Explaining the
technology, Eugene Smithart, P.E., vice president, sales and
marketing, said the Turbocor compressor provides oil-free
operation through the use of magnetic bearings, which also
minimize friction losses; variable-speed centrifugal compression
to maximize efficiency; and onboard digital electronics to
document performance for middle-market water-cooled,
evaporative-cooled, and air-cooled HVACR applications.
“Our compressor provides up to 33 percent better operating
efficiency, especially at part load conditions, compared to some
of the industry’s best screw compressors,” Smithart said. This is
due to the unit’s “centrifugal compression and high-efficiency
permanent magnet motor” combined with a built-in variable-speed
drive that “maximizes performance over the entire operating
range.”
Reliability is enhanced because there is only one moving part,
he said. “And that part — the combined rotor shaft and impellers —
levitates and floats during rotation by the digitally controlled
magnetic bearings, ensuring 500 times less friction than
traditional oiled bearings.”
Ron Conry, Turbocor’s chief technology officer and inventor of
the product, noted that the compressor’s soft start module reduces
inrush current to “only 2 amps vs. the typical 500 to 600 amps for
traditional screw compressors.”
Since the Turbocor compressor is oil-free, “it eliminates the
possibility of oil contaminating the refrigerant,” pointed out
Conry. “Because oil can degrade the performance of chillers and
other HVAC equipment by coating the heat transfer surfaces, its
elimination is a significant sustainable performance advantage,
helping to maintain its high efficiency over the life of the
equipment.” Web-based monitoring and diagnostics provide real-time
documentation of the compressor’s performance.
The product now has over 500,000 hours of field use in new and
retrofit applications, said Evans. “We believe this compressor
represents, in the important mid-range market, the future of
compression technology.”
Publication date:
05/10/2004
