Carrier Transicold Europe has launched its new Pulsor™ range of refrigeration units for light commercial vehicles – offering more precise temperature control and cold chain protection for delivering temperature-sensitive goods in dense urban areas. Carrier Transicold helps improve global transport and shipping temperature control with a complete line of equipment for refrigerated trucks, trailers and containers, and is a part of UTC Climate, Controls & Security Systems, a unit of United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX).

Designed for insulated vans and light commercial vehicles with a load space of 12 to 30 cubic metres, the innovative range stands out for its ability to reach full refrigeration capacity at low engine speed (1,000 rpm), ensuring a constant set point throughout the delivery cycle. Additionally, the Pulsor unit has been designed to meet multi-temperature requirements, with the ability to cool and heat multiple compartments simultaneously to varying set points between -30°C and +30°C.

Justin Grace, managing director of Carrier Transicold UK, explains, “The beauty of the Pulsor unit is that it uses patented new Carrier E-Drive™ technology, combined with an inverter and a variable speed hermetic compressor. E-Drive technology has been specially adapted from Carrier’s proven Vector™ all-electric trailer system, which the majority of supermarket fleets in the UK and Ireland already benefit from.

“Many of these customers also run significant home delivery operations; where extensive product testing has shown the Pulsor unit to thrive, with a 20 per cent reduction in fuel consumption during pull down. This can provide operators with a tangible return on investment.”

“We also expect this new technology to prove attractive to fleets operating direct drive systems as it eliminates the requirement for a roadside compressor – a component renowned for being the primary cause of unit downtime,” he adds.

Innovative technology As with the Vector 1550 and Vector 1850 trailer units, Carrier E-Drive technology removes mechanical transmissions found in traditional belt-driven systems and transforms engine power into electricity via a generator. The generator then channels the electrical power to an inverter that regulates the power delivered according to refrigeration needs. Finally, the variable speed hermetic compressor works at different speeds according to the inverter’s output, delivering constant capacity in all refrigeration phases.

The Pulsor unit’s high and continuous capacity at low engine speeds is ideally suited to modern-day refrigerated light commercial vehicles operating in congested urban centres, where multi-drop work is commonplace. In contrast, a traditional refrigeration unit’s compressor is connected to the vehicle’s engine and runs at the same speed, meaning refrigeration capacity is directly linked with engine speed and only reaches optimum capacity at 2,400 rpm. During urban deliveries approximately 90 per cent of a typical journey is completed with engine speeds below 2,400 rpm, resulting in the potential risk of fluctuation in temperature control and possible damage to perishable cargo.

Optimised cold chain protection The Pulsor unit reaches the designated set point twice as fast as conventional technology, and is accurate to within +/- 0.3°C of the defined set point. This rapid pull down and temperature accuracy, combined with constant, full refrigeration capacity delivered even at low speeds, ensures that the temperature within the load space is always maintained regardless of traffic jams and multiple door openings. Furthermore, it can operate effectively in extreme ambient temperatures ranging from -30°C to +50°C.

Reducing environmental footprint The new refrigeration unit meets Carrier Transicold’s objective of minimizing environmental impact, with Carrier’s E-Drive technology enabling a significant reduction in fittings and hoses, considerably reducing the potential for refrigerant leaks. In addition, all connections are made with copper pipe instead of flexible hoses to further reduce potential leaks. With an average of 2.5 per cent refrigerant leak per year, the Pulsor unit reduces CO2 emissions by 75 per cent per annum compared with conventional technology.

Positive feedback The Pulsor unit has undergone more than a year of extensive field testing with customers throughout Europe, including the UK. In addition to temperature accuracy and improved environmental performance, fleet operators have been impressed with the Pulsor unit’s low cost of ownership, owing to a reduction in the number of serviceable parts, hoses and fittings combined with the proven robustness of the inverter. The inverter is a standard component used in the air- conditioning industry that has been further strengthened to meet Carrier Transicold’s requirements, and which provides users with superior product reliability. This is made possible as the inverter regulates the power delivered to the compressor according to refrigeration needs, meaning the compressor always works within its envelope, minimising the potential for breakdowns.

The Pulsor range will be commercially available from January 2012 in six models: Pulsor 300, 350, 400, 500, 400MT (multi-temp) and 600M

For more information visit www.carrierpulsor.com