"Back to the future"
This article appears in Ecolibrium, March 2020 |
"Back to the future"
This article appears in Ecolibrium, March 2020 |
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NATURAL REFRIGERANTS ON THE HORIZONG. C. Burke, A.M.AIRAH, project engineer at D. N. McKenzie & Co. shared his vision for commercial refrigeration.
“Alongside mechanical refrigeration, which should continue as the major contributor in future development, there may be an increase in the use of CO2 and nitrogen as expandable refrigerants, primarily for transport refrigeration, provided, of course, that a reduction in cost makes this economically attractive. Absorption refrigeration will hardly play a major role in commercial refrigeration as the capacities inherent in larger absorption plants are far in excess of ‘commercial’ requirements. Overall tendency is to more compact equipment, less installation work and increased mobility, particularly for smaller coolrooms, freezer rooms and cabinets. “There is an increasing demand for high-quality frozen food, which should lead to considerable bulk buying by individual householders over the next 10 years. This would mean a larger number of frozen food distribution centres to be built and installed, all of which can be catered for by commercial refrigeration. Associated with this trend is the increase in refrigerated road transport, particularly in view of more stringent legislation to be expected in the handling of refrigerated perishables.” |
EARLY DAYS FOR CO-GENERATIONK. C. Fulton, M.AIRAH, from Carrier Air Conditioning offered his tuppence on the future of industrial refrigeration and air conditioning.
“Currently, a great deal of rethinking is being done on building operating costs, and this may well have a decisive influence on future designs. The cost of reheat and of pumping and fan hp in particular are under scrutiny. “The conventional owner-architect-builder-engineer-contractor-equipment supplier relationship is also receiving attention, with a view to improving co-ordination and site efficiency. Factors are the design modifications commonly necessary after a contract is let and the heavy demands placed on the engineer when dealing with a contractor who lacks a strong design capability. “Onsite power generation and the ‘total energy’ concept continues to attract much attention (although so far little action). “After an initial spate of subsidised installations in the 70s, the total energy system will be usual in the large integrated district schemes, but rare in individual buildings. Although natural gas is a “clean” fuel, anti-pollution legislation may be a factor, with expensive control measures more readily absorbed in the larger plants.” |
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HARRISON'S HEIRSF. G. Hogg, M.AIRAH, weighed in on the future of Australian refrigeration research.
“The larger refrigeration and air conditioning firms will have their own active and well-equipped research and development facilities. The relevant government and university laboratories will be spending a major proportion of their time on investigations sponsored by industry, both specific projects for individual firms and broader problems financed by sections of industry or groups of firms, working through some form of research association. “Australia will be far more self-sufficient in its industrial research and will be developing and exporting an increasing range of its own refrigeration and air conditioning products. While it is unlikely that the great days of Harrison and Mort will ever be reproduced, research in these fields will be more soundly based, if less spectacular, and will be contributing at least as much to the nation’s economy.” |
FROM MAINFRAMES
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AIRAH invites you to make your own prediction on where the HVAC&R industry is heading over the next 100 years. Click here to get involved. |
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