Kaltra advances in creating protective treatments for microchannel heat exchangers and introduces new anti-corrosion coating for dry (fluid) coils to apply to inner surfaces. The new coating enables for an expanded range of process water pH value, a measure of how acidic/basic water is.
Single-phase heat exchangers are widely used today for a variety of cooling and heating applications and in different types of equipment. These include free cooling systems, dry coolers, air conditioners, and more, where the most common media is water or glycol mixtures. Microchannel coils in practice became the norm in condenser applications, and, more recently, microchannel heat exchangers became an alternative to finned tube coils that used traditionally for water applications.
For over three decades now, air-to-refrigerant microchannel heat exchangers have been successfully used in a number of industries, including automotive and chemical processing. More than a decade ago, microchannel heat exchangers were introduced in the HVAC industry; but it must be noted that requirements concerning heat exchangers and their operating conditions in refrigeration and air conditioning systems are different from those applicable in the automotive and other industries. Because of this, the first adaptations of microchannel heat exchangers to HVAC applications, principally as condensers, were not entirely successful.
Corrosion is the deterioration of metals arising from the chemical reactions between a metal and the surrounding environment. In HVAC equipment, such as air-cooled chillers, condensers, and dry coolers, corrosion of the heat exchangers may lead to performance and efficiency losses, as well as to equipment failures.
In order to avoid unwanted corrosion, microchannel heat exchangers and chilled water system, in general, must be properly protected based on environmental conditions.
