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Knowledge Brief

Refrigeration Systems and Energy

Efficiency: What the Pharmaceutical
Industry Can Learn From the Food
Processing Industry
by Luke Facemyer, PE

Modern refrigeration control systems

allow manufacturing facilities to better
manage and optimize energy use. This
article lists reasons to upgrade to a
more modern refrigeration system and
provides details on the benefits of newer
systems. It also provides tips engineers
can use to automate and optimize an
entire refrigeration system.

Introduction
As energy costs continue to increase,
food processors have made energy efficiency a top priority within their plants
to improve profit margins and to maintain competitive advantages. By optimizing and automating systems, food processing plants have made great strides in
increasing energy efficiency and reducing
energy costs, all with a measurable impact to the bottom line. Pharmaceutical
processing facilities employ many of the
same systems as food processing facilities and can implement some of these
same strategies to improve operational
and energy efficiency. The refrigeration
system within a food processing plant
can account for more than half of the
facilitys energy use, often exceeding
60 percent of total operating expenses.
Pharmaceutical plants can experience
similar levels of energy consumption.

Copyright ISPE 2013. All rights reserved.

Is It Time To Upgrade Your

Refrigeration System?
Todays refrigeration control systems are
designed to improve production, plant,
and energy efficiency through automation. All control system components
should work together as one system,
rather than as independent elements.
If youve ever experienced any of the following issues, its probably time to evaluate your need to upgrade your system:
Unstable suction and head pressures
Inability to trim fans and pumps via
VFD control
Multiple partially loaded compressors
Extended idling of compressors without shutting down
Motor trips due to motor overload
Unplanned downtime due to refrigeration failures
Difficulty finding replacement parts
Excessive energy use

Benefits of Upgrading Your

Refrigeration Controls
Modern refrigeration control systems
allow you to better manage your entire
system, including optimizing energy use.
You can generate trend analyses, alarm
logs, energy management data, and
runtime reports in real-time to make the
necessary changes and modifications to
ensure your refrigeration system is running at optimal efficiency.

Knowledge Brief

Refrigeration Systems and Energy Efficiency

Key benefits include:

Automation and Optimization

1. Ethernet architecture unlike

older serial networks with slower,
linear structure, new control systems
operate via your existing Ethernet
with more functionality in terms of
being able to add new equipment to
the interface. Ethernet networks are
non-proprietary so in-house IT teams
can easily troubleshoot issues, and
repair and replace parts.

The most effective way to reduce energy

costs within a refrigeration system is
with an integrated optimization and automation strategy. Too often, engineers
look to optimize each individual component of their system rather than looking
at the system as a single, integral unit.
Every time a new piece of equipment is
added to the system, if its not properly
optimized within the scope of the entire
system, the result is wasted energy and
operational inefficiencies.

2. Improved compressor and VFD

communications hard-wired
serial control systems are slower to
communicate with your compressors
and VFDs. With an Ethernet platform, the system can pull data much
quicker and more efficiently.
3. A single integrated platform
old systems are often disjointed
with input/outputs, PLC hardware,
VFDs, communications protocols, and
automation controllers all operating
independently or requiring customized interfaces. Newer systems are integrated, providing you with a single,
unified platform with standardscompliant methods for configuring,
operating and maintaining a range of
instruments and equipment.
4. Increased data availability single, integrated platforms will provide
increased access to energy, production, and utility cost information,
leading to better decision-making at
the management level.
5. Non-proprietary, open platforms
newer systems are built on non-proprietary, open platforms, eliminating
the need to support multiple protocols
and providing more options when
purchasing automation equipment.
6. Ease of maintenance and availability of replacement parts
due to their non-proprietary
platforms, newer control systems are
much easier to maintain, troubleshoot
and upgrade without expensive thirdparty support.

A completely integrated automation system can ensure efficiency and automate

temperature controls within zones. An
automated system can make calculations
and adjustments constantly, where a system operated manually requires constant
operator attention, and is susceptible to
human error and will react much slower.
Here are some ways pharmaceutical
plants can optimize their facilitys refrigeration system:
1. Compressors account for the majority of the energy consumption in
a refrigeration system and should
be carefully selected to ensure they
match the load and can be staged and
sequenced effectively. The addition of
a Variable Frequency Drives (VFD) to
compressors will increase the operating efficiency. The best approach is to
set the slide valve position at 100 percent and vary the RPM of the motor
according to the refrigeration needs
of the machine, which allows it to run
more efficiently.
2. Condensers are typically the second
highest energy usage component of
a refrigeration system. Adding VFDs
to condenser fans can stabilize head
pressure. This will take advantage
of the fan cube law saving considerable fan horsepower at all but full fan
speeds.
3. Suction pressure should be run as low
as possible while still maintaining the
desired room/product temperatures.

Even adjusting the suction pressure

up a degree could mean a 1.5 percent
savings for those compressors.
4. Use of floating head pressure to
maintain the ideal temperature for
compressor and condenser operations is important. Higher condensing
temperatures require compressors to
work harder while lower temperatures
require less power. Find the optimal
break-even point where the condensers and compressors are cumulatively
using the lowest overall horsepower
requirements.
5. Conducting regular energy audits is
the most important step your plant
can take in effectively managing your
resources. An energy audit can spot
leaking water hoses, leaking pipes
where compressed air may be escaping, and many other small fixes that
offer huge paybacks.

Conclusion
Pharmaceutical processing facilities can
improve operational and energy efficiency by implementing some of the same
strategies as food processing facilities. By
developing an integrated optimization
and automation strategy, companies can
increase energy efficiency and reduce
energy costs enabling them to improve
profit margins and maintain competitive
advantages.

About the Author

Luke Facemyer, PE, is Director, Refrigeration Engineering for Stellar, an architecture, engineering, construction and
mechanical services firm. His responsibilities include managing the refrigeration divisions Engineering Department.
Facemyer has more than 12 years of
design and construction experience.. He
received a BS in mechanical engineering
from the University of Virginia. He is a
member of the International Institute
of Ammonia Refrigeration. He can be
reached by email: lfacemyer@stellar.net.
Stellar, 2900 Hartley Rd., Jacksonville, Florida 32257, USA.

Copyright ISPE 2014. All rights reserved.