ATLANTA, GA — Parker Hannifin Corp. was on hand at this year’s AHR Expo, and the company was not hard to miss.

Parker completely redesigned its booth to divide the company’s air conditioning and heating products. The “hot” section displayed new products in a family room atmosphere complete with working natural gas fireplace, while the “cool” section displayed a number of air conditioning and refrigeration products in a mock igloo. The company also had a mascot on hand, the 7-ft-tall snowman Flakey, who helped visitors tour the booth.

But the real star of Parker’s booth was the variety of new products the corporation is looking to market later in the year, including valves, gauges, probes, and natural gas piping and fittings.

Valves And More Valves

The company displayed several valves for use in industrial refrigeration and air conditioning.

One of the new products introduced at the expo was a line of improved industrial solenoid valves, which the company expects to be available worldwide in late spring.

According to Len Jaeger, market development manager for Parker, the new solenoid valves were developed in order to keep up with the rapid changes in the air conditioning and refrigeration industry. The valves are smaller and lightweight, and have improved molding for enhanced watertight performance. They also meet the higher pressure ratings necessary for newer refrigerants (up to 450 psi).

Parker’s Refrigerating Special-ties Division showcased hand valves with bonnet extensions to ensure that the stem and packing nut are located outside today’s thicker insulation and vapor barrier envelopes.

The company’s V2 and V3 Unibody hand valves are designed to seat tight and permit isolation of small system components. The valves are also available in many different sizes and styles, and are for use with ammonia, R-22, R-507, R-134a, R-404A, and other common refrigerants and oils.

Controls And Probes

Parker also introduced and displayed two new liquid level probes for monitoring and managing system refrigerant charges. The Depth Tracker and the Superducer are able to interpret the liquid level in a receiver, accumulator, or similar pressure vessel at a selectable dc voltage range. Both are used to support monitoring, charge management, and troubleshooting via a central microprocessor-based control panel.

The Depth Tracker is used with ammonia (R-717) systems and can be used with liquid refrigerant temperatures ranging from -107°F to 135°F. Available in various lengths, it features a digital readout and is factory precalibrated for ammonia for 0% to 100% level output in 4-in. IPS standpipe. The electronics can then be recalibrated in the field for viewing of liquid levels over a segment representing more than 40% of the probe’s overall length.

The Superducer is designed for use with halocarbon systems, especially supermarket refrigeration rack systems. The probe is factory precalibrated for four different halocarbon refrigerants for 0% to 100% level output.

Parker also introduced the Programmable Liquid Level Control (PLLC) to provide remote liquid level management capabilities in refrigeration applications.

This device is used with the Depth Tracker probe. By using the PLLC, it provides a power source for the current loop of the probes. The probes are used to provide a current signal proportional to the vertical liquid level in a standpipe or vessel. The PLLC then serves as a switching mechanism and converts the return signal and performs up to five programmable relay functions.

Refrigerant Purger

Parker also unveiled the company’s new Rapid Refrigerant Purger. The purger removes non-condensables that reduce the efficiency of the refrigeration system. This is done by increasing system condensing pressure.

A unique feature of the Rapid Refrigerant Purger is that it combines several Parker products into a complete refrigerant purging system. These major components include the pressure switch, water bubbler, liquid level float switch, temperature switch, pressure check valve, heat exchanger, and the vapor vent float.

Publication date: 02/26/2001