Efficiency in supermarkets
By: Alejandra García Vélez
By: Alejandra García Vélez
By: Héctor Gómez Pérez
by Julián Arcila
The economic and industrial world is upside down due to the global economic crisis of recent months. Although the air conditioning and refrigeration sector has not been directly affected, the low dynamism shown by the construction sector has impacted the figures of this segment. The positive aspect is that Latin America could turn out to be a clear winner in the approaching scenario.
For many years vehicular air conditioning ceased to be a luxury to be a necessity for various factors. Three experts in the field evaluate some relevant aspects of these systems today. by Héctor Gómez Pérez A vehicular air conditioning system was for many an expensive luxury until several years ago. Currently it is a need that is included within the characteristics of the vast majority of vehicles and its need was determined by factors as diverse as safety and the same climatic changes in the region. In many cities in Latin America: Cartagena de Indias in Colombia, Rio de Janeiro in Brazil or Panama City, to give just a few examples of hot cities in the region, a journey in a car that does not have air conditioning can become a real ordeal for the driver and his passengers, without counting the problems of mobility or insecurity of some other cities that aggravate the inconvenience and that force to keep the windows up to avoid setbacks. ACR Latin America wanted to talk to three experts in the field to learn about the trends, the changes that have been implemented and the horizons that are glimpsed at the turn of a few years for these systems. The group was formed by Jorge Colaço, management advisor of Recigases Ambiental de Refrigeración de Sao Paulo, Brazil; John Jairo Rivera, manager of Tecnoaires de Cali, Colombia, and Ignacio Gabriel Corella, general manager of Ceksa Autoclimas de México. They discussed this important area within ventilation, especially the refrigerants that are used. Gas substitution Jorge Colaço was the first to be emphatic in pointing out that there is no refrigerant gas that does not affect the environment. Efforts have definitely been made to use gases that do not threaten the ozone layer, although almost all have GWM (Global Warming Potential). The first big step has been the replacement of R-12 by R-134a in vehicular air conditioning systems, although Rivera points out that there are still things to be done to address this issue by noting that "the issue of the replacement of refrigerants to date I think is not resolved, since R-12 was replaced by R-134a, which does not damage the ozone layer, but otherwise produces global warming. There is a replacement called HC12 and it is made from hydrocarbons, the strange thing is that it is a refrigerant produced in the United States but I do not understand why it has not been marketed in Colombia and neighboring countries. " Ignacio Corella thinks that what is being experienced at the moment is something very similar to what happened in 1992 when the counterclaim was given to R-134a gas. "R-134a gas was highly questioned at first, however it already enjoys full acceptance. Tests are currently being carried out with other mixtures and with CO2, although the latter involves handling dangerously high pressures. At the moment it is not a cause for alert or concern to change refrigerant gas for mobile units, "said Corella. Commitment of the parties One aspect in which the three guests agreed is that there is still a lack of awareness of the issue of environmental care on the part of manufacturers and users of vehicular ventilation systems. On the one hand, Rivera said that although there are certain regulations for manufacturers in the production of vehicles and their accessories, even this commitment is null among users and notes that "only some people value the service provided by specialized service workshops in recovery issues before a system is completely discharged when cooling problems arise. There is no awareness in the fact of not allowing mixing of refrigerants, that the labor is qualified, the use of service workshops that have their personnel trained for the handling of polluting substances and so on." Colaço believes that the issue goes through information factors and gives an example to illustrate the matter: "we all know that more oil in some engine device does not necessarily improve its lubrication, but nobody cares about the amount of gas in the air conditioning system. Worse still many believe that quantity can be measured by pressure." Corella for his part thinks that the issue is more on the side of legislation. "As long as there is no strong legislation on the subject as it happens in the United States, Canada or Australia, both manufacturers and consumers will omit any procedure that involves cost or loss of time. Strict legislation is necessary or give more authority to government entities responsible for protecting the environment," he noted. Trends and realities Currently the most used gas in vehicular cooling systems is R-134a and it is of the utmost importance to take into account relevant aspects in the systems operated with this refrigerant such as thermodynamic properties, material compatibility and component selection. Also that R-134a refrigerants should not be mixed with mineral oils or lubricants with alkalibenzene. Continuing with his previous idea, Colaço states that manufacturers should include in the vehicle manuals the amount of gas that must be put into the system, in the same way that the amounts of oil or radiator fluid are included. It also considers that within these systems the type of oil used in the compressor is fundamental. "In Brazil they use oil for refrigerators, which ends up damaging the compressor and since this takes a few months, the user does not realize until long after they put the wrong oil into the system," Colaço said. As it was well said from the beginning, vehicular air conditioning ceased to be an exclusive luxury of a few, to be a need of the vast majority. This has made it possible to be a factory element of the vehicle, which has led to much better performance of the system by correcting the two typical problems of yesteryear: overheating and excessive fuel consumption. Among the current characteristics, it stands out that they are automated systems, in which the levels of acoustics generated by the speeds reached by the air have been substantially reduced and the circulation of the air and the obtaining of thermal comfort have been improved. Now if we talk about a good maintenance service of these systems, Colaço considers that more than a matter of intuition, the technician or mechanic who repairs or maintains them should be equipped with: a gas collector or recycler, have whenever possible a system of detection of losses by ultraviolet, offer a good vacuum and a non-contact thermometer. The three experts consider that vehicular air conditioning systems are widely used in the vast majority of Latin America, although Colaço provides a relevant fact: "In terms of numbers Brazil is the country that uses them the most, but if we take into account the relationship with the population I think that Colombia, Peru and Venezuela should be at a very high percentage."
