Safety Issues With Heat Transfer Fluid

Refrigeration is crucial to the food sector. Food products must be constantly kept under certain temperatures to ensure quality and safety. The heat transfer fluid or refrigerant is a fundamental component of any refrigeration system. The refrigerant is cooled through compression and then sent to pass through the heat-absorbing elements inside the refrigeration chamber. Heat is transferred from the air to the refrigerant. The air inside the refrigeration chamber cools down and the refrigerant warms up. The warm refrigerant then goes through the compressor and condenser to cool it down and the cycle repeats itself over and over to keep the temperature inside the chamber within the desired values.

While refrigeration systems are built for reliability, failures can and do happen. A leak within the heat-absorbing elements can cause the refrigerant to be released to the refrigeration chamber and contaminating any contents in it.

For safety, refrigerant used for food application must be non-toxic. Potassium acetate-based refrigerants are primarily used for food refrigeration applications. Potassium acetate is safe for food. In fact, it is a popular food preservative.

The refrigerant must also be colored so that it is easily detected when there is contamination. Refrigerants come in different colors. For food application, most refrigerants are blue-colored. The color makes it easy to detect contamination and also makes finding the source of leak easier.

Is Your Fire Suppression System Ready For The Winter?

Winter fire is a real threat. There are higher incidents of building fires during winter months. This can be attributed to several reasons. One being that people are appliances and methods for heating. Another reason is that fire suppression systems have trouble functioning during very cold months. Fortunately, there are ways to make sure that a fire suppression system is ready for the winter.

Check for leaks. Deteriorated seals and corroded pipes can lead to leaks which in turn makes the suppression system less efficient at delivering the suppressant to the cause of fire if ever a fire does occur. In suppression systems that uses additives, the leak can cause the additive content to lower over time.

Make sure sprinklers are in working order. Sprinkler heads are prone to blockage by dirt and rust buildup. The buildup can interfere with the amount of water the suppression system can deliver to the scene of the fire. It also cause undue pressure within the fire suppression system which can cause pipes and linkages to leak or burst.

Use fire suppression antifreeze. The fire suppression antifreeze prevents liquid suppressants from solidifying due to extreme cold during winter. It ensures that the suppressant is able to flow freely within the system so that when a fire does happen, the system can send sufficient amount of suppressant and put out the fire quickly.

The fire suppression antifreeze also prevents the delivery system from getting damaged by the intense expansive pressure generated when water turns into ice.

Gas Coolants

A coolant is any fluid used to regulate heat or lower temperatures of physical bodies or enclosed spaces. It is also known as thermal transfer fluid. The coolant can be a gas or liquid substances. As an aside, there are also solid coolants such as the ones found in the cooling systems of modern forms. These solid thermal transfer substances vaporize when exposed to heat, thereby following a fundamental rule in fluid mechanics, in which a quickly expanding fluid absorbs thermal energy from its immediate surroundings.

Among thermal transfer  substances, gas coolants are the most widely used. Most people tend to think of coolants as substances flowing inside closed systems. There are open cooling systems that uses air as coolants. One example is the air cooling system found inside many computer cases. Air cooling can work through convective airflow, which means natural movement of air, or with the help of fans.

A popular gas coolant for high performance applications is hydrogen. Amongst gases, hydrogen has the best thermal conductivity and excellent specific heat capacity. This means it is quick to absorb heat and can absorb greater amount of heat. It also has low density to allow machines to operate with minimal hindrance. Many large power plants use hydrogen-cooled electrical generators.

Inert gases, helium, carbon dioxide, and sulfur hexafluoride are other gas coolants used for industrial applications.

Fire Suppression Antifreeze

A fire suppression system provides protection to buildings and vehicles. It prevents fire and minimize damage to property. It is essential to protect the people. Considering all the things at stake, a fire suppression must be reliable. It must perform when needed.

There some things that can render a fire suppression system unable to work.  Sub-zero temperatures can cause problems with the fire suppression system. The temperature can cause water, the traditional fire extinguishing compound, to freeze and turn into ice. If a fire arises, the suppression system becomes useless. Even if there is no fire, the expanding ice can damage the components of the fire suppression system. It can damage the pipes and other components, causing leaks.

An antifreeze must be added to the water or whatever the primary extinguishing compound is to lower the freezing point and make it less likely to turn to ice and cause problems associated with it. Unlike other antifreeze found in heat transfer fluid, the fire suppression antifreeze must meet certain qualities.

Since it is used for fire, the antifreeze must not be something flammable or can cause fire to get worse. The antifreeze must meet all the standards required for it to be used for fire suppression applications. Aside from being non-flammable, the antifreeze must be safe to people since it is used in close proximity to people.

In Sweden, Temper offers fire suppression antifreeze that performs excellently to ensure suppression system are reliable and safe to people.