FB Industrial Launches Ecoflex R290 Chiller Line for Mexican Market

FB Industrial, a Mexican manufacturer of commercial and industrial refrigeration equipment, has launched its Ecoflex line of indirect propane (R290) chillers for the Mexican market.

The new line offers an 8‒85TR (28‒299kW) capacity range for high-temperature applications up to 50°F (10°C) and a 5‒50TR (17‒176kW) range for medium-temperature applications down to 10°F (−12.2°C). The design keeps the refrigerant outside the facility by using a circulating glycol/water mixture.

FB Industrial highlighted its new R290 line at the International Institute of All-Natural Refrigeration (IIAR) Conference and Expo 2025, held March 2‒5 in Phoenix, Arizona.

Prior to IIAR, Gildardo Yañez, Technical Training Manager at FB Industrial, discussed the company’s experience with R290 chillers in a presentation at ATMOsphere (ATMO) LATAM 2025. ATMO LATAM was held February 19‒20 in Mexico City and was organized by ATMOsphere, publisher of NaturalRefrigerants.com.

“Although we try to design refrigerants that are more potent, there is no way to beat the thermodynamics of hydrocarbons,” Yañez said. “We can operate an R290 chiller in the extreme conditions of Mérida or Hermosillo without losing capacity,” Yañez added.

Juan José Chapa, Director of Engineering at AISLACON, a Mexican refrigeration contractor, joined Yañez on stage at ATMO LATAM to present the benefits and barriers of adopting R290 chillers.

R290 chiller specifications: “Our [R290] chillers, with Copeland scroll compressors, are equipped with 5mm V-shaped condensers for an ultra-low refrigerant charge,” FB Industrial said in a product brochure.

• Depending on the model, the R290 charge ranges from 4 to 17kg in a single factory-installed circuit, with a 70kg total maximum per unit.
• To manage the A3 refrigerant, the unit is ATEX (Explosive Atmosphere) certified, and it houses a leak detector inside the cabinet, which triggers automatic ventilation. Jesús Ortiz Dávila told NaturalRefrigerants.com that since Mexico does not have clear technical standards for A3 refrigerants, the company based the design on those set in Europe and Australia.
• “When we install R290 chillers, we put [them] on the ground level in a classified area with a layer of gravel,” Yañez said, explaining the flammability safety precautions taken.

Benefits/barriers: According to Chapa, an R290 chiller costs 14% less to install than an equivalent R449A unit and consumes roughly 4% less energy.

• He calculated the construction and installation costs for a specific project, finding that the secondary glycol/water loop of the R290 unit and the ultra-low charge cut the material and labor costs. “Instead of using the copper required for a direct synthetic system, we used PVC for the water/glycol mix, and we only needed 60kg of R290 compared to 700kg of R449A,” Chapa said.
• Barriers to the adoption of the technology mentioned by Chapa included the availability of the components and engineers specialized in R290, trained installers and technicians, and the initial resistance from end users based on a lack of international safety standards.
• IIAR has a hydrocarbon standard, allowing up to 1,100lbs (500kg) per site, in the final review stages and expects to receive ANSI approval later this year. “When IIAR publishes its hydrocarbon standard, the industry will increase the refrigerant charge in these systems,” Benito Sagredo, Director of Industrial Refrigeration at FB Industrial, told NaturalRefrigerants.com.

Diverse portfolio: Other refrigerant products produced by the company include ammonia (R717) chillers, subcritical CO₂ (R744) systems, transcritical CO₂ boosters, and ammonia/CO₂ cascade systems, as well as condensing units and gas coolers.

• Sagredo told NaturalRefrigerants.com that the company has seen success in the region with newly developed and installed propane/CO₂ cascade systems. “With propane subcooling CO₂ in the higher temperature ranges, we keep the system subcritical,” he said, adding that it makes it easier to train technicians familiar with HFC systems to handle CO₂.

Quotable: “Propane refrigerant provides a double benefit by reducing the environmental impact and lowering energy consumption,” Chapa said. “In the mid- and long-term, I see more players developing R290 equipment.”

“We can operate an R290 chiller in the extreme conditions of Mérida or Hermosillo without losing capacity.”

Gildardo Yañez, Technical Training Manager at FB Industrial