AHRI adds new standards
USA: The AHRI has announced new certification programmes for air-handling unit casings and plate heat exchangers.
The voluntary AHRI (Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute) Product Performance Certification Programmes ensure the various types of equipment perform to manufacturers’ published claims.
The two new programmes – Central Station Air-handling Unit Casings (AHUC) and Liquid-to-Liquid Brazed & Fusion Bonded Plate Heat Exchangers (LLBF – join AHRI’s 41 other programmes, all of which verify the performance ratings for more than 40 product categories via random selection and annual testing at third-party laboratories.
The AHUC programme will verify casing deflection and casing air leakage and has the option of verifying thermal transmittance with leakage, thermal transmittance without leakage, and thermal bridging.
Products tested in the LLBF certification program are rated to AHRI Standard 400, liquid-to-liquid heat exchangers, and applies to production models of brazed and fusion bonded plate-type heat exchangers with heat duty up to 16 million Btu/h and flow rates up to 1,200gal/min (272.5m³/h), utilising water and/or sea water as fluids and utilised in heating, cooling, and district energy HVAC applications.
“These new programmes demonstrate our commitment to providing marketplace clarity and a level playing field for all manufacturers,” said vice president of certification Bill Tritsis. “AHRI programmes have served the heating, ventilation, air conditioning, refrigeration, and water heating industry for more than 50 years by independently verifying manufacturers’ performance ratings for a variety of equipment.”
