure compartment, it does the opposite. It expands and turns into a warm vapor. That vapor then travels through the back of the refrigerator and absorbs the cool air from the high-pressure compartment and begins to defrost the appliance.