A NEW RACE FOR IMPROVING ENERGY EFFICIENCY FOR PROFESSIONAL REFRIGERATORS AND FREEZERS

摘要

New EU energy labelling schemes and new EU ecodesign criteria have initiated a drive for improving the energy efficiency of professional refrigerators and freezers. The goal is to market products with the best possible energy label. This paper provides an overview of adopted and proposed EU regulations for professional and commercial refrigerators and freezers. The paper also provides examples of ongoing R&D activities at Danish Technological Institute in cooperation with manufacturers in order to improve the energy efficiency of professional kitchen cabinets, commercial cabinets as well as wine coolers. The activities are supported by the Danish Energy Agency. A new generation of wine coolers has been developed and tested. This new wine cooler saves almost 50% of the energy consumption compared to the "old model". This is measured in terms of accredited testing in a climate chamber and a field test with eight new and eight "old" wine coolers. Most of the savings are achieved by using a new compressor technology, i.e. a new small and efficient compressor with capacity regulation and very little internal friction. The applied refrigerant is R600a. A new generation of professional kitchen refrigerators and freezers has been developed by using a new generation of compressors and by reducing the heat transfer through the insulation and around the door. During laboratory tests, savings of 29% and 27% were achieved for the refrigerator and the freezer, respectively. In a field test with 10 new and five "old" refrigerators, a saving of 30% was identified.