International. In partnership with temperature-controlled display case manufacturer Structural Concepts, Embraco, a brand of Nidec Global, presented a successful case study at the ATMOsphere America Summit 2024.
The study described the migration of Structural Concepts' entire product portfolio to natural refrigerant R290 and variable speed technology, achieving up to 53% energy savings.
In this collaboration, Structural Concepts transitioned its portfolio of refrigerated food displays, moving from fixed-speed compressors using HFO refrigerants (R449A and R513A) to Embraco UFMFT condensing units equipped with dual-voltage, variable-speed compressors, using R290 natural refrigerant.
For the case study, the two companies monitored migration behavior in two applications to compare it to the previous setup: a small food display that uses a single compressor and a larger capacity display that uses two compressors.
The first, an under-counter application, with a cooling circuit using less than 150 grams of R290, achieved a 53% saving in energy consumption and a 55% reduction in Total Equivalent Warming Impact (TEWI).
In turn, the second application, a vertical to-go display case, with two cooling circuits (each containing less than 150 grams of R290), produced an 11% drop in energy consumption and a 17% decrease in TEWI.
In addition, a third series of tests was carried out with a horizontal display case of 1.20 x 2.40 meters (4x8 feet), designed with two cooling circuits, with R290 and variable speed compressors, operating independently.
After installing the newly launched Embraco Sync Controller, designed to manage multiple cooling circuits together, energy savings of 12% were realized.
"Embraco Sync is one of the solutions that make up the Sync it All portfolio, along with the Embraco AIR fan, the YouControl development interface and the Embraco variable speed compressors. The test demonstrated the effectiveness of the new controller to improve energy efficiency and temperature stability, as it is a component specifically developed to work in synchrony with two Embraco variable speed compressors," said Johari Gregorio, Application Engineer at Nidec Global Appliance for the North American region.
This migration also had a positive impact on Structural's manufacturing process, because it reduced the complexity of its compressor inventory. "Out of 38 different compressor models (due to the need for different refrigerants and voltages), we will now have only two models of Embraco condensing units, equipped with R290 variable speed dual voltage compressors, which can serve our entire range of refrigerated displays," said Rob Dody, Senior Director of Engineering at Structural.
"The UFMFT model has a small footprint, around 25 centimeters tall (10 inches), which means it fits in all cabinets,
allowing more space for products in the display. In addition, it features a pipe-designed drain pan, which connects to multiple drain pans and equalizes the condensed water between them, resulting in a significant water-holding capacity, about 4.9 liters (1.3 gallons) each drain pan," added Johari Gregorio.
The transition also ensured compliance with upcoming regulatory standards. Since the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) limits the global warming potential (GWP) of commercial food refrigeration equipment to 150 as of January 2025, the switch to R290 allows Structural Concepts to comply with these regulations as early as 2024.
The energy efficiency of these solutions is also prepared for future Department of Energy regulations. On top of that, there is the gain from decarbonization. The overall portfolio migration is estimated to reduce Structural's TEWI by 33% on average, significantly reducing CO2 emissions.
"The migration to variable speed technology and natural refrigerant has allowed Structural to offer more efficient and environmentally sustainable products, aligned with customer expectations and market demands," Dody celebrated.
"Manufacturers of refrigeration equipment for food retail, such as Structural, can benefit greatly from purchasing the complete condensing unit ready to install in their applications, rather than buying and assembling multiple parts. Because it saves them time and effort and allows them to focus on their core business, personalized food display," Gregorio concluded.
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