Page 36 - Climate Control News Magazine Feb 2021

Natural Refrigerants
Funding for carbon mitigation projects
IN ADDITION TO committing to a HFC phase- down, the United States has undertaken the big- gest overhaul of energy policy in more than a dec- ade with the passage of the Energy Act of 2020.
The act increases funding for a wide range of carbon mitigation projects. For example, fund- ing for carbon capture, utilisation and storage activities has increased from $200 million per annum to more than a billion dollars.
The Department of Energy (DOE) has also been directed to lead a multi-agency program supporting technologies and methods for re- moving carbon dioxide from the air.
The act also creates a new multi-agency pro- gram aimed at reducing carbon emissions from industrial sources outside the electrical power sec- tor, which are considered a particular challenge to reaching nationwide net-zero carbon emissions.
Within DOE, the act recommends that annu- al funding for these efforts ramp up from an ini- tial level of $20 million to $150 million by fiscal year 2024.
The program is to be guided by a new inde- pendent advisory committee and complement- ed by a new DOE program to provide technical assistance to industry in implementing emis- sions-reducing technologies.
Although the act establishes no major new ini- tiatives across DOE’s renewable energy pro- grams, it recommends increasing their collective budgets from their current level of $646 million to $782 million. The act also provides updated direction for the kinds of projects the programs should support, detailing activities spanning from R&D through to demonstration projects and commercialization assistance.
Among the renewable energy programs, the act recommends the largest budget increase for geothermal energy, from a current level of $106 million to $170 million. It authorises expanding the Frontier Observatory for Research in Geo- thermal Energy (FORGE) program from its cur- rent research and test site in Utah to the creation of two additional sites.
ABOVE: A new multi-agency program will be established to reduce carbon emissions.
NET ZERO PLEDGE
Net Zero by 2050 is fast becoming
a reality. According to the United Nations, the European Union, Japan and the Republic of Korea, together with more than 110 other countries, have pledged carbon neutrality by 2050; China says it will do so
before 2060.
This means that by early 2021, countries representing more than 65 per cent of global carbon dioxide emissions and more than 70 per cent of the world economy, will have made ambitious commitments to carbon neutrality.
CLIMATECONTROLNEWS.COM.AU
Latest addition to B4 sized range
SWEP HAS LAUNCHED the BX4T brazed plate heat ex- changer (BPHE), the latest addition to the B4 sized range for the refrigeration market.
BX4T boasts a more compact design than existing econ- omizers, making it perfect for variable refrigerant flow (VRF), heat pumps and condensing units.
The BX4T's innovative design improves heat exchange efficiency with X-plates on the front and back that give the unit structural stability while also serving as active heat transfer plates.
This All-Active plate pack maximizes the material utili- zation of the product, making it a highly competitive
LEFT: BX4T boasts a more compact design.
choice for demanding applications and narrow tempera- ture approaches.
"The new BX4T provides supreme economizer perfor- mance, especially in condensing units with EVI-technolo- gy,” Stefano Bellada, SWEP segment manager, Refrigera- tion & AC explained.
“It is also small, yet flexible, which makes it a particu- larly good selection for economizer applications focusing on VRF and heat pumps.
“This innovative BPHE is also extremely effective in reducing refrigerant hold-up volume, and its mechanical design makes it suitable for high-pressure refrigerants such as R410A and R32.”
The BX4T is one of the newest models to join SWEP's full range of heat exchangers.
For more information visit www.swep.net
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