News

AREA welcomes the launch of the European Year of Skills 2023

To achieve the EU’s decarbonisation goals and deployment of clean, low-carbon and efficient heating and cooling technologies, a skilled workforce with the proper training and certification is of utmost importance. All current upskilling and reskilling opportunities require not only additional promotion and funding, but also backing by additional training tools and programmes and stakeholder partnerships. Furthermore, we need to ensure that the training and certification are mutually accepted in the EU countries, which in turn should also ensure a reciprocal process of recognising such coming from overseas. Read more

Road to COP28. Energy efficiency and recovery of refrigerants

As stated by the UN Environment Programme, the refrigeration sector is becoming a global priority. The 2023 UN Climate Change Conference will take place in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) from November 30 to December 12. Sustainable cooling will be the focus of COP 28 as one of the key solutions to tackle climate change. The IIR will be partnering with UNEP’s Cool Coalition and several other organisations to deliver a “Global Cooling Stocktake report” program promoting sustainable cooling. Read more

Freor’s ‘Continuous Cooling’ technology cuts energy use in R290 commercial cases up to 70%

Continuous Cooling – a technology developed by Lithuanian refrigeration manufacturer Freor and Italian component producer Carel – can reduce the energy consumption of commercial refrigerated cabinets by up to 70% compared to traditional control systems, according to Rytis Bernatonis, CEO and Founder of Freor. Read more

Energy Recovery’s pressure exchanger boosts Epta CO₂ refrigeration efficiency by over 30% at ambient temperatures above 40°C

When operating in ambient temperatures above 40°C (104°F), an Italian supermarket using Energy Recovery’s PX G1300 pressure exchanger realized more than 30% efficiency improvements in its Epta CO₂ (R744) refrigeration system compared to a standard CO₂ booster system. Read more

‘Hybrid ejector’ found to boost efficiency of transcritical CO₂ refrigeration by up to 42%

A new study has found that an ejector can improve the COP of a conventional transcritical CO₂ (R744) refrigeration system between 5% and 42% across all ambient conditions, including high ambient temperatures where efficiency can be compromised. Read more

Advansor launches CO₂ rack for smaller urban supermarkets

Danish OEM Advansor, one of the leading producers of CO2 (R744) racks in Europe, has launched a CO₂ rack for smaller urban supermarkets and store retrofits. The ValuePack Light offers up to 45kW (12.8TR) for medium-temperature (MT) and up to 15kW (4.3TR) for low temperature (LT) applications. Read more

Chillers using ammonia mix save over 744 metric tons of CO₂e emissions at Slovak Tannery

Slovakia-based ABC Food Machinery recently installed a cooling system using an ammonia-ether mix (R723) for SlovTan Contract Tannery that saves over 744 metric tons of CO₂e emissions and improves energy efficiency compared to the previous system, said Juraj Švingál, Manager for ABC, in a statement. Read more

Packaged ammonia or CO₂? Evapco now offers both

As the demand for refrigeration systems in cold storage facilities increases, packaged refrigeration units using low-charge ammonia (R717) or CO₂ (R744) are evolving to become more scalable and economically viable, requiring minimum on-site labor during installation. Read more

ECOOLTEC rolls out its hydrocarbon-based electric transport refrigeration unit in Europe

German transport refrigeration specialist ECOOLTEC Grosskopf has begun the rollout of its propene (R1270)-based TM182 electric refrigeration unit for trucks, with a “significant number” of units now installed in Europe following successful initial tests, it said in a recent statement Read more

Water consumption should be a “high priority” for operators of water-cooled HVAC&R Equipment, says BAC

Due to the amount of water used in evaporative cooling, water consumption should be a “high priority” for the designers and operators of water-cooled HVAC&R systems – such as water-cooled ammonia (R717)-based chillers – according to Neal Walsh, Business Manager at Baltimore Aircoil Company (BAC), and Robert Downey, the company’s Global Sales Development Manager and Water Treatment Specialist. Read more

Levels of five banned ozone-depleting CFCs rising more than expected

The Montreal Protocol banned most uses of ozone-layer-destroying chemicals known as CFCs and called for their global phase out by 2010. Read more

No flammable refrigerants without training

Companies in Africa have called for a halt to the introduction of flammable refrigerants and equipment until its technicians are appropriately trained. Read more

Frascold and Arneg lead the Retail evolution with an R290 chiller

Frascold and Arneg – two international leaders in the design, manufacture and installation of compressors (Frascold) and finished equipment for the Retail sector (Arneg) – combine their know-how and their experience to create an R290 chiller, built to conserve fresh products and condition with normal temperatures. A solution that comes from the desire to expand the use of natural gases by offering a valid, user-friendly alternative to transcritical CO2installations. Read more

European Parliament approves bans of HFCs and HFOs in multiple applications and HFC phase out by 2050

In an historic vote, the European Parliament adopted an ambitious position on the revision of the EU F-gas Regulation, supporting an HFC phase out by 2050 and multiple bans on fluorinated greenhouse gases (f-gases, both HFCs and HFOs) in applications such as heat pumps and stationary refrigeration. Read more

Climate Change 2023: Synthesis Report

The much-anticipated Climate Change 2023: Synthesis Report is based on years of work by hundreds of scientists during the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) sixth assessment cycle which began in 2015. Read more