In many of the industries we serve, heat exchangers made with copper tubes and aluminum fin are extremely popular, and very often, these materials are a terrific choice. But copper and aluminum aren’t suited for everything. At Super Radiator Coils, the needs of many of our customers often dictate that we explore and understand alternative materials.

Around 2010, the first refrigeration systems operating on transcritical CO2 began cropping up in North American supermarkets. Since then, usage of transcritical CO2 systems has grown steadily and they’ve become viable options for places like supermarkets, food warehouses, and ice rinks, as more organizations move away from traditional HFC refrigerants. Natural refrigerant market accelerator Shecco estimates that transcritical CO2 systems grew from 140 in 2008 (all in Europe) to more than 35,000 systems worldwide today.

There are dozens of commercially available refrigerant options on the market today, including numerous refrigerant blends, which aim to replicate the effectiveness of former workhorses like R22, the production of which was made illegal as of January of this year. Two popular examples of refrigerants developed in the last 30 years or so that are used in the HVAC industry are R-410A and R-407C. These two refrigerants are often used for similar applications, but they have some marked differences that should be understood and considered when deciding between them.

Systems designed to cool air, whether for HVAC, industrial facilities, or manufacturing operations all have to address it. Failure to address it can lead to botched processes, reduced production, ruined equipment or uncomfortable building occupants. It can be expressed in percentage, lb./lb., wet bulb temperature, or other metrics. The silent “it” is humidity. Put simply, humidity is a measure of the amount of water vapor in the air, and while overlooking this simple measure can be costly, it can also be readily addressed during system design.

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Oftentimes, using stainless steel components seems like a simple solution to corrosion on coils. You may see fins or tubes or other parts of the system show signs of corrosion, and it seems that the best option is to change the coil to stainless steel, solving the corrosion problem permanently. While this seems like a simple solution to a significant problem in the HVAC, industrial, and commercial systems where coils are found, the answer to the question “should I make an all-stainless coil?” is far more complex.

An 800MW 2x1 combined-cycle power plant in Alberta, Canada was experiencing consistent frost issues on anti-icing coils in their gas turbine inlet filter houses. The purpose behind these coils is to bring the temperature of the air up to just above the dew point, to prevent the condensation of water (which can cause serious damage through icing if introduced into the turbine.)

Stainless, copper, E-coat, Heresite, or CuNi?

When Super Radiator Coils engineer coils for customers, materials are among our most important considerations. Things like applications, environments, and coil lifespan must all be factored in to the coil’s design. So too must price and industry standards, making material decisions all the more crucial.