When designing an industrial refrigeration plant for low-charge (DX) ammonia, there are a number of critically important concepts to consider which differ significantly from traditional pumped ammonia plant design. These “big ideas” are described briefly below:

I. Capture and Removal of Water

II. Oil-less (< 1 ppm) Ammonia Liquid

III. Oil-less Hot Gas for Defrost

IV. Subcooled Ammonia Liquid

V. Evaporator Design ( Mitigating Separated [Stratified/Wavy] Flow; Managing Non-Uniform Distribution; Managing Non-Uniform Circuit Loading)

Just returned from attending the IIR conference in Ohrid, Macedonia, which has been held every two years since 2005. The conference is organized by Professor Risto Ciconkov from the university in Skopje in Macedonia, and was originally held to report on new ammonia refrigeration technologies and to promote the safe use of ammonia as a refrigerant in the region of the Balkans.

Recent conferences have grown to include advances in CO2 refrigeration as well. This was the first conference held since the COVID pandemic lockdowns and was very well attended with many good papers presented from all around Europe, the UK, and Australia. I was very pleased to be invited to report on recent IIAR research activities and the results and deliverables coming from NRF-funded projects, including best design practice for vertical wet suction risers, and Bent Wiencke's excellent guideline for estimating accidental ammonia releases.

The slides from my conference presentation are attached. Please let me know if you have any questions.

If you have a business that uses industrial HVACR, you know how difficult it can be to keep it running efficiently and effectively. With natural refrigerants such as ammonia, CO2, and hydrocarbon blends becoming more common, it is a great time to make the switch. Understanding the benefits of natural refrigerants can help you make the right choice.

A few years ago, I had a very interesting discussion with a friend of mine over dinner about some of the challenges one faces when doing business internationally. All of us go through life interacting with others, making decisions, resolving conflicts, etc., according to our view of the world - our "World View". It is easy to make the assumption that everyone else is operating with the same (or at least a similar) worldview that we are. Not always true!

My friend recommended the book "Culture Map" by Erin Meyer (pictured below), which I am recommending now to any of you who do business with clients from other countries or regions. Ms. Meyer is a good writer and storyteller who very effectively analyzes the differences in the way we communicate, resolve problems, collaborate, etc., depending on the culture we grew up in.