Embraco, an innovation-focused multi-national and one of the world’s largest manufacturers of hermetic compressors for refrigeration, has used natural refrigerants for more than 20 years in its portfolio of compressors for commercial use. Compressors equipped with propane refrigerant (R290) are more energy efficient and align, in a sustainable manner, economic and environmental needs.
In a recent partnership with an Indian company, Embraco is the first enterprise to supply high efficiency compressors using natural refrigerants for the country’s refrigeration market. With the world’s second largest population, high electricity costs and poor food conservation, the Indian Government has encouraged development of the refrigeration market through tax reform in addition to tax and product cost reduction.
Legislation
Governments and entities have been working strongly on mechanisms to reduce energy consumption. New legislation in both Europe and the United States is advising manufacturers to be increasingly more concerned about launching high-efficiency products, which means more attention is aimed at designing solutions that meet these new requirements.
“Regardless of the current legislation in the various countries where Embraco operates and the imminent ban on the use of HFCs, the company is prepared to attend the global refrigeration market, which seeks to migrate to natural refrigerants,” highlights Esequias Pereira, Embraco’s Commercial Senior Manager for Asia.
Embraco has as a guideline to use the least possible amount of energy in its compressors and this way of thinking is responsible for the constant evolution in its product lines. An example of this is Fullmotion technology, variable capacity compressors which use propane refrigerants that can save up to 40 % of the energy when compared to conventional compressors.
Another example that we can mention is the EM2X compressors. With single speed, using natural propane refrigerant (R290), they are designed to serve a diverse range of equipment, including beverage coolers, vending machines and reach-ins. Since they have a smaller platform, these compressors have greater cooling capacity and can substitute larger compressors, freeing internal space in the equipment.
Benefits of R290
Besides all the economic and environmental benefits that using R290 provides Embraco compressors, it’s important to highlight its safety. Regarding the flammability of the propane refrigerant, its use is safe, since the entire electric circuit of compressors using this refrigerant is designed to prevent generating sparks. Added to this is the fact that the charge used in applications is small, between 40g and 150g for commercial systems.
Success Cases
To prove the efficiency of its compressors, Embraco constantly conducts tests with its customers. In the case of R290, we can illustrate three applications that attested to its effectiveness in replacing R404A for natural refrigerant. A test carried out in a glass door freezer for point of sale, the R290 achieved a 32 % energy reduction, a real gain of US$ 38 per year and, according to projections, would no longer emit 2,277 kg of CO² in 10 years. When the test was performed with a vertical freezer, the savings were even higher, a 43 % reduction in electric energy consumption and a savings of US$ 226 per year, with proven benefits to the environment, since changing the refrigerant indicated that 12,764 kg of CO² would no longer be released into the atmosphere in 10 years. In an ice cream freezer, there was a 16 % reduction in energy costs, which means a real gain of US$ 26 per year for the consumer and 1,954 kg less CO² in the atmosphere in 10 years, also proving an environmental gain.
Embraco is a multinational in the sector of hermetic compressors for refrigeration focused on innovation. The compressor is the main component responsible for producing cold in the refrigeration system. With global operations and annual production capacity of 40 million units, Embraco offers solutions that are differentiated for their innovation and low energy consumption. Its more than 11,000 employees work in factories and offices located in Brazil, China, Italy, Slovakia, Mexico, United States and Russia.
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