Suppliers announced new systems and upgrades to central chilling technologies during NPE.
THERMAL CARE'S TSE SERIES OFFERED
WITH INTEGRAL TANKS
Thermal Care Inc., Niles, Ill., rolled out its TSE series of modular single- and dual-circuit central chillers, now offered with integral tanks. The TSE series is available from 10 to 170 tons, and is delivered as a pre-piped and pre-wired system ready for operation with a connection to the user's main power and piping system.
TSE is offered in water-cooled and remote air-cooled designs, where a typical system includes evaporator pumps along with dedicated standby pumps. Pump variable frequency drives are controlled by a single central PLC, which features a color touch screen containing more than 70 different accessible screens. TSE is available with or without tank reservoir systems up to 1,000 gallons. The modularity of the configurable system allows for space savings and expandability.
Thermal Care's TC series of centrifugal magnetic bearing central chillers has been expanded up to a 250-ton dual circuit unit. The line now comprises sizes from 60 to 250 tons. The PLC on the TC series acts as a master controller to handle up to 750 tons of chilling, says President Thomas Benson.
The company says the TC line saves over 30 percent in energy usage compared to other compressor types due to its design, while operating as a quiet, oil-free unit with a small footprint.
FRIGEL UNIT IS ENERGY FRUGAL
Frigel North America Inc., East Dundee, Ill., exhibited its Ecodry 3DK closed-loop adiabatic liquid cooler, a central chiller system introduced last year that can be configured to match a manufacturer's specific requirements while reducing energy requirements and maintenance while boosting cooling precision.
Ecodry 3DK is the primary component of an integrated closed-loop adjustable (intelligent) cooling system that provides clean water at the desired temperature while potentially reducing energy consumption up to 95 percent compared to an air-cooled central chiller. It can trim water consumption up to 95 percent when used instead of a cooling tower, says Al Fosco, global marketing manager. Ecodry 3DK consumes up to 28 percent less energy and can require up to 30 percent less floor space compared to the model it replaces.
CONAIR UPDATES
MODULAR CENTRAL CHILLERS
Conair Group, Cranberry Township, Pa., also unveiled its ESE Series EarthSmart modular central chillers, which allow users to start with a single unit and scale up to a plantwide multiple chiller system operated from a single controller. The chiller line is available with integrated pumps and a fluid reservoir, or as a stand-alone unit that supplies a separate pump tank system.
Conair offers ESE in 12 sizes ranging from 10 to 160 tons. This range encompasses models with a single refrigeration circuit on units from 10 to 80 tons in capacity, and units with a dual refrigeration circuit with 20 to 160 tons of chilling capacity.
Users can install one or more ESE chillers and then add up to a total of six modules/chillers for cooling capacity of 960 tons. Each chiller has its own PLC with LCD touch screen and display. As many as 12 refrigeration circuits can be connected to a single centralized control interface using twisted-pair wiring.
The system can be cooled with tower water or installed in a remote air-cooled condenser configuration.
AEC MAKES
MODULAR CENTRAL CHILLER
AEC, Schaumburg, Ill., introduced its new Trident GS series of modular central chillers. Although the series is offered as an individual cooling circuit with 50 to 120 tons of chilling capacity, operators can link up to five GS chiller circuits together in parallel for a maximum chilling capacity of up to 600 tons, says Andy Nadeau, technical sales manager at AEC.
Each chilling circuit features a similar control set. "Drone" circuits in each unit allow multiple chillers to be connected or disconnected easily. Each circuit contains all of the required sensors, components and related technology to operate as the master control when several units are connected.
Users can select cooling by the chilled fluid out temperature, the chilled fluid in temperature or through an optional remote process sensor. A compact, integrated dual screw compressor allows the unit to operate at lower process loads, virtually eliminating unit cycling, says Nadeau.
The system is offered as an air-cooled model, which utilizes variable frequency drives (VFDs) to manage condenser fans and a remote condenser, or in a water-cooled version, which provides an exit temperature ranging from 30 to 65 degrees Fahrenheit. Other features include a 10-inch color touch-screen control that displays a wealth of sensor data in real time, presents flow parameters of each circuit in graphical form and stores up to 50 alarms.
The AEC GS series also features TS Tech, a new tool-less filter strainer technology that catches contaminants in the temperature circuit. The strainer, which is designed with a larger straining surface area than prior designs, is accessed by removing a clip and a strainer assembly cover.
ECOCHILLER UNIT
ADDS VARIABLE DRIVES
The new Ultra compact VFDEC series of air-cooled chillers from EcoChillers can be operated in a semi-automated fashion due to the incorporation of VFD compressors, says Pedro Machain, process engineering manager.
The new electronic semi-automatic chiller, featuring the VFD compressors and EC fan motors, delivers higher capacity with the same chiller. It will eventually replace an existing standard chiller line that ranges from 7.5 to 256 tons. A model with approximately 70 tons of cooling capacity and two fans is the first unit built (model ECCLASH619).
The VFD controls and adjusts the operating speed of both the compressors and the fan motors, which allows processors to dial in equipment parameters to match the load with the energy consumption. The chillers' operating rate can be adjusted widely, from 100 percent to 3 percent of capacity, maintaining effective operation throughout.
Mikell Knights, senior correspondent
