Absorption chillers: Technology for the future

In an era of heightened awareness of energy efficiency and the associated environmental impacts, many industries worldwide are exploring "environmentally friendly" technologies that provide equivalent or improved performance while reducing or eliminating harmful side-effects. The refrigeration and air-conditioning industry, due to its reliance on CFCs and HCFCs, has invested in research in alternatives to the industry standard vapor compression machines. One alternative technology with great promise is chemical absorption. Absorption chiller; offer comparable refrigeration output with reduced SO2 CO2, and NOX emissions. Absorption chillers do not use CFCs or HCFCs, refrigerants that contribute to ozone depletion and global warming. Additionally, gas-fired absorption chillers can save significant amounts in energy costs when used in combination with a vapor compression chiller in a hybrid system. The hybrid system can take advantage of the comparatively low price of natural gas (per unit ton) and rely on the high performance of vapor compression when electricity prices are lower. The purpose of this article is to provide an introduction for those new to absorption technology as well as a discussion of selected high efficiency cycles, a discussion on the technology of coupling absorption with vapor compression systems to form a hybrid system, and the environmental impacts of absorption.