Cool Refrigeration Improvements On Show At AHR Expo

Tens of hundreds of HVACR contractors and trade professionals gathered at McCormick Place in Chicago in January for the three-day AHR Expo. The annual occasion gave producers the chance to point out off their newest tools and elements, which included new condensing items, controls, elements, and different options designed to fulfill the wants of the business refrigeration market.

CO₂ Condensing Items

Rivacold exhibited a brand-new line of transcritical CO₂ condensing items for medium- and low-temperature refrigeration purposes, designed for lineups of wall show circumstances, islands, cupboards, counters, and walk-ins of assorted sizes or mixtures. With capacities as much as 140,000 Btuh with a single unit, the MHX/MH2X line is an ideal match for eating places, comfort shops, chilly storage, and supermarkets of any measurement, mentioned Tommaso Scavone, gross sales supervisor NAR at Rivacold America.

Additionally on show was the Monoblock BEST, variable-speed, R-290, air-cooled, packaged system, which is a plug-and-play answer for walk-in coolers and freezers.

R-290 SOLUTION: Tommaso Scavone identified the advantages of Rivacold’s Monoblock BEST, which makes use of R-290 and is a plug-n-play answer for walk-in coolers and freezers. (Employees picture)

“Revolutionary electronics and built-in connectivity system make this future-proof and game-changing product aesthetically interesting, useful, and digitally revolutionary,” mentioned Scavone. “BEST design minimizes set up time and prices and maximizes space for storing as by no means earlier than. Good controls supply a protected and dependable product with all of the consolation of managing and monitoring the programs from a smartphone.”

These two product strains have been particularly designed to supply modular and compact options with redundancy choices, simple retrofits and remodels, and excessive flexibility when including new refrigeration masses to current shops — advantages that may be difficult or not possible to attain with the usage of a standard multi-compressor rack idea, mentioned Scavone. In addition they supply a place to begin for end-users trying to progressively transition to a pure refrigerant answer slightly than changing a whole retailer at one time.

“Using a pure refrigerant like CO₂ (GWP=1) and propane (GWP=3) makes these merchandise extraordinarily sustainable by decreasing the whole equal warming impression (TEWI) by 33% in comparison with a normal HFC system,” mentioned Scavone. “This ensures the tip person a future-proof answer by way of rules, in addition to a number one picture available in the market by way of superior expertise and inexperienced refrigeration adoption. As well as, the variable-speed expertise affords superior meals preservation by cooling capability management that eliminates the harmful temperature extremes seen from on-off programs, in addition to important vitality financial savings, translating to decrease utility payments.”

Along with the rising adoption of pure refrigerants in meals retail and smaller industrial purposes, Rivacold has noticed a rising curiosity in modular options. In line with Scavone, finish customers searching for modular options are on the lookout for larger flexibility by way of retailer format modification, including masses to present designs, and creating redundancy and independency from a single centralized distant system.

“Rivacold is properly ready with a variety of inexperienced, environment friendly, and modular options to face this demand,” mentioned Scavone. “It’s a steady funding of ours, and we’re providing to the market now the widest and most full vary of pure refrigerant options, responding to all of the totally different wants of this inexperienced evolution.”

Refrigeration Programs

Warmth Switch Merchandise Group (HTPG) displayed its Packaged Refrigeration System, which is designed for meals service and meals retail coolers and freezers. In line with Raleigh Thompson, director of product technique and advertising and marketing at HTPG, the revolutionary design of the Packaged Refrigeration System prioritizes enhancing efficiency, vitality effectivity, and capability to cater to the necessities of many sorts of business companies.

“These items optimize product high quality by minimizing temperature fluctuations and maximizing vitality effectivity, leading to diminished compressor runtime,” he mentioned. “Designed for straightforward set up and serviceability, the items are outfitted with lift-off hinges and panels, together with a number of drain-out factors for both a boil-out drain pan or PVC connection.”

HTPG additionally highlighted the EcoNet Enabled Refrigeration System, which was developed at the side of Rheem Manufacturing. Thompson famous that this method builds on the success, reliability, and effectivity of Rheem’s EcoNet expertise and brings it to the business refrigeration market.

“The EcoNet expertise saves vitality in refrigeration programs by exact superheat and area temperature management, fan biking, and controlling defrost cycles primarily based on compressor runtime,” he mentioned. “EcoNet-enabled unit coolers will be configured to work on a single or twin evaporator coils and can be utilized with a condensing unit in single and a number of evaporator installations as a gaggle. It’s at present obtainable as a configurable possibility on all HTPG walk-in unit cooler households.”

