Thermal energy storage for supermarkets

Recent information on CFC's and their impact on the environment has created shockwaves of concern for those who are relying on these products in various applications and a thermal energy storage system can be considered as a useful tool to reduce the initial refrigerant charge by means of minimising the number of refrigeration machinery. A conventional HVAC stand alone ice storage installation may yield capital cost savings through a reduction in refrigeration capacity and possible inherent environmental benefits to be gained from load shifting of electrical energy. Many large supermarkets have central and independent separate HVAC and Food Refrigeration machines and the integration of these services offers an ideal opportunity to achieve initial installation cost savings through sharing refrigeration machinery, hence, reduction in number of refrigeration machinery, lower maintenance and running costs. Surprisingly, an integrated supermarket design approach does not only provide an economical initial installation but also offers considerable environmental benefits by means of reducing both the direct global warming impact via reduction in refrigeration machinery hence reduced refrigerant charge and the reduction in the indirect global warming impact attributed to the CO2 emission related to electricity generation.