Question

The heat transferred by the radiator of a refrigerator is:
(A) More than that at the freezer
(B) Less than that at the freezer
(C) The same as that at the freezer
(D) None of these

Answer 1

Hint: This question can be answered if we understand major parts of a refrigerator system. The freezer is a special cabinet inside the refrigerator, where the cooling is the highest. The radiator is situated at the backside of the refrigerator and contains thin pipes through which the coolant flows and the heat is transferred to the surrounding air.

Complete step-by-step answer:
The freezer is located inside the refrigerator, and its surrounding environment also has a temperature which is not too much different from the freezer. So, the heat transfer between the freezer and the surroundings will be relatively less. But on the other hand, the radiator tubes contain the hot coolant liquid that is coming from the refrigerator after absorbing the heat inside. Once the coolant reaches the radiator, the heat is transferred from the coolant to the surroundings. All the heat absorbed from the interior of the refrigerator is transferred through the radiator. So, obviously the heat transferred by the radiator of a refrigerator will be greater than that near the freezer.

Therefore, the correct answer is option A.

Note: There is a misconception regarding the refrigerator that you can keep your refrigerator wide open and you can cool your kitchen. Do you know why it is not true?
The refrigerator works by sucking the heat inside the cooling cabinet with the help of a cooling fluid that passes through the tube. The heat sucked by the coolant flows through the radiator and dumped at the backside of the refrigerator itself. So, basically, the machine is sucking heat from one part of the room and dumping it on the other part. Since there is heating due to the compressor pump, in effect there will be slightly more heat that will be dumped in your kitchen. So cooling your kitchen by keeping your refrigerator open is impossible.
But, the coldness produced inside the cooling chamber of the refrigerator is maintained because it is well isolated from its surroundings.