This large-capacity centrifugal chiller meets your customer requirements, by design.

Carrier's 17DA Open Drive Centrifugal Chiller is designed to address the most critical concerns of large central plant operators and owners: Efficiency, Reliability and Environmental Safety.

Unmatched Energy Efficiency

Energy-conscious central plant and industrial customers can invest in the 17DA, knowing that its efficiency is unmatched in the industry. Thanks to Carrier's advanced compressor and heat exchanger technology, the 17DA chiller is clearly the lowest energy consumer available. And its open drive design lest you select the most economical power source - and shift sources if desired - at any time during the unit's long life.

Variable Inlet Guide Vanes and a Diffuser Ring control the flow of gas through the 17DA's single-stage, high efficiency shrouded impeller, producing optimum performance across a wide range of operating conditions.

The variable inlet guide vanes regulate the volume and direction of suction gas entering the compressor. As the machine's capacity drops below 50%, the diffuser ring gradually closes to maintain a high gas velocity through the diffuser opening. This sequence maintains efficient and stable operation down to 10% load, eliminating the possibility of compressor surge and the need for inefficient hot gas bypass.

Optimal heat transfer is achieved with a physical design that utilizes the latest tubing materials and does not require energy-wasting eliminators. Another energy saver, a Thermal Economizer in the condenser increases refrigeration effect by lowering the condensed liquid temperature. A Positive-Acting Liquid Level Control Valve Is used to maintain refrigerant levels regardless of operating conditions.

Flexibility In A Packaged Design

The 17DA is actually hundreds of centrifugal chillers in one. You can custom-design the unit to meet your requirements by selecting the size and type of heat exchanger, compressor, and prime mover. Selection of electric motor, steam turbine or gas engine/turbine can also be optimized for the best fuel economy now and in the future. Heat exchanger flexibility combines efficiency and precise control to meet your specific requirements. Various tube types, lengths and pass arrangements can be optimized to suit virtually any flow and temperature rise condition.

Using specialized software, Carrier will assist you in making the most energy-efficient and economical choices, and provide a detailed analysis of 17DA performance under a full range of anticipated operating conditions.

Once your 17DA components and options are specified, the compressor/prime mover assembly is factory-built on a rigid, fabricated steel drive base which is stress relieved to insure proper alignment. Speed increasers, motors, steam turbines and gas engines and turbines are selected to meet Carrier's strict engineering quality standards. Interconnecting lubrication piping is also factory-mounted to provide and easy to install package.

World-Class Reliability…By Design

Years from now, the 17DA will still operate just as economically as it did upon startup. By concentrating on long-term reliability through preventive maintenance design, Carrier has made uninterrupted quality performance and low maintenance costs the hallmarks of this chiller, its highly refined mechanical system has proven reliable in hundreds of applications in both central plants and industrial process applications throughout the world.

Journal Bearings. These bearings are split sleeve, steel-backed and babbit-lined. Steel provides the structural support needed to absorb high radial loads, while the babbit lining protects the shaft from scoring in case of a lubrication failure. The split-sleeve design allows for inspection without removing the shaft.

Kingsbury-Type Thrust / Counter-Thrust Bearings. For superior handling of axial forces, eight floating pad automatically align in a wedge formation to insure that load-carrying surfaces are separated by a thick film of lubricant - even during accidental reverse rotation - reducing wear and increasing bearing life. A balancing piston further reduces thrust forces.

One-Piece bearing Chamber Cover. To provide quick access to all bearings and the carbon running seal, a simple, four-bolt bearing cap design allows journal bearings to be removed for inspection. The 17DA's drive coupling never has to be disturbed.

The Carrier 17DA Iso-Carbon Seal System. This system contains only three wearing parts and allows easy access serving without removing the refrigerant and also prevents refrigerant loss during shutdown.

The four basic parts of the system are a Stationary Contact Sleeve, a Rotating Contact Ring, a free-floating Iso-Carbon Ring that rotates between the two and Self-Contained Shutdown Seal. A Spring Retainer maintains accurately controlled, fixed pressure between all these parts. These components isolate the refrigerant circuit from the bearing chamber, enabling bearings to be inspected and serviced without removing refrigerant from the machine. Additionally, all contact surfaces are finished optically flat to within one light band (11.6 millionths of an inch).

