Ice rinks and sports applications

Ice skating, hockey and indoor skiing thanks to heat transfer fluids

Ice skating, hockey and indoor skiing are growing in popularity, with disciplines including hockey, figure skating and speed skating to name a few. Around Christmas, towns set up their temporary ice rinks. Although these temporary ice rinks are set up outdoors, the surrounding temperature is not cold enough to guarantee continuous freezing.

Ice rinks are a typical example of secondary cooling. The primary refrigerant does not cool the ice directly. Instead cold is transported via the heat transfer fluid in the secondary loop. This fluid is pumped through a network of pipes underneath the ice and guarantees cooling. The process of ice formation is very complex. Many different layers of ice, some thinner than 1mm, form the final skating surface. When an ice surface is built, chillers cool the heat transfer fluid which is pumped through the pipes. These pipes are commonly made from steel. Deionised water is sprayed onto this network of pipes, and the water starts to freeze when it comes into contact with the cold pipes.

Other sports facilities that want to prevent snow and ice, for example very large football stadiums use a network of pipes filled with heat transfer fluid. This prevents the cold from damaging the grass.

Recommended dosage:

Freezium -15 °C