Difference Between Air Cooled Chiller And Water Cooled Chiller

There are many types of refrigeration equipment in daily use, but the application range of chiller is relatively wide. It can control the temperature in a specific range, and the refrigeration effect is stable, suitable for use in various industries. The current industrial chiller in the refrigeration industry is mainly divided into air cooled chiller and water cooled chiller. So what is the difference between using an air cooled chiller and a water cooled chiller? The supplier of China Industrial Water Chiller will introduce them one by one.

The air cooled chiller implements the cooling function through the refrigerating cycle cooling water of the chiller. Due to the heat exchange between the fan and the air, the air cooled chiller also uses heat dissipation components such as fans and dust nets to perform the cooling. Cooling. The air cooled chiller can control the temperature and has stable performance while occupying a small space, convenient to move, and easy to operate.

Water Cooled Chiller Machine cools the circulating water through the chiller's refrigeration system, and then sends it to the equipment through the pump and the cooling water circuit. The water cooled chiller is relatively less affected by the environment, but it needs a good and high-quality water source for circulating cooling. Due to the water tower, the water cooled chiller takes up a large area and has a large amount of installation and maintenance work. Below we will specifically analyze the difference between the air cooled chiller and the water cooled chiller.

The difference between air cooled chiller and water cooled chiller:

1.Performance

At the same outdoor ambient temperature, the water temperature of the cooling circulating water is lower than the outdoor air temperature. Therefore, the normal condensation temperature of the air cooled unit is much higher than the condensation temperature of the water cooled unit, so that the air cooled unit is at the same temperature. In the case of cooling capacity, its power consumption is larger than that of water cooled units.

2. Equipment room

Air Cooled Chiller Cooling Unit is an outdoor machine that can be placed on the roof of a building or on the outdoor floor. The chilled water circulation pump can also be placed with the unit without occupying the machine room. For water cooled chiller units, a machine room should be provided to ensure the normal operation and service life of the equipment including chiller units, chilled water circulation pumps, and cooling water circulation pumps. At the same time, cooling tower equipment is placed on the building roof or outdoor floor. It can be seen that when the building cannot provide a machine room, the use of air cooled chiller units should be a more feasible way.

Air Cooled Chiller Cooling Unit

3. Operating costs

Since the water cooled unit operates at a lower condensing temperature, the refrigeration efficiency is high, and the power consumption of the unit operation is small. Generally speaking, compared with water cooled chiller with the same cooling capacity, the overall power consumption of water cooled chiller (including the power consumption of cooling water pumps and cooling tower fans) is 25% lower than that of air cooled chiller. 

4.Maintenance and maintenance

Shell-and-tube condensers used in water cooled units have a small impact on heat exchange efficiency within a certain range of dirt accumulation, so the performance of the unit decreases with the generation of dirt, the cleaning cycle is longer, and the relative maintenance costs will be lower . The heat exchange efficiency of the fin condenser used by the air cooled unit is greatly affected by the accumulation of dirt. A dust filter must be installed in front of the finned tube and frequent cleaning is required. Due to the higher operating pressure of air cooled units, they are generally installed outdoors, and the operating environment is relatively harsh. They are not as good as water cooled units in terms of maintainability and reliability.

The above is the analysis of the difference between air cooled chiller and water cooled chiller. As can be seen from the above, air cooled chiller and water cooled chiller have their own characteristics, and they should be selected based on factors such as different use environments, spaces, required cooling capacity, and regions.