- Air compressor upgrades and replacements;
- Glycol pipe and tank insulation;
- Refrigerant heat recovery devices;
- Barrelwashing heat recovery.
As of January 2009, the PG&E ACR
(air conditioning and refrigeration) rebate
is $0.15/kWh saved, the ACRII rebate is
$0.09/kWh saved, and $100 is credited
for the reduction of each kW.
On September 24, 2009, the California
Public Utilities Commission (CPUC)
authorized the largest three-year state
energy efficiency program (2010-2012) in
the U.S. to the tune of $3.1 billion. New
PG&E energy efficiency rebates and
incentives are being finalized. Applications
received for products purchased
and installed on or after January 1, 2010,
are eligible for the newrebates.
Wineries should check their utility’s
website for the most current rebates and
incentives available that are subject to
change.
Refrigeration system
Jordan Winery achieved its biggest
reduction in energy use by replacing its
refrigeration system.
“The Jordan facility requires refrigeration
to chill jacketed wine tanks during
harvest,” Chaaban explains, “and to
maintain cold storage for barrels and case
goods year-round. The Jordan project
qualified for PG&E’s customized incentive
program, and provided the winery with
an annual savings of 261,001 kWh, reduction
of 14 KW of demand, and a PG&E
incentive of $36,540.”
Spence chose his existing maintenance
contractor, Indoor Environmental
Services (IES, Santa Rosa and
Sacramento,CA), to install the new refrigeration
system.
“The winery’s existing mechanical
systemcontained awide variety of equipment
that was added on and changed
over many years,” says Ken Petro, CEO
of IES. “Service repair costs and the age of
some equipment were concerns that led
the winery to choose to upgrade. We
designed an energy-efficient mechanical
system retrofit, replacing existing chillers,
air handlers, and the control system.”
Three key energy-saving features of
the new systems at Jordan Winery are:
1) Two Smart chillers with Turbocor
compressors:
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Replacing conventional reciprocating
compressors with Turbocors
resulted in a drop from 1.3 kW/ton to 0.7
kW/ton;
2) TwoEvapco cooling towers:Changing
fromair-cooled towater-cooled compressors
further dropped the energy usage
from0.7 kW/ton to 0.5 kW/ton;
3) Six air handlers and two circulation
pumps, and changing direct-expansion
controls to a Honeywell/Tridium control
system.
The Turbocor compressors with the
water-cooled Smardt chillers are the latest
in modern compressor technology, with
magnetic instead of traditional bearings,
eliminating both mechanical wear due to
friction, and the use of oil. The variable speed
compressors can be adjusted up or
down depending on winery demand.
PowerPax electronic expansion valves,
and the optional use of load-balancing
valves at very lowloads are included.
“Field reliability has been outstanding
—not surprising when you consider that
80%of all chiller problems in the field are
due to failures in compressor oil return,
and the Smardt chillers use no oil,”
explains Joe Cortese, PE, IES project engineer
in charge of the Jordan installation.
“Turbocor-trained engineers and technicians
have found that total maintenance
costs for oil-free chillers are well under
half the cost of traditional, lubricated
chillers.
“The elimination of oil usage for lubrication
ensures that the efficiency of the
Turbocor compressors remains constant
over the years. In older technology, oil
usage would lead to a gradual degradation
of the heat transfer of the chillers.”
The Honeywell/Tridium controls regulate
all aspects of the mechanical system,
from the start/stop of chillers, to humidity
and CO2 levels, temperature, and
operating pressure of each compressor.
The controls monitor, mark trends, and
archive data for future reference. The
Web-based system allows winery personnel
remote access to 125 set-points. The
combined technologies of the chillers,
compressors, and controls deliver energy use
reduction along with very quiet
operation.
Jordan Winery reduced energy use by
108,600 kWh in its first yearwith the new
equipment. System demand on the utility’s
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grid was reduced by 14kW in 2008.
PG&E credited the winery $36,540, based
on an estimated energy-use reduction of
261,000 kWh per year with the new system.
Testing with Elite Pro meters shows
that the actual performance of the new
chillers is far better than originally calculated.
Engineers believe the industry standard
SPC Estimation Software and
engineering calculations used to give
wineries the catalog rebate amounts are
too low for the high-performing
Turbocors.
Jordan Winery’s condenser system
loop is completed with two Evapco fluid
coolers receiving water from two condenser
pumps, while two system pumps
circulate chilled water to air handlers
throughout the facility. The fanmotors in
the cooling towers have variable-frequency
drives, minimizing the energy
required to operate the fans while achieving
required heat rejection.
In March 2009, Spence’s team
upgraded the case goods warehouse with
five more air handlers, and put two outside
tanks onto the newcooling system.
More than 1,200 feet of old piping
throughout the fermentation cellar was
replaced by a new COOL-FIT™ ABS Plus
pre-insulated piping system (175 feet of 4-
inch diameter “main” lines, 400 feet of 3-
inch diameter piping in tank aisles, and
650 feet of 1½-inch diameter connections
to tanks). The system includes pipes, fittings,
manual and actuated valves, and
measurement and control devices. The
pipe is black, UV-resistant insulated plastic,
suitable for outdoor or indoor mounting,
and Spence reports that the system
maintains a consistent chilled water temperature
of 32°F throughout the piping.
The unusual pipe joints fit together
internally and are sealed with a solvent,
so the insulation is not removed
to perform joints, and seals are waterand
vapor-tight. The smoothness of
the plastic interior of the pipes inhibits
deposit buildup and flow reduction,
so the pipes experience less pressure
loss and contribute to greater system
efficiency.
With the further system upgrades and
refinements to the new equipment to
improve its performance in 2009, in early
December, Spence measured Jordan’s
reduction at 221,407 kWh for 2009.
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