Sapa publishes technical manual for HVAC&R aluminium heat exchangers

Sapa’s HVAC&R Applications Manual is the first in the industry with documented test results and technical argumentation supporting aluminium as the preferred metal to meet the future demands and legislation of the HVAC&R market.

The objective of the new 88-page manual is to educate the manufacturers of HVAC&R heat exchangers in the correct use of aluminium solutions and the metal’s basic material properties. Sapa offers support in the design process and is the leading producer of aluminium round tubes, manifolds and multi-port extrusions, or MPEs, for all-aluminium heat exchangers used in the heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration market.

The HVAC&R Applications Manual describes some of the most important aspects related to using aluminium in HVAC&R heat exchanger manufacturing. It covers topics like corrosion, alloys, products and coating solutions, and is a follow-up to the company’s 2012 publication, Aluminium System Solutions for HVAC&R applications.

“The manual is in many ways an introductory source of information for customers – like an industry bible for aluminium – who are seeking to explore and exploit the benefits and possibilities of the diverse metal,” says Hugo Ravesloot, who is responsible for HVAC&R business development for Sapa’s Precision Tubing organization. Bold statements and promises are nothing, however, without the proper facts and figures. Combining the competence of Sapa’s Precision Tubing Technical Center and other technical experts throughout the company, the manual presents documented test results and argumentation that fully advocate aluminium as the preferred metal to meet the future demands and legislation of the HVAC&R market.

Replacing copper at rapid pace
State of the art in HVAC&R heat exchanger design is based on tube and fin designs. The quickest and most easily executed design change is to substitute copper round tubes with aluminium round tubes. This like-for-like substitution provides an immediate advantage in material cost savings, and additional specific benefits such as immunity to formicary corrosion. Another design alternative is to substitute copper round tubes with MPEs.

At the same time, replacing copper requires careful planning, material selection and design of the new all-aluminium system.

Easy to err
The manual concludes that moving from copper heat exchanger technology to all-aluminium heat exchanger technologies is clearly beneficial, and that it is not difficult to achieve. But it also underlines the importance of adhering to the guidelines, to prevent easily avoidable product errors and failures.

The bottom line is that the all-aluminium technologies bring benefits which outweigh the effort required to implement them. These benefits include:

• Material cost reduction • Size/weight reduction • Refrigerant volume reduction • 100 percent recyclability

“Many companies are already harvesting the benefits,” says Ravesloot, “but the best way of making the change is to team with a partner who can provide support every step of the way.”