One of the biggest changes in the industrial space during the last decade is the move toward more sustainable production processes. The ability to sustainably cool the enclosures that help power industrial automation systems is a key area for manufacturers in reducing energy consumption and enhancing their sustainability.
Smart enclosure cooling systems driven by Industry 4.0 and IIoT can play a vital role in helping manufacturers reduce their Global Warming Potential (GWP), an index of environmental impact that has become increasingly important in the last few years.
Here, we’ll take a quick look at what GWP is and how it’s measured, and then we’ll look at how smart industrial enclosure cooling systems can help manufacturers reduce their GWP and usher in a more sustainable manufacturing model.
What is Global Warming Potential?
Global Warming Potential is used to calculate how much energy 1 ton of any gas will absorb over a period of time compared to 1 ton of carbon dioxide (CO2). The greater a GWP of a specific gas, the more that gas has the potential to warm the atmosphere compared with CO2. The duration of time used in the calculation is usually 100 years, and the big benefit of the GWP scale is that it helps analysts better estimate the impact of virtually any gas emission.
CO2 has a GWP of 1 and is considered the scale’s reference gas. A gas like methane has a GWP ranging from 27-30, while a gas like nitrous oxide has a GWP 273 times greater than CO2. Other high-GWP gasses include chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), and perfluorocarbons (PFCs), and many of these are used as coolants to help regulate the temperature of manufacturing equipment.
These types of gasses can have a GWP in the thousands or even tens of thousands, which is why manufacturers have increasingly focused on reducing their GWP in service of more sustainable manufacturing.
What is the role of smart enclosure cooling systems in reducing GWP?
Smart enclosure cooling units help manufacturers create a more sustainable climate control infrastructure by producing more targeted cooling precisely where and when it’s needed. The ability to control and adjust cooling outputs in real time based on the scale of production programs helps to maximize performance and optimize energy consumption.
This helps make better use of the refrigerants necessary to execute consistent, reliable cooling. But where smart cooling units can really help mitigate any environmental impact is in the leak detection and remote monitoring systems that help operators better identify and control the potential for hazardous leaks.
Features like network notifications or even app-based climate control capabilities simplify the process of ensuring leak-free operation 24/7, 365. Plus, if a hazardous leak is detected, smart cooling systems can be shut down instantly, and cooling outputs from other units can be used to help compensate while the unit is serviced.
Plus, innovation in the engineering of smart enclosure cooling units means these systems actually use less refrigerant — or, in some cases, use refrigerants that are formulated to be less environmentally harmful — while still providing the cooling outputs necessary to maximize production.
Rittal’s Blue e+ S enclosure climate control unit uses an innovative heat pipe and inverter technology to provide powerful cooling without the need for a compressor, expansion valve, or other regulating elements, which significantly reduces the amount of energy required to operate the unit. This innovative use of speed-regulated components and heat pipe design can help manufacturers reduce their energy consumption by 75%.
The Blue e+ S is also engineered to comply with the guidelines of the UL/CSA 60335-2-40 Standard — which requires cooling units to have smart leak detection systems if they use flammable or environmentally-damaging refrigerants — and has the ability to provide lower cooling output categories without sacrificing the cooling necessary to keep enclosures at optimal operating temperatures.
But it’s not just the cooling unit itself that can help you reduce your GWP. Our RiTherm climate control configuration tool digitalizes the cooling unit design process, providing complete transparency and visibility into the exact GWP and environmental impact of your enclosure cooling system. The RiTherm configuration can help tailor cooling units to specific energy consumption or GWP needs, and this complete digitalization provides documentation and certification to ensure the strictest levels of regulatory compliance in any application.
Rittal’s approach to smart enclosure cooling systems can help manufacturers enhance their sustainability efforts, while increasing climate control efficiency to save time and money.