International. After a nine-month renovation, the Harry J. McDonald Recreation Center in Anchorage, Alaska, became the first ice rink in the United States to use CO2 as a coolant.
Installed by Hillphoenix Inc., the transcritical CO2 system improves ice quality and provides a higher coefficient of performance (COP) compared to traditional systems.
It is also environmentally friendly and allows for energy conservation: CO2 is non-toxic and costs significantly less than fluorinated refrigerants.
"We're already seeing the savings, and we're anticipating energy savings of 25% to 40% when all the results are given," said John Rodda, director of Anchorage, Alaska. The city operates the Harry J. McDonald Recreation Center, which reopened its ice rink for skaters and hockey teams in early January, after a nine-month renovation and installation of the CO2 system.
Anchorage said the early adoption of CO2 was a well-studied decision. They spent a year considering the options. "We looked at all possible non-Freon refrigerant solutions, but sooner or later, we were all prone to being affected by environmental concerns. We decided that CO2 had the most benefits," Rodda said.
