{"id":12740,"date":"2022-07-20T17:00:56","date_gmt":"2022-07-20T09:00:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/aircondlounge.com\/?p=12740"},"modified":"2024-03-26T12:06:19","modified_gmt":"2024-03-26T04:06:19","slug":"centrifugal-chiller-vs-screw-chiller-chiller-selection-guide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/aircondlounge.com\/centrifugal-chiller-vs-screw-chiller-chiller-selection-guide\/","title":{"rendered":"Centrifugal Chiller vs Screw Chiller (Chiller Selection Guide)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
Large buildings often need chillers for cooling. But, there are many types of chillers available on the market. Many engineers find it particularly difficult to choose between a centrifugal chiller and a screw chiller. So, how do you select a chiller?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Water-cooled centrifugal chillers and water-cooled screw chillers are the two most common types of chillers found in commercial buildings such as hotels, office towers, shopping malls and hospitals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At a glance, below are the major differences between centrifugal chillers and screw chillers:<\/p>\n\n\n\n The differences between a centrifugal chiller and a screw chiller are quite known. In short, centrifugal chillers are better for large cooling applications while screw chillers are better for small cooling applications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, when it comes to medium cooling applications such as 300 RT to 500 RT, the two types of chillers overlapped. Some people prefer the centrifugal type while others prefer the screw type.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So, to understand which chiller is the best for you, we need to go through the characteristics of centrifugal chillers and screw chillers as well as the selection parameters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Water-cooled centrifugal chillers are primarily designed for large cooling applications. A typical centrifugal chiller can have a cooling capacity anywhere from 200 RT to 4000 RT.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Generally, there are 3 variants of centrifugal chiller; a) single compressor, b) dual compressor and c) oil-free magnetic bearing compressor (sometimes known as turbocor).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Needless to say, the single compressor type is used for the lower end of the centrifugal chiller capacity while the dual compressor type is used for the upper end of the centrifugal chiller capacity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Normally, the cost of the single and dual compressor types is lower than the magnetic bearing type.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Excluding the magnetic bearing type, centrifugal chillers are known to be good at full load. This means that centrifugal chillers can maintain high efficiency when operating at near maximum capacity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Below is an example of the part-load performance of a 1000 RT water-cooled centrifugal chiller:<\/p>\n\n\nComparison<\/th> Centrifugal Chiller<\/th> Screw Chiller<\/th><\/tr><\/thead> Capacity Range<\/strong><\/td> 200 RT to 4000 RT<\/td> 80 RT to 700 RT<\/td><\/tr> Full-Load Efficiency<\/strong><\/td> \u2264 0.56 kW\/Ton<\/td> \u2264 0.64 kW\/Ton<\/td><\/tr> Part-Load Efficiency<\/strong><\/td> \u2264 0.45 kW\/Ton<\/td> \u2264 0.49 kW\/Ton<\/td><\/tr> Chiller Surge<\/strong><\/td> Yes<\/td> No<\/td><\/tr> Common Applications<\/strong><\/td> Office and Malls<\/td> Hotels and Hospitals<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n Centrifugal Chiller<\/h2>\n\n\n\n