Patent ID: 7386994

Claim:
A cooling-cycle apparatus using an oil separator, comprising: a compressor for compressing gaseous refrigerant and discharging the compressed gaseous refrigerant along with oil contained therein; the oil separator for separating the oil and the gaseous refrigerant, discharged from the compressor, from each other by flowing them in a swirl pattern; and an oil outflow tube for returning the oil, separated in the oil separator, to the compressor, wherein the oil separator comprises: a casing defining an interior space; an inflow tube connected to a circumferential position of the casing and adapted to supply oil and gaseous refrigerant into the interior space of the casing in a circumferential direction; and a refrigerant outflow tube for discharging the gaseous refrigerant, separated from the oil, from the casing, wherein the inflow tube comprises a tube inserted vertically into the casing through an upper surface of the casing and having a bent refrigerant and oil outlet end from which the oil and gaseous refrigerant is discharged into the casing in the swirl pattern, wherein the refrigerant outflow tube comprises a tube inserted horizontally into the casing through a peripheral wall of the casing and having a bent refrigerant inlet end, wherein the casing includes a cylindrical portion, and a conical portion defined under the cylindrical portion, and wherein the bent refrigerant and oil outlet end is positioned at the cylindrical portion, and the bent refrigerant inlet end is positioned at the conical portion.