Water Chiller - ATO.com

Water chiller is a machine that removes heat from a liquid coolant via a vapor-compression, adsorption refrigeration, or absorption refrigeration cycles. This liquid can then be circulated through a heat exchanger to cool equipment, or another process stream (such as air or process water).

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Industrial water chiller is used for controlled cooling of products, mechanisms and machinery in a variety of industries. A chiller removes heat from the process water and transfers it to air via a heat exchange process. Water cooled chiller is widely used in various industrial freezing process in the need of chilled water fields, such as plastics, electroplating, electronics, chemical, pharmaceutical, printing, food processing, etc.

The industrial water chiller machines provided from ATO store are air-cooled type, with high efficiency and competitive price, a wide range of cooling capacity from 1/2 ton (W) to 17 ton (60kW), compressors power up to 20 HP.

Features of Air-cooled Water Chiller:

1. Use fully enclosed compressors and electronic control components, equipped with condensers and evaporators made of high-quality copper tubes for heat exchange.
2. Equipped with various safety protection devices, stable performance, low noise, long service life and simple operation.
3. The LCD screen is used for easy and convenient operation, and the running status is clear at a glance.
4. The models have a single compressor or multiple compressor combination refrigeration system. The compressor can automatically and alternately run according to the load change, to achieve the effect of saving energy consumption.
5. Enclosure box structure and compact design, can check the operation of the unit at any time. The unit can bring its own water tank and circulating water pump according to the cooling capacity, without the need for a cooling tower and cooling water pump, and the installation and maintenance are simple and convenient.

Types of Water Chiller:

Air-cooled water chiller. An air-cooled condenser unit typically features finned coils. This increases the surface area of the condenser in contact with air. One or more fans are used to blow air over the finned coil to further improve heat transfer. The amount of heat rejected by an air-cooled condenser depends on the rate of airflow over the coils and the air's dry-bulb temperature. The advantage of using air-cooled water chillers is their simplicity and low cost.

Water-cooled water chiller. Water-cooled condensers typically operate with a cooling tower. Cooling towers are heat exchangers, but instead of the usual conduction-convection type of heat exchangers, it generates cooling by bringing water and air into contact. They supply cooling water to the condenser unit which is used to cool the refrigerant. Water cooled industrial chillers are used in large industrial plants where a cooling water supply is readily available. Cooling is provided to the condenser at a much higher efficiency compared to air-cooled types.

Differences Between Air-cooled and Water-cooled Chiller:

• Condenser. Air-cooled chillers have condensers that use ambient air to cool hot refrigerant. Refrigerant flows through a series of tubes mechanically assembled with an array of closely spaced fins. A fan blows ambient air through the fins and over the outside of the tubes, cooling the refrigerant flowing inside. The excess heat is released to the air and can be recovered for use elsewhere in the facility. Contrastingly, water-cooled chillers use water to cool the refrigerant in the condenser. Water-cooled condensers are typically tube-in-tube, tube-in-shell, or plate-type heat exchangers in which water from a cooling tower or other water source cools the refrigerant. The refrigerant and cooling water do not come in direct contact with each other, rather they flow in separate passageways within the heat exchanger which are in close contact for efficient heat transfer.
• Environmental Installation Considerations. High Temperature Environments: Water-cooled chillers work great in high temperature environments since they do not rely on ambient air for cooling. Thus, they can be placed in hot mechanical rooms or in spaces with minimal ventilation. Small Spaces: The condenser on water-cooled chillers is more compact than an equivalently sized air-cooled unit. This can result in an overall smaller unit, especially in the case of high capacity chillers.
• Cost Considerations. With indoor installation of an air-cooled chiller, costs associated with duct work, fans, and controls for maintaining proper air temperature in the room may exist. Energy consumption costs may be higher for these chiller models due to its basic operating design. Often times water-cooled units have a lower initial price. However, they generally have more operational costs, and will typically require the installation of a cooling tower. When using a cooling tower in conjunction with a water-cooled chiller, additional costs may accrue from the regular monitoring of water quality, treatment of the water, and the operation of fans and pumps.

How to Maintain Industrial Water Chiller?

Besides learning how to use, we also need know how to maintain the water chiller. Maintain the industrial water chiller periodically according to the specification to ensure the normal running.

• Keep the machine room dry, clean and ventilative.
• Do not stop the unit by cutting off the main power unless it is emergent.
• Do not open or close any stop valve during debugging and running water chiller.
• If fire occurs, switch off the general power and eradicate the fire with fire extinguisher.
• The working environment should be far away from the flammable matter such as gasoline and alcohol in case of explosion.
• Check the running state of the unit frequently, including water quality of cooling water and chilled water, water temperature, water pressure, water filter, water pump, cooling tower.
• If the unit stops due to malfunction, it is required to find out the reason and repair it before restart it. If there is refrigerant leak or chilled water leak, turn off all of the switches. If the unit can not be stopped through the controller, stop it through the emergency stop button on the electric control cabinet and cut off the general power.

How to Install Industrial Air-cooled Water Chiller?

Chillers, also called industrial chiller units, chilled water plants or chilled water systems, are cooling equipment that produces chilled water and are suitable for a variety of industrial and commercial applications.

SCY Chiller offers a variety of air-cooled chillers that suit a wide range of industries.

