Two different jobs
In a compressed air system a chiller can serve the compressor's cooling circuit or provide chilled water for a dryer that needs a lower temperature than ambient allows. In a process it cools equipment - lasers, circuit board manufacturing, moulds, welders. Our water chiller family covers air-cooled industrial units for laser and electronics cooling duties, and the same selection logic applies to both jobs.
| Question | Why it decides the unit |
|---|---|
| Heat load | In kW, not in equipment count |
| Required water temperature | Sets the evaporating temperature and the unit's efficiency |
| Ambient at the installation point | An air-cooled chiller in a hot room loses capacity |
| Flow and pressure drop | The pump and the pipework have to match the load |
| Water quality | Open loops need filtration and treatment; closed loops need less |
| Duty | Continuous process cooling needs redundancy more than a lower price |
Air-cooled or water-cooled
Air-cooled units are simpler to install and need no cooling water, but they reject heat into the room, which matters in a compressor room that is already warm. Water-cooled units reject heat to a cooling tower or loop and are more compact, at the cost of water treatment and a tower.
Sizing honesty
- Add the real load - compressor heat rejection plus dryer load plus any process load, with margin for fouling.
- Do not size on nameplate alone - chiller capacity is quoted at specific water and ambient temperatures.
- Allow for part load - a chiller running at 30% is inefficient; consider modular units.
- Keep the condenser clean - the single most common cause of lost capacity.
Where it fits in the air system
If the problem is a dryer that cannot reach its dew point because the inlet air is too hot, the answer may be a larger aftercooler rather than a chiller. Cooling problems in compressed air systems are usually heat rejection problems, and a chiller only helps if the heat has somewhere to go.
Browse the range on the water chiller collection page.
Tell us the working pressure, flow and site conditions and we will propose a configuration. Contact OPPAIR.