Thompson famous that each of those merchandise function some distinctive advantages. For instance, the EcoNet and digital enlargement valve expertise improves product high quality by decreasing temperature fluctuations and offering centralized system knowledge entry for service technicians. The Packaged Refrigeration System affords flexibility with a variety of purposes and choices, maximizing service area, service ports, and element accessibility.

With the Command Heart addition, Thompson mentioned that each merchandise can connect with native wi-fi web, enabling contractors and technicians to obtain early notifications about system points by way of SMS or e-mail; diagnose issues remotely utilizing system knowledge; and doubtlessly cut back on-site visits by buying elements primarily based on system efficiency insights.

Thompson emphasised that the shift in the direction of merchandise using lower-GWP refrigerants stands out as a major trade development. In responding to this development, he famous that HTPG is growing a full vary of merchandise to assist the market through the migration to low-GWP and pure refrigerants. Schooling is one other development — and alternative — this 12 months, he mentioned.

“The largest alternative for our trade in 2024 will be summed up in a single phrase: schooling,” he mentioned. “The business refrigeration trade has extra adjustments occurring over the subsequent few years than it has ever seen earlier than. Being precisely knowledgeable on these adjustments, with present info, is not going to solely put together the trade for these new necessities, however may function a aggressive benefit to contractors.”

Management Options

As a world producer of management options for pure refrigerants, Carel launched a number of new merchandise on the AHR Expo which are designed to assist meals retail clients transition to low-GWP refrigerants, mentioned Giacomo Favari, head of gross sales and advertising and marketing for refrigeration in North America at Carel.

“Our expertise makes it simple to handle complicated purposes equivalent to transcritical CO₂ programs, as a result of all our new controllers comprise our most superior management algorithms, developed with our years of expertise with CO₂ purposes in Europe and different areas,” he mentioned. “Furthermore, our new technology of management options is supplied with built-in Bluetooth connectivity, simplifying interactions with refrigeration tools for fast diagnostics and troubleshooting. Area technicians can use Carel’s smartphone apps to share default parameter settings, decreasing the time required to resolve points within the area.”

One of many management options that Carel displayed was the µRack CO₂, which is an digital controller particularly designed to handle condensing items and compact rack programs working with CO₂. This new controller expands the corporate’s product portfolio with a really versatile and compact answer, mentioned Favari.

“µRack CO₂ may function as a stand-alone driver for the HPV (high-pressure valve) and the FGBV (flash gasoline bypass valve) of any transcritical CO₂ system, so it’s attainable to put in it in any rack for brand new installations and retrofit tasks,” mentioned Favari. “As with all our new controllers, µRack CO₂ makes use of wi-fi Bluetooth expertise, simplifying the interplay with the tools and enhancing serviceability.”

The corporate additionally unveiled the iJW refrigeration controller, geared toward streamlining setup for replacements and new installations. It options Bluetooth for management by way of Carel’s smartphone app, Applica, simplifying startup with an automatic configuration “wizard.” As soon as configured, the app shows wiring diagrams and facilitates handbook testing of all inputs and outputs for swift system commissioning.

“iJW is extraordinarily versatile, serving to distributors cut back SKUs, as a result of a single mannequin can change nearly any Carel and third-party controller put in within the area,” mentioned Favari. “Distant monitoring can also be obtainable by CAREL’s new cloud monitoring platform RED Management, enabling distant asset administration by a single-access on-line portal.”

CONDENSING UNIT: CAREL’s Heos field CO₂ is a compact, subcritical, CO₂ condensing unit designed for water-loop programs. (Employees picture)

Lastly, Carel showcased the Heos field CO₂, a compact, subcritical, CO₂ condensing unit designed for water-loop programs. It affords simple set up and wired or wi-fi connectivity choices equivalent to Ethernet and Bluetooth. The unit permits clients to modify to low-GWP refrigerants like CO₂, which leads to advantages equivalent to diminished refrigerant cost, retailer format flexibility, low upkeep prices, vitality effectivity, and product temperature stability, mentioned Favari.

“We see an elevated curiosity in low-GWP refrigerants pushed by the newest rules, and whereas there may be nonetheless some uncertainty available in the market on which sort of refrigerant is most fitted for every utility and capability vary, clearly CO₂, A2Ls, and A3s will all play a major function quickly,” mentioned Favari. “Our objective is to supply the market with essentially the most superior applied sciences to assist the rollout of high-efficiency options primarily based on the adoption of those low-GWP refrigerants.”