Peter Powell

CO2 as a refrigerant and scroll technology as an important compressor approach were reaffirmed at the most recent combined conferences on refrigeration/air conditioning and compressor engineering at Purdue University. Each topic was addressed in close to 30 papers.

For contractors who work on supermarket refrigeration equipment, the issue of highest importance is food safety. Meats, fish, dairy products, and a whole host of other consumable items are subject to the slightest fluctuations in enclosure temperatures.

Sustainability and its cousin, “going green,” have stepped up their presence in the refrigeration sector, after gaining a high-profile position in a/c. The most recent Food Marketing Institute Show found dozens upon dozens of the close to 800 exhibitors promoting themselves as sustainable and green in some way.

Several dozen members of the international trade press came recently to the Heartland of America to learn about high power frequency drives that have applications in a variety of sectors including HVACR.

Contractors who have mastered working with CFCs, HCFCs, and HFCs may now want to turn their attention to what is being promoted as the fourth generation of refrigerants - HFOs (Hydro-Fluoro-Olefins) - which were discussed at the combined International Compressor Engineering and International Refrigeration/Air Conditioning conferences hosted by Purdue University.

Sometimes a flurry of activities and actions surface quickly and then die down almost as fast. Such was the case in late spring - over at least one round - regarding legislation that calls for cutting carbon dioxide and other so-called greenhouse gases by about 70 percent.

Even though much attention in the HVACR industry has shifted to supplies of HCFC-22 and long-term viability of HFCs, questions about exportation and disposal of CFCs and CFC-containing equipment continue to surface.

CO2 as a secondary fluid, piping precautions, and when and how to use variable-speed drives were among the topics of eight papers presented during the 2008 International Institute of Ammonia Refrigeration (IIAR) Conference & Exhibition.

There were some 5,000 young persons in Kansas City in late June for the 44th SkillsUSA National Leadership and Skills Conference. They were winners from SkillsUSA chapters who competed in local, state, and regional competitions to reach the national championship in 91 different vocational disciplines. In that mix were 54 students competing in Heating, Ventilation, Air-Conditioning, and Refrigeration.