A comparative assessment of R404A and Ammonia (R717) in an industrial Set-up

This paper provides an evaluation of the performance of two industrial refrigeration systems operating on R404A and Ammonia in the tropical island of Mauritius. More precisely, the energy performance, coefficient of performance, leakage rates and carbon emissions using the TEWI model of the two industrial refrigeration systems having a different cooling capacity are evaluated. It is shown that for similar operating conditions and refrigeration power, the COP for R717 is higher by 39.1%. The TEWI for R717 is also shown to be lower by 68.1%. These results, therefore, establish ammonia as a very good alternative for R404A in the industrial refrigeration sector, both from an energy efficiency and environmental point of view in Mauritius. Moreover, ammonia is a relatively cheap refrigerant and readily available on the market. However, ammonia presents a number of safety hazards which limits its uses in other sectors such as air conditioning.