Industrial refrigeration
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Kurt Liebendorfer Evapco
They must be complied with regardless of the amount of ammonia. And all systems must understand the safety intent of PSM due to OSHA’s general duty clause.”
EVAPCO: GET READY TO RIDE LOW-CHARGE WAVE “There is a wave coming for low-charge ammonia packaged solutions in the next 18 to 24 months,” said Kurt Liebendorfer, vice president, Evapco, during the ATMOsphere America 2015 panel discussion on low-charge ammonia. Besides cold-storage food warehouses, low-charge packaged units lend themselves to pharmaceutical and bioscience facilities, he said. To safely ride that wave, he added, Evapco is addressing three key areas: code and regulatory compliance; research, development and testing; and reliable and repeatable manufacturing. Large custom-designed ammonia systems need to comply with a variety of codes and regulations, including ASHRAE, IIAR, ASME, building codes, mechanical codes, and fire codes, as well as OSHA’s PSM rule, EPA’s RMP program, and local and state regulations. To date, low-charge ammonia systems, at least while they are relatively new, must run the same gauntlet of codes and regulations, despite containing much less ammonia and presenting much less risk. “They must be complied with regardless of the amount of ammonia,” Liebendorfer said. “And all systems must understand the safety intent of PSM due to OSHA’s general duty clause.” Panel moderator Pega Hrnjak of the University of Illinois observed that “we need to work together to try to open regulations in a direction that will support packaged systems and reduce requirements.”
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In support of its low-charge systems, Evapco is spending millions on research and development. “We have the only third-party low-temperature evaporator ammonia lab in the U.S.,” said Liebendorfer. Evapco has also invested in the manufacturing processes needed to turn out high volumes of low-cost product. Manufacturing low-charge ammonia systems as if they were air conditioners is “the end game,” said Liebendorfer. “Then market adoption will spread like wild-fire.” And because of their standard design, lowcharge systems are easier for technicians to understand and maintain, he noted. Evapco’s first entry into the low-charge marketplace is its Evolution 1 series, which encompasses 250 models, serves between 10 and 100 TR and delivers between -20°F and 50°F. It’s in compliance with all major U.S. codes and provides ample room and safety features in its machine room. Liebendorfer acknowledged that fielderected NH3/CO2 cascade systems, which have been on the market for the past decade, represent an alternative to low-charge packaged systems, though the latter are easier to install and use less energy. He suggested that NH3/CO2 could eventually emerge as a packaged solution.
TRYING TO IMPROVE THE ADOPTION CURVE Electric utilities are increasingly recognizing that natural-refrigerant systems are capable of saving energy. As a result, they are rewarding end users of these systems with energy rebates that make the systems more affordable.
Accelerate America July / August 2015
One of the utilities taking an active interest in natural refrigerant technology such as low-charge ammonia is Southern California Edison (SCE), one of the nation’s largest utilities. “We’re working with manufacturers, inventors and customers to look at the new technology and how it can help you with your business,” said Paul Delaney, senior engineer, SCE, who also spoke at the low-charge ammonia session. “We’re trying to improve the adoption curve for new technology.” (See, “Southern California Edison Takes on Natural Refrigerants,” Accelerate America, June 2015.) Three years ago, SCE studied the energy efficiency of low-charge ammonia systems and estimated a 15-25% saving compared to HFC-based refrigeration and a 5%-10% saving compared to a large ammonia warehouse, as well as reduced peak demand. More recently, at a Lineage Logistics coldstorage warehouse in Oxnard, Calif., SCE calculated a preliminary annual savings of 14% for using a NXTCOLD low-charge unit in lieu of a traditional ammonia system. SCE is also evaluating an Evapco lowcharge, low-water-consumption unit as well as a low-charge, air-cooled Azane system. SCE is working with the Electric Power Research Institute on several projects, including a packaged ammonia/CO2 chiller at a food processing plant in Irvine, Calif., and a CO2 transcritical ambient temperature evaluation at labs in Knoxville, Tenn. SCE is also evaluating the energy efficiency of self-contained propane display cases. MG