Emerson Climate Technologies announced that Vilter Manufacturing LLC has opened a new $2 million technology and innovation center at its Cudahy, WI, facility. The new technology center will help Vilter, a manufacturer of compressors and systems for the industrial refrigeration and natural gas markets, maintain a competitive lead in the engineering, development and testing of more energy efficient compressors, and expand its offerings in refrigeration by using environmentally friendly refrigerants like ammonia.
Vilter's new technology and innovation center will allow Vilter to help its customers meet new energy efficiency standards like Title 24 of the California Energy Commission.
"The single screw compressor's growth in popularity over the past 20 years can be largely attributed to its technical advantages and wide range of capabilities in the process gas and industrial refrigeration industries," said Wayne Wehber, vice president of business development for Vilter. "Our customers have high performance standards that our compressors consistently exceed. The opening of our new technology and innovation center will allow us to continue to create innovative solutions that expand the range of performance and efficiency."
Vilter's new 7,000-sq.-ft. test facility is designed to test their entire range of compressors on environmentally friendly anhydrous-ammonia (NH3). The design of the laboratory was completed with the collaboration of industry experts as well as resources from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
The new facility's closed loop includes two compressor test beds that can be operated independently or simultaneously as a two-stage system. One station is designed for high flow testing while the other is designed for high pressure testing. The test facility is currently capable of testing compressors up to 850 psig (58 barg) discharge pressure.
Utilizing technology from Emerson's Process Management business, compressor data is measured with the highest available accuracy available. Test pressures are measured through Rosemount pressure transmitters and temperature sensors. Oil and water flow rates used for developing heat balances are measured utilizing Rosemount magnetic flowmeters. NIST calibration of instrumentation is completed to ensure that each test carries the highest level of precision and repeatability.
Emerson's Fisher control valves are utilized throughout the test facility for precision throttling and attenuation.
All controls and conditions are tracked in real time within the laboratory control center. Utilizing the integration of an optical link to dedicated server equipment, the information and data captured from the compressor performance tests are analyzed to the highest level of accuracy.