By Alejandra García Vélez
Traditionally the end of the year is characterized by the joy of the Christmas holidays and the expectation of a new year that begins, however 2008 ended for many with a large dose of uncertainty and fear of what 2009 will bring to the world economy. For virtually no country has escaped the impact of the crisis, although some nations cope better than others. In fact, according to the World Bank, of the 20 developing countries whose economies have suffered the most from the crisis, six belong to Europe and Central Asia and eight to Latin America and the Caribbean.
In addition, the World Bank forecasts that: "in 2009 import demand will decline by 3.4% in high-income countries, while net private debt and capital flows to developing countries will contract by US$1 trillion in 2007 to about US$530 billion in 2009, or from 7.7% to 3% of developing countries' gross domestic product (GDP). As a result, the pace of investment growth in developing countries is estimated to slow sharply, with only 3.5 per cent increasing in middle-income countries, compared with an increase of 13.2 per cent in 2007."
In addition to the above, in developing countries, the rate of growth is expected to reach 4.5 per cent in 2009, down from 7.9 per cent and 6.3 per cent in 2007 and 2008. Overall, global GDP is estimated to increase by just 0.9% in 2009, the lowest since 1970, when the data began to be recorded.
Also worrying to the industry is the fact that crude oil prices fell from $143 a barrel in early July, to less than $50 a barrel in mid-November and a low of $35 in January. The fall in price was due to a decline in demand, the appreciation of the dollar, and concerns about the outlook for demand as a result of the financial shock. Other commodities also declined in price dramatically because these markets are increasingly linked to crude oil through production costs and biofuel development. For example, the World Bank states that the metals and minerals price index is projected to fall by 25% in 2009 and an additional 5% in 2010, compared to 2008.
Compressors
To talk about the prospects in terms of the compressor market, AC/R Latin America will have the opinion of Renato Majarão, regional marketing manager of Danfoss Brazil, and Newto da Silva, education and training coordinator of the same company.
Majarão says that the commercialization of compressors has been growing, but that the development of sales depends on compression technology, according to him in Danfoss highlighted the sales of scroll compressors and compressors with reciprocal hermetic technology, which had significant increases.
Da silva, for his part, highlighted the importance of research and new developments for the positioning of a company in the market, as he affirms that by constantly modernizing production processes it is possible to ensure that compressors are manufactured with the least amount of resources and impact on the environment.
Precisely the concern for the environment, the increase in energy prices and the general increase in the global demand for saving products have driven an increase in the level of its research and development activities, said Newto da Silva and added that given the growing need for products and solutions for use with natural refrigerants or with reduced values of ODP and GWP, the goal in compressor production is to achieve energy efficiency, reduce the amount of refrigerant used, and use natural refrigerants in applications where possible. Other very important points are the reduction of noise level and a high reliability in the product.
Among the latest innovations, the use of variable speed stands out, allowing an adaptation of the compressor capacity to the actual thermal load. In this way it is possible to work with optimized pressures with better efficiency (high POPs), keeping the system pressures constant or very close to the optimum point. The Danfoss official said.
Regarding the current market situation, da Silva revealed that in the countries in which Danfoss is present (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Venezuela and Mexico) the commercial refrigeration, air conditioning and OEM's segments are the ones that contribute the most to compressor sales.
RIP