Energy analysis of a supermarket refrigeration system

From 1995 to 1998, an energy test method for supermarket refrigeration systems was developed in a project financed by the Danish Energy Agency. The purpose of the energy test method is to provide the means for evaluating the energy efficiency of these systems. The test method requires measurements of air temperatures and energy consumption to be carried out on the selected supermarket refrigeration system. In addition to the measurements required by the method, more measurements of individual energy consumptions have been carried in the case described in this paper. The purpose of the additional measurements is to make a more detailed investigation of the energy efficiency possible.According to this investigation, a considerable part of the energy consumption is used for anti sweat heaters in refrigerated cabinets.At present, the energy test has only been carried out on five different refrigeration systems and therefore the experience with its application is limited. In the future, the energy test method may be used for evaluation of the efficiency of a new system or the improvement in efficiency when optimising an existing system.