Innovative Unit Options

Free Cooling Allows Reduced Operating Costs

Consider a CenTraVac ® chiller option that can provide up to 45 percent of the nominal chiller capacity — without operating the compressor. Think of the significant energy and cost savings possible in many applications. This option is available on all Trane chillers, factory installed.

Free cooling operation is based on the principle that refrigerant migrates to the area of lowest temperature. When condenser water is available at temperatures lower than the required leaving chilled water temperature (typically 50 to 55 F), the unit control panel starts the free cooling cycle automatically. Up to 45 percent of nominal chiller capacity is available without operating the compressor — that’s the highest in the industry!

When the free cooling cycle can no longer provide sufficient capacity to meet cooling requirements, mechanical cooling is restarted automatically by the unit control panel.

For example, a building with a high internal cooling load is located in a climate with cold winters. It is possible to cool the building exclusively with free cooling three to six months of the year!

Free cooling payback can easily be less than a year. Free cooling is completely factory installed and requires no more floor space or piping than the standard CenTraVac chiller (unlike plate frame heat exchangers).

Ice Storage Provides Reduced Electrical Demand

Ice storage is the hottest thing in cooling today. It has been accepted by building owners and tenants who are concerned about utility costs.

An ice storage system uses a standard chiller to make ice at night when utilities charge less for electricity. The ice supplements or even replaces mechanical cooling during the day when utility rates are at their highest. This reduced need for cooling results in big utility cost savings.

Another advantage of ice storage is standby cooling capacity. If the chiller is unable to operate, one or two days of ice may still be available to provide cooling. In that time the chiller can be repaired before building occupants feel any loss of comfort.

The Trane CenTraVac chiller is uniquely suited to low temperature applications like ice storage because it provides multiple stages of compression. Competitive chillers provide only one stage. This allows the CenTraVac chiller to produce ice efficiently, with less stress on the machine.

Simple and smart control strategies are another advantage the CenTraVac chiller has for ice storage applications. Trane Tracer ® building management systems can actually anticipate how much ice needs to be made at night and operate the system accordingly. The controls are integrated right into the chiller. Two wires and preprogrammed software dramatically reduce field installation cost and complex programming.