There are two different cooling media (air or water) that absorb the heat when refrigerant changes from vapor to liquid. Therefore, chillers can use two different types, air-cooled and water-cooled.

• Air-cooled chillers use a condenser that is similar to the “radiators” in a car. They use a fan to force air through the refrigerant coil. Unless they are specifically designed for high ambient conditions, air-cooled condensers need to operate effectively at an ambient temperature of 35°C (95°F) or less.
• Water-cooled chillers function in the same way as air-cooled chillers, but require two steps to complete the transfer of heat. First, heat enters the condenser water from the refrigerant vapor. The warm condenser water is then pumped to the cooling tower, where the heat from the process is eventually vented to the atmosphere.

When selecting chillers for your application, it is important to ensure that the chiller has sufficient cooling capacity to handle the maximum load under the worst conditions. However, many customers fail to plan for these conditions and instead select chillers based on the nominal conditions presented in our product manuals.

Now Let’s see how to select a proper chiller with the following steps.

We can see from the above schematic, an air-cooled chiller unit absorbs heat from the application, and the heat is then transferred to the air around the chiller unit. The chilled water will be pumped to the buffer tank and stored there for subsequent use.

• Air-cooled chillers require less maintenance than water-cooled chiller units.
• Air-cooled chillers do not require cooling towers.
• Easier to install compared with water-cooled chiller.
• Air-cooled chillers require less water.

Air-cooled water chiller systems are widely used in places where water resources are not sufficient or water quality is not very good. The most convenient part is that air-cooled chiller systems do not require cooling towers, so they are easy to install. (If an air-cooled chiller isn’t what you need, please refer to water-cooled chiller.)

3. How to choose the right cooling capacity for an air-cooled chiller?

One of the most frequently asked about chiller specifications is how to determine sizing/tonnage. Let’s see the below formula.

• Calculate Temperature Differential = Incoming Water Temperature (°c) – Required Chilled Water Temperature
• Calculate the water flow rate that you need per hour(m³/hour)
• Calculate tons of cooling capacity = Water Flow Rate x  Temperature Differential ÷ 0.86 ÷ 3.517
• Oversize the chiller by 20% Ideal Size in Tons = Tons x 1.2
• You have the ideal size for your needs. 

For example, what size of chiller is required to cool 5m³ water from 25°c to 15 °c in 1 hour?

• Temperature Differential = 25°c-15°c=10°c
• Water Flow Rate = 5 m³/hour
• Ton Capacity = 5 x 10 ÷ 0.86 ÷ 3.517 = 16.53 Tons
• Oversize the chiller = 16.53 x 1.2 = 19.84 Tons
• A 19.84 Tons chiller is required.

You can also use our chiller calculator to do the math work.

Want more information on portable water chillers industrial? Feel free to contact us.

If your target temperature is lower than 5°c, please contact us for further assistance.

4. What else should I look for in choosing the right chiller?

Other important chiller specifications include the voltage required for operation, the associated pump horsepower and flow rate (contact us for custom selection), the water connection size, refrigerant, and the evaporator type.

4.1 Power

Different countries and regions have different standards for industrial electricity, the common power supplies are 208-230V, 380-420V,440-480V,50Hz or 60Hz, 3phase.

4.2 Water Pump

When you decide the capacity/tonnage of the chiller, we will recommend you the suitable horsepower of the pump. Or you can check from our product manual.

4.3 Connection Size

This usually depends on the water flow rate, the higher the bigger. If you want your new chiller to match your old pipes, we can also customize accordingly. For more detailed specifications, please refer to our product page or check our product manual.

4.4 Refrigerant

R22, R410A, R407C, R404A, R134A are optional choices.

R22: good cooling effect, but R22 is considered a powerful greenhouse gas, so it’s forbidden in most countries.

R410A: eco-friendly, R-410A has replaced R-22 as the preferred refrigerant for use in residential and commercial air conditioners in Japan, Europe, and the United States.R-410A operates at higher pressures than other refrigerants.

R407C: a good replacement for R22, good cooling effect.

R404A: suitable for application that requires low temperature(below -30°c).

R134A: a non-flammable gas used primarily as a “high-temperature” refrigerant, suitable for air-cooled chiller working at a high ambient temperature.

4.5 Evaporator Choose

Air chillers have two general types of evaporators.

• Shell and tube type evaporator, which requires an additional water buffer tank to use(not necessary but highly recommended).

• Coil and tank evaporator, which has a built-in water storage tank for more convenient use. So there’s no need for extra buffer tanks.

These two evaporator coils can be made of 2 materials, copper or stainless steel tube.

What is the difference between these 2 options?

1. Copper tube: better heat transfer efficiency.
2. Stainless steel tube (304 or 316): also known as food-grade material, it is suitable for the food/beverage industry and can avoid water contamination.

5. Summary

Each unit includes hermetic scroll compressor(or semi-hermetic screw compress), air-cooled condenser, fully charged refrigerant of R22(R410A, R404A, R407C, R134A optional), tank& coil type evaporator(or shell& tube type evaporator), and a weather-resistant control center, all mounted on a beautiful and rugged steel box.

At SCY Chiller, we design and manufacture the best chiller units to help you overcome your most challenging problems, and SCY Chiller will provide you with unconditional, expert advice to help you turn your challenges into real solutions.