THE British companies behind the development of the first chillers to run on the new 'fourth generation' HFO refrigerants are forging ahead with their plans despite claims from Danfoss Turbocor that its compressor has not been validated to use with these new gases.
Our story on this ground-breaking development was the talk of this week's ASHRAE conference and AHR show in Las Vegas, with some people there questioning the truth and accuracy of our information.
Doug Bishop, vice-president of sales at Danfoss Turbocor, manufacturers of the oil-less compressor used in the new Turbomiser chiller, told ACR News that his company did not offer an HFO1234ze or 1234yf compressor. But, today, Klima-Therm and Cool-Therm, the British companies who developed the chiller in association with Italian manufacturer Geoclima, stood by the story.
A company statement said: 'We understand that Danfoss Turbocor has not yet given an official green light for use of HFOs with Turbocor. However, this is a rapidly developing area, and there is sometimes a lag between those pioneering the application of new technology and those carrying out detailed validation. We believe this will follow in the normal course of events, and that HFOs will become established as a long term viable option for the future.'
However, a spokesman for the companies did add that is now thought that HFO1234yf may not be suitable for use with the current generation of Turbomiser machines, due to the particular properties of the refrigerant. He would not be drawn on what these were but said that development work in this area continues.