Investment in energy-efficient
inverters and a free cooling system
from IsoCool. is paying off fast for
Fluorocarbon with cooling costs on
track to reduce by 67%. The project,
funded with a loan from the Carbon
Trust and Siemens Financial Services
under the Energy Efficiency
Financing Scheme, has a payback
schedule of less than two years.

Historically the process cooling
system consisted of a single water
chiller with a 120kW cooling
capacity, and cost just over £20,000 a
year to run. IsoCool retro-fitted a
separate RFC air blast cooler to the
chiller. This provides the cooling
source during the times of the year
when the ambient will allow partial
and up to 100% direct air cooling,
thus offloading the compressors and
the inherent high operating costs.

IsoCool believed further energy
savings could be achieved by
installing inverters to the process
pumps. These alter the speed of the
pumps in direct response to demand.

They also limit peaks in electrical
use, keeping energy consumption
and operating costs to a minimum.

Shaun Grundon, health, safety and
environmental officer, explains: “Our
water chillers used to be on 24/7, 52
weeks of the year. Now thanks to the
free cooler, the main chiller only
comes on two to three months a year.

The energy savings are massive”.

Grundon says results from the
inverters are equally impressive.