Refrigeration equipment industry development of refrigerants is key

At present, the most widely used is the vapor compression refrigeration, the main equipment is a compressor (see fluid transport machinery), condenser, evaporator and throttle valve. Compressors are used for the compression and delivery of refrigerant vapors, with piston and centrifugal applications being the most widely used.

Before artificial refrigeration began to develop, humans already knew how to use natural ice and snow to maintain low temperatures in simple equipment, that is, to use natural cold sources. Modern refrigeration devices are cooled using a chiller. In 1834, the United States J. Perkins successfully piloted a manually operated refrigerator with ether as the working medium. 1844, American J. Gory piloted a refrigerator using air as working medium to make ice and cool air in hospitals. 1872 to 1874, D. Bell and C. Von Linde invented the ammonia compressor in the United States and Germany, and made an ammonia vapor compression refrigerator, which is the origin of modern compression refrigerators. In the 1850s, the Carly brothers in France successively developed an absorption chiller and an ammonia absorption chiller using sulfuric acid and water as working fluids. In 1910, there was a steam jet chiller. In 1930, Freon refrigerants appeared, which promoted the rapid development of compression chillers. In 1945, the United States developed a successful silver bromide absorption chiller.

The favorable trend of the development of refrigeration equipment in China

The "China Refrigeration and Air-conditioning Equipment Industry Production and Sales Demand and Investment Forecast Analysis Report" shows that from 2003 to 2013, China's refrigeration equipment industry sales revenue increased from 36.6 billion yuan to 232 billion yuan, with an average annual compound growth rate as high as 20.3%. Steady growth trend.

The “Development Plan for Cold Chain Logistics of Agricultural Products” promulgated by the National Development and Reform Commission clearly stated that by 2015, the cold chain circulation rate of fruits and vegetables, meat and aquatic products will increase to 20%, 30%, and 36% respectively, and the refrigerated transport rate will increase to 30% respectively. About 50% and 65% of the products, the corruption rate of circulation products dropped to 15%, 8%, and 10% respectively. Affected by this policy, China's cold-chain logistics has developed rapidly, bringing positive impact on related refrigeration equipment. In the future, cold chain logistics will continue to be one of the most important growth points in the refrigeration equipment industry.

From the standpoint of development-driven factors beyond policy, the increase in the level of urbanization in China and the improvement in the living standards of residents have caused changes in the structure of food consumption. The increase in the proportion of perishable food products such as dairy products, poultry, eggs, cold drinks, and aquatic products, as well as the increase in the consumption of anti-seasonal foods, and the expansion of consumption have placed higher demands on cold chain logistics. At the same time, due to the accelerated pace of life, the younger generation of residents have also continuously increased their acceptance of fast-frozen foods, and they have also made demands on cold-chain logistics.

Food safety has received extensive attention, and food spoilage is also a factor in the safety of food for the majority of residents. Food safety industry standards continue to increase, so food production companies will add or upgrade cold chain logistics equipment in order to prevent accidents and create a good corporate image. In addition, the domestic food aquaculture and processing industries and the logistics industry have been scattered for a long time, and the self-employed aquaculture and processing companies have occupied a considerable proportion, with the trend of large-scale enterprises operating in the industry. However, the demand for refrigeration equipment from large-scale enterprises is significantly higher than that of self-employed households. Therefore, the demand for refrigeration equipment will also increase.

Refrigerant replacement work is inevitable for the development of the times

Hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFCs) refrigerants are one of the sources of greenhouse gases. To protect the environment and promote the development and application of new refrigerants, the industrial and commercial refrigerant industry is expected to eliminate 8,450 tons of HCFCs consumption this year, plus R32, carbon dioxide, etc. Low-GWP (global warming potential) refrigerants will enter the market and 2015 will become a critical year for refrigerant replacement.

According to Zhang Zhaohui, secretary general of the China Refrigeration and Air-conditioning Industry Association, as of November 2014, 12 enterprises in the commercial refrigeration and air-conditioning production field completed the evaluation of the contract for HCFCs phase-out and transformation projects (totally transform 25 production lines) or the evaluation of project proposals. The project funds will be approximately US$36 million. After these projects are completed, approximately 7,000 tons of R22 can be phased out.

For refrigeration systems, ammonia is environmentally friendly, energy-efficient, and economical. For many years, it has been the mainstream refrigerant in the industrial refrigeration field. New application areas and higher and higher requirements continue to promote the development of ammonia refrigeration technology. The demand for ammonia refrigeration equipment is also increasing. At the same time, ammonia is both toxic and flammable. The high incidence of accidents in the country has made the industry's application of ammonia systems highly controversial. However, through advanced automated control systems, the use of machines instead of labor to improve the degree of automation of ammonia refrigeration systems can greatly reduce the safety hazards caused by manual operation errors.

Magnetic refrigeration technology is also the focus of R&D in the refrigeration industry in recent years. With the breakthrough of room temperature magnetic refrigeration materials and the maturity of magnetic refrigerator technology, countries around the world have joined in the practical development of magnetic refrigeration, but most of them are limited to no space. Or small capacity magnetic refrigerator. Recently, the large-capacity magnetic refrigerator developed by Baotou Rare Earth Institute magnetic refrigeration group can reduce the 117-liter refrigerator from room temperature to 0 degrees Celsius, and the maximum cooling temperature difference reaches 24.5 degrees Celsius.

Magnetic refrigeration technology is not perfect, it is like a coin has two sides, on the one hand it is more energy-saving and environmentally friendly, can achieve non-chemical refrigeration, low unit energy consumption, on the other hand, it is mainly used in aerospace, medical fields, Civilization obstacles. The research group took the lead in successfully preparing a large-capacity magnetic refrigerator on a global scale, breaking through the bottleneck that restricts the practical use of room-temperature magnetic refrigeration, and has taken a solid step forward in promoting the practical and civilized use of magnetic refrigeration technology.

With the rapid development of various industries, the demand for refrigeration equipment is getting higher and higher. With the new demands of the social development on environmental protection, more and more refrigeration equipment is developing in the direction of environmental protection, and China's refrigeration equipment companies must also grasp the good times. The general direction of development, keep abreast of cutting-edge scientific and technological information, and formulate development strategies in advance.