HVAC – Industrial & Commercial Chilling Systems
The Deepchill® difference
In many commercial buildings, air conditioning is one of the largest single contributors to total energy costs, and it drives peak electricity demand on hot days. Thermal storage shifts cooling load away from those peak periods: ice is produced when electricity is cheaper (typically at night), then used to meet daytime cooling demand, which reduces demand charges and levels the load on your chilling system.
The Deepchill® Thermal Storage system is based on the production of slurry ice containing millions of fine Deepchill® crystals. These crystals are efficiently generated in the Deepchill® generator using sub-cooled crystallization.
The Deepchill® thermal storage system is a highly advanced cooling process that can help you achieve significant energy saving and lower your operating costs. Because ice can be produced during off-peak hours, the system can reduce chiller capacity requirements for new builds while integrating with existing HVAC infrastructure.
High ice-making efficiency
Deepchill forms ice as free-floating crystals throughout the slurry, rather than building it on a heat exchanger surface as flake, shell and plate ice machines do. Because surface ice insulates the exchanger as it thickens, those systems lose heat-transfer efficiency; Deepchill avoids this, so the generator makes ice using less energy. This applies across a wide range of industrial and commercial HVAC applications, from single buildings to larger complexes.
Better load control
The Deepchill® ice system can deliver a large amount of cooling quickly when demand spikes. Because the stored ice exists as millions of tiny crystals, it presents a very large surface area for heat transfer inside the tank. Return coolant is sprayed over the ice bed near the top of the tank and cools rapidly as the crystals melt evenly, letting you match sudden peaks in building cooling load without oversizing chillers.
Compact system
Ice packing factor is the proportion of the tank filled with ice rather than water, and it directly determines how large the storage tank, and the whole system, needs to be. Deepchill’s fine crystals reach a high packing factor of 50% to 60%, so a given amount of stored cooling fits into a smaller tank. That makes the system practical for buildings and plant rooms where installation space is limited.
Flexible installation
Because Deepchill slurry ice can be pumped through pipework like a fluid, the storage tank does not need to sit next to the ice generators. You can place the tank wherever space allows, on a different floor or a separate part of the building, and run pipe between them. This gives real layout flexibility for a building complex, which is difficult to achieve with conventional block or static ice systems.
How Deepchill works with your HVAC system?
Deepchill sits alongside your chillers as a thermal storage layer. During off-peak hours, the Deepchill generator produces slurry ice that is stored in an insulated tank. During peak cooling periods, return coolant from the building is cooled by the stored ice instead of running the chillers at full load. The system supplements your existing HVAC plant rather than replacing it.
HVAC Applications
Deepchill thermal storage suits HVAC systems with high or peaked cooling demand, where shifting load off-peak delivers the most value. Typical applications include:
- Commercial and office buildings with large daytime cooling loads
- Large or mixed-use building complexes
- Facilities on electricity tariffs with high demand charges or time-of-use pricing
- New builds looking to reduce installed chiller capacity
- Sites where cooling demand peaks sharply for part of the day
Sizing your system
The right configuration depends on your building’s cooling load, how sharply demand peaks, your operating schedule, the thermal storage duration you want, available installation space, and your electricity tariff. To scope a system, Deepchill typically needs your peak and average cooling load, daily operating hours, existing HVAC configuration, and your tariff or demand-charge structure.
Reduce your energy costs
- Use Deepchill® thermal storage for over 75% of the time in a year.
- Take advantage of low-cost night-time energy.
- Use heat rejection in the cooling mode for space heating in winter to achieve economic operation.
- Save about 50% of the yearly air conditioning cost.
Request a thermal storage assessment
Share your cooling load and electricity tariff details, and Deepchill will recommend a chilling system configuration suited to your facility. Call (905) 856-0400 or get in touch for a thermal storage assessment.
Frequently asked questions
No. It works alongside your existing chillers as a thermal storage layer, shifting cooling load off-peak rather than replacing your plant.
In many cases yes. Deepchill is designed to integrate with existing HVAC infrastructure, working alongside your current chillers and cooling loop. Suitability depends on your existing configuration and available space, which Deepchill can assess for your site.
Storage duration depends on how the system is sized, mainly the storage tank capacity relative to your cooling load. It is configured to match your operating schedule and the amount of load you want to shift off-peak. Deepchill will size this during an assessment.
Deepchill offers service agreements covering annual maintenance and service visits, remote monitoring, and preferential parts pricing. A 24/7 technician hotline is available, and original spare parts are stocked worldwide.