Guest Bio
Nick Mislak is the regional segment marketing director for HVAC at Danfoss. He holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mechanical engineering and has over 15 years of experience in HVAC engineering and product management.
Episode Summary
Host Vic Marinich is joined by Nick Mislak, regional segment marketing director for HVAC at Danfoss, to discuss vapor and liquid injection compressor technologies and how market trends are influencing their adoption.
Main Points
- A main component in injection is economizing on the refrigerant side. An economizer is a device to increase the energy efficiency of a piece of equipment or a system. The injection process uses the liquid that comes out of the economizer after refrigerant flows into it after leaving the condenser. (1:20)
- Economizers consist of an intermediate heat exchanger, expansion valve, pressure and temperature sensors, interconnected pipes and potentially a solenoid valve for shut-off purposes. (2:40)
- Vapor injection enables scroll compressors to operate at lower evaporating temperatures, allowing heat pumps to be effective in cold climates without needing a secondary heat source. (6:30)
- Liquid injection is the process of cooling the compressor when the temperature of the discharge line gets too hot. The expansion valve opens and starts pulsing the liquid in to cool the compressor. (8:45)
- Liquid injection is a more simple setup than vapor injection but doesn’t provide the same efficiency benefits due to the lack of a secondary heat exchanger. As a result, vapor injection is becoming more widespread. (9:45)
- The U.S. Department of Energy’s Cold Climate Heat Pump Challenge has increased interest in developing heat pumps for colder climates, which will encourage the adoption of injection technology. (16:45)
- Suppliers like Danfoss can work with OEMs to expand the use of liquid and vapor injection by providing the full suite of components needed and providing application expertise throughout the manufacturing process. (18:30)
- There is potential for liquid and vapor injection in comfort cooling and data center applications. (21:40)
Links
To learn more about the benefits of vapor injection technology, read Nick’s article for our EnVisioneering Solutions blog: https://envisioneeringsolutions.com/2024/03/05/the-benefits-of-vapor-injection-technology-in-compressors/
Latest news on the Cold Climate Heat Pump Challenge: https://www.achrnews.com/articles/164020-cold-climate-heat-pumps-up-to-the-challenge
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