Next summer, Henningsen plans to open a 110,000-sq-ft facility in Grandview, Wash., that will be its first to use a transcritical CO2 system; it will be supplied by Carnot Refrigeration and installed by PermaCold Engineering.
This will represent a move from “low charge” to “no charge,” said Pete Lepschat, is engineering services manager. “We are pretty excited; it looks to be a pretty efficient system.”
The system will comprise about 3,000 lbs of CO2 with a refrigeration capacity of 210 TR for a 0F to -5 F freezer with a refrigerated dock.
Henningsen is looking at energy-saving options such as an adiabatic condenser and ejectors in conjunction with Energy 350, its efficiency consultant, said Lepschat. “We are also exploring a use for the waste heat from the system that could potentially result in producing a revenue stream for us.”
Future phases will enlarge the plant to more than 400,000 sq ft.
Henningsen has carved out a reputation for reducing the ammonia charge in some of its other warehouses by eliminating components and using evaporator coils with low overfeed ratios. Under the leadership of Lepschat, Henningsen reduced its charge-to-capacity ratio from as much as 52 lbs/TR in 1993 to 12 lbs/TR at a plant in Salem, Ore., in 2014. Another Salem plant opened this year with a charge of 16 lbs/TR.
