CUSTOM-BUILT CHILLERS
Nosemount Diesel-Electric Chiller
Boalloy - the innovative semi-trailer manufacturer - produced an insulated version of their "Tautliner" curtain wall vehicle for the developing chilled distribution market. While an insulated version had been developed, heat inleakage exceeded that for rigid bodies. Conventional HGV semi-trailer refrigeration units were over-worked in the application, so that breakdowns were frequent.
We were appointed engineering design consultants and project managers to produce a machine that would encourage global manufacturers to meet the higher duty requirement. It should also obviate problems commonly encountered in the design and operation of HGV nosemount chillers. Refrigerant leakage was a persistent nuisance, originating from shaft seal wear in conventional direct-coupled drives. Widespread complaints of excessive noise emission were directed toward operators, particularly concerning loaded vehicles parked overnight. Once installed onto a host trailer, units could not readily be transferred to others in a fleet, nor employed on related applications.
We addressed these issues through thermal testing and modelling of curtain-wall bodies, embodying semi-hermetic equipment to obviate drive leakages, optimizing noise emission by designing and building a compact diesel generator (driven by a newly-developed lightweight diesel engine), and incorporating quick-release mountings for easy transfer to other vehicles. This prototype diesel-electric chiller was run daily for a year between London and Aberdeen for test purposes, requiring only engine oil and filter service. It was then retired for reference as paradigm for subsequent industry-standard designs of HGV nosemount chillers.
