ATLANTIC CITY, NJ – A new motor starter, new type EVU solenoid valve, and a new line of light commercial condensing units were among the products introduced by Danfoss at its annual breakfast for the media held Tuesday morning at the Berkshire Tivoli Garden at Bally’s Park Place.
The morning breakfast was held prior to the opening of the Air-Conditioning, Heating, Refrigerating Expo, going on here through Wednesday.
The new motor starter was introduced by John Clough, industrial controls business unit manager for Danfoss in North America. According to Clough, the new product is designed to give a fast and reliable start, while reducing compressor starting current by up to 40%. As a consequence, the damaging effects of surges and high starting torque are eliminated, even without pressure equalization, he said. The new products are designated type MCI-C.
“Using MCI-Cs is a great way to avoid peaks, save electricity, and prolong compressor life,” said Clough. “And the start is fast – under four tenths of a second even without pressure equalization. That means that there will be sufficient internal lubrication, another factor in extending compressor life.”
The starters are UL approved for any control voltage from 24-480V, ac or dc, and automatically adapt to 50 or 60 Hz. There are versions for 30A and 125A applications. Both feature automatic detection of phase failure and have LED status indicators. According to Clough, no adjustments are necessary with the MCI-C model because the soft start profile is factory preset for optimum performance.
Also introduced was Danfoss’ new line of light commercial condensing units for low, medium, and high temperature applications in capacities ranging from 1/10 to ¾ hp. The new units can be used as original equipment or as direct drop-in replacements for the air-cooled condensing units. The condensing units are made at the Danfoss factory near Monterrey, Mexico.
“With our new plant in Mexico, we offer competitively priced products, and we have full laboratory and engineering facilities there, allowing us to respond quickly when customers want an application evaluated or need modifications to our standard offering,” said Tony Powell, product manager for Danfoss condensing units. “We are able to provide application engineering support and often take customer equipment to our laboratories in order to achieve the right component match.”
According to Powell, applications for these condensing units include food service equipment such as ice merchandisers, vending machines, reach-ins, and small walk-in coolers and freezers.
In regard to the new type EVU solenoid valve, Danfoss said it is a result of a number of innovations. A smaller, servo-operated piston makes for a much more compact valve body. The smaller piston design requires a smaller armature, so less power (6 watts) is needed to operate the valve. A new fully encapsulated coil, developed for the slimmer armature, is secured to the valve body by an internal clip, so the coil mounts quickly without added fastening components, it said. The new valves are suitable for liquid, suction, and hot gas applications using any fluorinated refrigerant.
Danfoss also presented an extension of its type SC commercial hermetic compressor line for light commercial applications, a new range of fractional horsepower hermetic compressors that are designed to be 10% more efficient, and a line of solid core filter driers (the Eliminator).
Publication date: 01/14/2002
