New dimensions in efficient cooling Pfannenberg’s air/air heat exchangers

Pfannenberg’s air/air heat exchangers
Photo by Pfannenberg

air heat exchangers

The use of surrounding air for the thermal management of an enclosure is the most economical and energy efficient type of cooling. In many applications the ambient air is contaminated by dust, liquids or gases meaning components installed in the enclosure could be damaged upon contact. Air/air-heat exchangers are used in every instance where the enclosure temperature can be greater than the surrounding temperature.

Air/air-heat exchanger as an alternative to filterfans
By separating the internal from the external air flow, harmful air particles are excluded from the interior of machinery and enclosures, thus avoiding damage to components. The interior of the enclosure is hermetically separated from its surroundings.

The ecool air/air-heat exchanger is therefore an alternative to conventional filterfans. Their robust steel construction allows their use in tough industrial conditions in particular. The hood made from sheet steel can be easily adapted colourwise and therefore be integrated into a modern machinery design.

The air/air-heat exchangers are available in six capacities from 20 W/K to 100 W/K in only two sizes. The enormous potential of the devices becomes clear when you see that with a temperature difference of just 10K between the surrounding and interior enclosure temperature up to 1000W heat loss can be dissipated. The long air circulation ensures an even flow through the enclosure, avoids heat build-ups, prevents an air short-circuit and therefore leads to greater machine availability. Energy efficiency and service friendliness form the optimum basis for process safety, reliability and cost benefits.

Every application has the optimum cooling design. The air/air-heat exchanger extends the possibilities of finding the optimum by many times. The great variety of versions allows use even with very little available space.

Cut-out compatibility ensures for greater process safety
Often components in the enclosure have to be updated and the requirements of the air-conditioning change. An air/air-heat exchanger which used to be the optimum solution is no longer suitable. Conversion to an active ecool cooling can be implemented easily and quickly without any problems because the devices have the same cut-out, i.e. they are cut-out compatible with the Pfannenberg ecool cooling. This means minimal planning and costs for system integrators, system or (end) users and therefore greater process safety – even after extensive modifications.

Tool-free assembly and service friendliness
While many models have to be screwed on, the Pfannenberg air/air-heat exchangers have a fastening mechanism and can be used in the corresponding enclosure section without tools. Furthermore, the partially recessed handle allows it to be assembled by just one installer within 3 minutes.

In accordance with the Pfannenberg ecool motto, particular emphasis was placed on service friendliness. All important components are easy to access and, if necessary, can be modified or added to without tools.

Thermostats ensure operational safety
Setting the temperature is done via a thermostat which safely determines the interior temperature and, thanks to its mechanical method of construction, is not prone to faults.  A separately adjustable alarm thermostat allows the application-specific setting of the alarm temperature and therefore ensures low machine outages. The thermostats can be set without opening or switching off the device. Using the power supply the device can be switched completely currentlessly, such as during idle or setting times. There is therefore no startup or test mode during a restart, which leads to maximum energy saving.

Pfannenberg calculation software (PSS) helps with dimensioning
In order to select the right thermal management solution according to the ambient conditions and the heat to be dissipated, Pfannenberg offers a very simple to use piece of calculation software. The Pfannenberg Sizing Software (PSS) can be requested from Pfannenberg or used directly online at www.pfannenberg.com.

Should air/air-heat exchangers not be suitable for the specific application, then a matching alternative is suggested by the software, such as filterfan 4.0, cooling units or water cooling with air/water-heat exchangers combined with chillers.

For further information, please visit: www.pfannenberg.com