The application discloses an air conditioner and belongs to the technical field of air conditioners. The air conditioner comprises: a
refrigerant circulation loop, which circulates
refrigerant in a loop composed of a compressor, an outdoor
heat exchanger, an expansion valve, an indoor
heat exchanger and a gas-liquid separator; and a controller, which is configured to, in the starting stage and the
transition stage of the air conditioner: acquire suction superheat of the compressor, calculate the
refrigerant density p in the suction
pipe according to the
dynamic pressure of the suction port of the compressor, and calculate the suction
dryness of the compressor according to the refrigerant property parameters; determine whether the compressor has a liquid strike risk according to the suction superheat and the suction
dryness; if the liquid strike risk does not exist, control the opening degree of the expansion valve according to a preset
control logic; and if the liquid strike risk exists, control the opening degree of the expansion valve to decrease or control the air conditioner to stop, so that the problem of the compressor liquid strike that is prone to occurring after low-temperature heating sleep starting or after starting after severe
defrosting is effectively solved.