Propane refrigerators of today that are found in the Westy's use heat of
the flame as the energy source to drive the cooling system. This is
basically the same system that was used many many years ago in the
Cervelle kerosene fired refrigerators. May rural homes had them when
there was no electricity and kerosene was a nickel a gallon or less. It
worked great. I think Cervelle can be found on the internet if any one
is interested in pursuing it further.

And speaking of heat as a source to drive the ammonia based cooling
system, I've a friend who uses solar panels to heat water that drives
his Cervelle based cooling system for his house.

John Rodgers
88 GL driver without a refrigerator, propane or otherwise.

Brian Asbury wrote:
>
> Not knowing much about Westys or RVs in general, I had always wondered about
> this. This tip of the day showed up in my inbox. I thought some of the other
> list members might find it interesting. Check out www.topica.com for more
> mailing list information.
>
> SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY TIP
>
> COLD FROM HEAT
> How do propane refrigerators work?
>
> This question comes in from reader M. King, and anyone who's spent quality
> time in a big RV might have wondered the same. RV propane refrigerators not
> only cool food by burning gas, they do it without engines, compressors, or
> any moving parts at all. Here are the basics: Propane refrigerators
> typically use ammonia, water, and hydrogen gas to create a continuous cycle.
> The burning propane heats a solution of ammonia and water in the generator.
> The ammonia gas is separated and flows to a condenser, where metal coils
> allow the gas to dissipate its heat and condense into a liquid. The liquid
> ammonia then mixes with hydrogen gas in the evaporator, producing cold.
> Finally, the ammonia is mixed back in with the water, and the hydrogen gas
> sent back to the evaporator. Then the cycle starts anew. For a more detailed
> explanation, check this out:
>
> http://www.nh3tech.org/abs.html