Swegon and Frascold for R290 reversible heat pumps
A technology ready for a sustainable future
An environmentally friendly and energy-efficient range featuring a decidedly low Total Equivalent Warming Impact, thanks to the use of propane and Frascold's ATEX-certified compressors.
The heat pump industry is undergoing considerable evolution and the demand for energy-efficient heating and cooling solutions is growing exponentially toward an increasingly sustainable and environmentally friendly direction.
Europe first and foremost is undertaking numerous initiatives to achieve the objectives imposed by RepowerEU, and one of the sectors most affected by this is undoubtedly heat pumps. This is an ever-growing sector and it is at the heart of the discussions on the F-Gas revision, introduced to exponentially reduce the use of greenhouse HFCs in favor of increasingly sustainable solutions with natural refrigerants.
The importance of heat pumps from renewable sources
Why are heat pumps from renewable sources a key innovation within this scenario? Because they use the heat present in the air or in the water to heat and to cool, combining key factors such as energy efficiency and consumption savings. An important decrease in environmental impact, making this an ideal and alternative choice to traditional, more polluting boilers.
This is why Frascold and Swegon Group AB - a manufacturer of ventilation, heating, cooling, and air conditioning optimization systems - employ their industry expertise toward the development of technologically advanced, safe, and future-ready solutions for comfort and indoor quality.
From the combination of this know-how with attention to quality and sustainability comes TITAN Sky, a range of reversible heat pumps designed by Swegon's technical department in collaboration with Frascold engineers. The former being the creator of the entire project, and the latter being essential in the choice of the compressor, the heart that makes the entire system function correctly.
How does an environmentally friendly reversible heat pump, pioneer of the future, come about?
"The TITAN Sky range was born out of our engineers' great passion for the comfort and indoor quality sector. A line capable of ranging from 30 to 200 kW nominal, with water up to 63°C maximum temperature," explained Fabio Polo, Product Management Manager of Swegon, who continued, "A Eurovent certified range that meets SCOP values in both low temperature water production and hotter water production. A heat pump specifically designed to be ready for future legislative changes in the industry and characterized by a decidedly low Total Equivalent Warming Impact, thanks to the use of propane as refrigerant and the design specifically engineered to maximize efficiency. In order to achieve these goals and guarantee strict attention to safety, we carefully selected the most appropriate components, including the Frascold compressors, which are already ATEX certified."
Why was propane chosen for the development of this TITAN Sky range?
“Propane is an ideal refrigerant in heat production, with excellent performance and efficiency returns in cold production as well. These heat pumps are designed to meet the needs of a specific market, one that includes not only the multifamily residential sector, but also the hotel sector and commercial offices. The choice of propane represents for these sectors an important opening toward the decarbonization of heating and cooling and compliance with the regulations currently in force, and the F-GAS and REACH revisions currently under discussion." continued Fabio Polo, “Propane is perfect for medium pressure and allows working ranges characterized by high condensation temperatures. For this reason and because of their great expertise in the use of R290, we immediately relied on Frascold for the choice of the best compressor and we found ATEX-certified solutions that could meet our needs.”
How much does the choice of compressor affect the development of heat pumps of this type?
"The compressor is the heart that makes a system function correctly and efficiently, in this case a reversible heat pump. In this project there was a constant collaboration between our technical department and that of Swegon, to identify the most suitable compressor models for the system and the chosen refrigerant." commented Kaven Nourrice, Application Engineer of Frascold, who added, "Indeed, after careful initial tests, we selected reciprocating compressors from our standard series dedicated to hydrocarbons, specifically the Z model, a compressor already ATEX certified and ready to face all design challenges related to safety and sustainability. For this, we collaborated with Swegon's experts for sharing application experiences and risk analysis."
Specifically, what are the features of this ATEX-certified piston compressor?
"Frascold offers multiple ranges suitable for HC, the result of historical expertise in the use of this type of refrigerant. Compressors designed specifically for systems where safety, sustainability, and energy efficiency come first." said Kaven Nourrice of Frascold, who continued, "In the heat pump sector, these semi-hermetic compressors are the best choice for the design of systems from 50 up to 200 kW. An important technology ready to accompany industry innovations toward an increasingly sustainable world."