The system is continually bathed with oil to form the refrigerant seal. The oil and refrigerant gas that mix at the Iso-Carbon Ring flow to a separate chamber where the gas is separated by heat and returned to the suction side of the compressor. The oil returns to the atmospheric reservoir. At least five gallons of fully-recoverable oil flow through the Carrier Iso-Carbon Seal System every 24 hours of operation.

The Iso-Carbon Seal System automatically continues its sealing function even during shutdown when the compressor is still pressurized with refrigerant. After the machine stops, the normally higher oil pressure at the Counter-Thrust Bearing is reduced below refrigerant gas pressure. The now higher gas pressure forces a shoulder on the compressor shaft against a stationary Shutdown Seal to complete and maintain a positive seal.

At start-up, this action is reversed… the main oil pump increases oil pressure to the counter-thrust bearing until it is higher than the refrigeration pressure. This exerts force against the counter-thrust bearing and the shaft is moved toward the inlet end of the compressor to release the shutdown seal.

For increased operating reliability, the 17DA features two fail-safe switches. The Shutdown Seal Movement Switch prevents the compressor form starting until normal operating oil pressure is applied to the counter-thrust bearing. The movement of the shaft to the thrust position releases the shutdown seal. The Shaft Movement Switch shuts down the machine if there is any shaft movement beyond a precalibrated limit.

The Atmospheric Lubrication System. This extremely efficient lubrication system is the only one of its kind in the industry. Its design performs two specific functions:

Unlike other refrigeration compressor lubrication systems, minimal refrigerant is absorbed in the oil, eliminating both oil foaming at start-up and the need for an oil heater in the reservoir. Furthermore, the Oil Reservoir and shaft bearing chamber are vented to the atmosphere.

The Iso-Carbon Seal is the only place where oil and refrigerant come in contact. Oil is pumped through the seal chamber preventing refrigerant from leaking past the seal. This oil flows to the Separation Tank where it is heated. Any absorbed refrigerant is boiled off and returned to the compressor suction side. The pure oil is then automatically returned to the oil reservoir. The system has an oil pressure switch that will shut down the compressor should the oil pressure drop below optimum operating conditions.

The significant advantage of Carrier's Atmospheric Lubrication System is that it allows for inspection and servicing of all bearings and seal parts without the costly and time-consuming process of removing refrigerant from the machine.

ASME - Certified Heat Exchangers. 17DA heat exchangers fully conform to ASME code and are independently inspected throughout fabrication and testing. Carrier's standard design features include marine-style water boxes for tube cleaning, double-grooved tube sheets for superior tube mechanical bonding and closely spaced intermediate supports to eliminate tube vibration during operation. The entire chiller is ISO-9001 certified in design and fabrication.

Factory Pre-Assembled Pumpout Unit. For transferring refrigerant and distilling refrigerant charge, an optional pumpout unit is available. It features a 7.5 H.P. compressor mounted on a refrigerant storage tank and is suited for single or multiple chiller installations. The fully assembled, pre-wired unit includes refrigerant valves, piping, sight glass and compressor relief valves.

Proven Controls Technology

Custom-Designed Controls. Carrier meets your precise control requirements with microprocessor-based control solutions ranging from stand-alone modules to fully integrated control systems that communicate with your existing or future central plant facilities.

Installation time is kept to a minimum since each panel is pre-wired and pre-piped to terminals and bulkheads, then leak and continuity tested. All instruments settings are factory-adjusted to their approximate operating points.

Environmental Safety

Non-Ozone Depleting Refrigerant. While the 17DA's efficiency and reliability go a long way towards creating peace of mind, its non-ozone depleting refrigerant, HFC-134a, completes the picture. HFC-134a contains no chlorine and faces no regulatory phaseout, ensuring the environmentally safe operation of this chiller for many years to come.