Water has a huge affinity with ammonia. The presence of water in the refrigerant can easily be proved with the highest concentration being located in the coldest part of the refrigeration system.
Ammonia contaminated with water, primarily means a waste of valuable electrical energy.
Even low water concentration results in rising evaporation temperatures of the water ammonia mixture, due to the different evaporating temperatures of water (100C) and ammonia (-33C), both under atmospheric pressure. If the suction pressure remains unchanged, the required temperatures cannot be reached as demanded.
Beside rising operational costs, the water in the ammonia cycle stimulates corrosion, leads to rapid ageing of the oil and quickens the forming of slurry. As a result, the water contributes to additional maintenance costs, which will not appear as long as the ammonia cycles are clean and dry.

In which applications the Grasso Ammonia dryer can improve the efficiency?
Every ammonia system suffers with the same problem: water!
During necessary maintenance work or through minimal leakages of flange sealings (if the system is operated below atmospheric pressure), the water vapour of the surrounding air will come into contact with the ammonia in the cycle. The water concentration can easily exceed 25% which would result in extensive damage, especially to heat exchangers. The Grasso Ammonia dryer is a portable device, to dehydrate wet ammonia while the refrigeration system is in operation. This means that a shut down of the process or production is not required. if the device is permanently connected to the ammonia system, the ammonia will be kept dry during the plant lifetime.

Is there any alternative to the Grasso Ammonia dryer?
The only viable alternative is the replacement of wet ammonia by fresh and dry ammonia. However, this option results in enormous costs for procuration, waste management and plant down times.

The Grasso Ammonia dryer is about 385 kg and 1700 x 600 x 1000 mm (L x W x H).
The heat source is available in two executions, an electrical heating element (1.5 kW) or a coil for hot gas heating.