Grant: Applied Research and Development Grants - Level 1

The design and development of a cooling tower and a decorative desiccant wall to cool the exit-water from thermoforming equipment will be studied in this project. The proposed solution aims to reduce energy consumption and minimize the environmental impact of the process. The applied research team intends to systematically examine the possibility of both open and closed loop water cooling options, considering process and economical constraints including the capital and operating cost, environmental impact (e.g. carbon footprint), and plant layout impacts. The thermoforming process uses water for mold cooling in a closed loop. The return water from the thermoforming machine needs to be chilled for reuse in the process. The traditional solution is to use a chiller and cooling tower combination. However, this method is costly, and for a relatively small plant, is often 'overkill' during most months of the year. On the other hand, the air-cooled chillers use ambient air to remove heat from the refrigerant circuit and are highly energy-intensive on hot summer days. BN Progressive Products Ltd. would like to partner with Sheridan College (PI: Dr. Amin Ghobeity, P.Eng.) to complete a feasibility study and prototyping decentralized, modular cooling stations to replace the chillers and reduce operation costs through the innovation of a more environmentally-friendly solution.