The upcoming Australian Institute of Refrigeration Air Conditioning and Heating’s (AIRAH) Refrigeration Conference 25, or Refcon 25, will feature several sessions on natural refrigerants in commercial and industrial applications.
Refcon 25 will be held March 24 in Melbourne and is intended to provide policymakers, researchers, technicians the opportunity to “explore the latest developments, trends and challenges shaping the refrigeration industry,” according to organizers.
Natural refrigerants occupy a prominent position on the agenda, with several sessions dedicated to CO2 (R744) and hydrocarbon-based refrigeration equipment. Approximately 330 supermarkets in Australia use transcritical CO2 refrigeration systems, according to ATMOsphere’s 2024 Natural Refrigerants: State of the Industry report. ATMOsphere is the publisher of NaturalRefrigerants.com.
Experimental and integrated CO2 systems
Alemu Tiruneh Alemu, a Senior Engineer at HVAC&R Glaciem Technologies, will present data from an experimental dew point CO2 (DP-CO2) system installed at a Coles supermarket in Adelaide. The DP-CO2 system uses a dew point cooler found in a Seely air conditioner to pre-cool the air around the gas cooler without increasing the humidity.
Dario Ferlin, National Sustainable Engineering Manager at Woolworths, will also focus on supermarkets. The focus of his session is HVAC-integrated transcritical CO2 refrigeration systems. Ferlin will touch upon Woolworths’ methods for “augmenting” the heating capacities of these systems, including through the use of heat pump evaporators.
Woolworths opened its 100th transcritical CO2 supermarket in Australia in April 2024 and has 125 stores that use such systems, 65 of which are integrated systems (43 providing space heating and 22 providing space heating and cooling).
Hydrocarbon chillers in the spotlight
Fabio Ferrara, Senior Engineer at manufacturer Arneg Oceania, will share an energy consumption comparison between transcritical CO2 racks and glycol chillers using propane (R290) and R448. The comparison was conducted in different regions of Italy – Genova, Padova, Roma and Catania – and is intended to show where glycol chillers can be more competitive in medium-temperature supermarket applications than transcritical CO2 systems.
Ben Adamson, a consultant at oil, gas and petrochemical process cooling company REI Process, will present a paper highlighting how the installation of chillers using A3 flammable refrigerants, which include hydrocarbons, can be safe and economical.
Refrigerant transitions and global trends
In addition to refrigerant-specific sessions, there will also be more general discussions about the global refrigerant transition. Alexander Cohr Pachai, an independent consultant, is giving a keynote address about trends in the global refrigeration and heat pump markets from a contractor’s point of view.
Jan Dusek, COO of ATMOsphere, will also touch on global trends in his presentation of the company’s 2024 market report on the state of the natural refrigerants industry.
