Zero Zone installing low-charge chillers

OEM Zero Zone, Ramsey, Minn., is marketing an ammonia chiller that uses less than one lb/TR and has been installed in industrial facilities since its introduction a year ago.

“We've got several operating systems out there now,” said JohnCollins, industrial sales manager, Zero Zone, in March at the IIAR Natural Refrigeration Conference & Expo. “I think it’s a relatively unique product from the standpoint that it’s a truly fully contained unit.”

The chiller can deliver up to 50 TR of capacity with no more than 35 lbs of ammonia, which makes it a good fit in California, where codes require a machine room for ammonia systems with more than 35 lbs of ammonia. Collins observed that this code is not consistently applied, but is considered a best practice in the industry.

The chiller, which can be installed outside or in a machine room, produces glycol to deliver cooling for process cooling or air conditioning, as well as ice rinks.

“All the ammonia piping is done in the shop and really all the end user needs to do is bring in the glycol supply, return connections, and power,” Collins said. “So it’s a minimal amount of field work required.”

The chiller can deliver temperatures of 5^oF (-15^oC) to 45^oF (7.2^oC) even with ambient temperatures of 10^oF (-12.2^oC) to 120^oF (48.8^oC). “This is developed to be operable over a wide range of ambient conditions,” he noted.