Refrigerant
An IoT-based refrigerant leak detection system reports a loss of refrigerant before an air conditioning or refrigeration system fails. Technicians set off with the right spare part instead of spending a long time searching for the fault.
Refrigerant at a glance
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Refrigerant leak detection system: spot losses before it gets warm
In one solution example from Codestryke, the iCOMOX sensor box from Arrow measures the vibration of an air conditioner's compressor. When refrigerant is missing, the unit vibrates differently than when fully charged, so the sensor box can tell whether there is enough refrigerant and whether the compressor is working properly. An edge device filters and compresses the data and, depending on the site, sends it to the cloud via NB-IoT, Power over Ethernet or a SmartMesh IP radio network. An analytics solution notifies the service manager of units that need servicing. Siemens Smart Infrastructure connects all building services to a cloud-based monitoring platform, monitors hardware and software around the clock and automatically creates a ticket for every event.
The examples come from retail and wholesale and from building services, with use cases such as vibration monitoring, route optimisation and emergency communication. A retailer and service provider for HVAC systems uses the Codestryke solution to plan its service technicians' routes and give them all the information they need in advance. Time-consuming troubleshooting is no longer necessary. With the Siemens system, critical events such as refrigerant leaks are no longer reported by building users over the phone: the system informs the right service provider, including details of the failed components.
Refrigerant leak detection system: frequently asked questions
How can IoT monitor the refrigerant charge via the compressor?
IoT detects low refrigerant indirectly via the vibration of the compressor. When there is no longer enough refrigerant, the compressor vibrates differently than when fully charged. The iCOMOX sensor box from Arrow measures this vibration on existing air conditioning units that could not previously be monitored remotely. Codestryke developed the monitoring application that notifies the service manager of units needing maintenance.
Why does refrigerant management need early leak detection?
When refrigerant leaks, the system's performance drops until, in the worst case, it fails completely. This usually does not happen suddenly but gradually over a longer period. Without monitoring, the damage is only noticed when temperatures in the building rise significantly and a technician has to spend a long time searching for the fault. Continuous measurements on the compressor or monitoring of the building services reveal the development early.
How can problems with a refrigerant compressor be detected early?
Problems with a refrigerant compressor show up early in its vibration behaviour, long before the system fails. Defective compressors and leaks are among the most common faults in heavily used air conditioning systems in commercial buildings, and they usually develop gradually. The iCOMOX sensor box measures the compressor's vibration and checks whether it is working properly. Codestryke uses this to determine which units need servicing and to plan the service technicians' routes.
How is refrigerant monitored in building services?
In building services, refrigerant is monitored as part of networked monitoring of all systems, which reports events automatically. The Siemens Smart Infrastructure system connects ventilation, refrigeration and other building services to a cloud platform and monitors hardware and software around the clock. In the event of a leak, automatic ticketing informs the appropriate service provider, including details of the failed components.
More assets in “Fluids & Gases”
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Groundwater
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Molten metal
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