Danfoss Unveils ‘Large CO₂ Ejector’ Designed for Industrial Refrigeration Systems and Heat Pumps

Danfoss has introduced a new ejector designed to improve the efficiency of industrial CO₂ (R744) refrigeration systems and heat pumps, particularly in warm climates.

The Large CO₂ Ejector has a 140bar (2,030psi) pressure rating and is designed to serve as a main expansion valve in industrial racks above 500kW (142TR), according to the company.

“We will officially launch the Large Ejector solution at the end of this month,” Pepijn Mol, Business Development Manager for CO₂ IRF at Danfoss, told NaturalRefrigerants.com.

The ejector can be used with racks that have both high-pressure (HP) or low-pressure (LP) lift systems. The ejector receives the high-pressure gas from the gas cooler and uses that energy to facilitate the movement of gas from the suction side to the parallel compressors in the HP lift setup. In the LP lift setup the energy is used to raise the suction pressure.

With the HP lift setup the high-pressure gas coming from the gas cooler to the ejector facilitates the movement of gas from the suction side to the parallel compressors. In the LP lift setup the ejector recovers energy usually lost during the expansion process to raise the suction pressure.

Design details: The Large CO₂ Ejector has a dedicated driver, the EKE 80, that Danfoss said offers “flexible integration” with any PLC controller.

• The housing and cartridge are delivered separately, and the check valve and filter are integrated into the ejector’s design.
• The Large CO₂ Ejector also has a fixed geometry design.

From concept to reality: Danfoss first showed off its new ejector in prototype form back in 2023 and said at the time that it was conducting field tests with customers.

• Currently there is more demand for the ejector in heat pump applications than industrial refrigeration, with Mol noting that the split is roughly 65–35.

Quotable: “With ejectors of this capacity, large CO₂ systems will become more efficient and easier to design,” said Dean Groff, Natural Refrigerant Business Development Manager at Danfoss, in a press release. “By making CO₂ a more attractive option for the industrial refrigeration industry and increasing its adoption, the Large CO₂ Ejector reflects Danfoss’ goal of helping the industry lower its carbon footprint and meet sustainability goals.”