Part of the renowned Lubrizol Corporation, CPI Fluid Engineering is recognised for its expertly formulated lubricants designed to answer the unique challenges of applications involving heat transfer and compression. Among its respected product lines is Solest, a brand of cutting-edge polyol ester (POE) lubricants.
Solest lubricants are specifically engineered for use in refrigeration and air conditioning systems that use hydrofluorocarbons (HFC) refrigerants. However, they are also an outstanding solution for service in many systems that use hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC) and hydrofluoroolefin (HFO) refrigerants in specific operating conditions and other industrial processes.
The range is engineered for standard industrial refrigeration equipment and air conditioning systems, as well as for original equipment manufacturer (OEM) retrofitting operations. The Solest line meets key system needs and is not hazardous. Compared to standard mineral oils, it has improved properties in every aspect including pour point, fire and flash points and viscosity index (VI).
Solest lubricants designed for different sectors
Today, Solest lubricants can be found being used in a wide variety of air conditioning systems and refrigeration applications. For example, CPI Fluid Engineering’s CPI Solest 68 and 46 are used in both residential and commercial air conditioning and refrigeration, and are compatible with a wide range of compressor types. These include screw, reciprocating, scroll and centrifugal compressors.
The Solest range also offers fluids designed for more challenging applications in air conditioning and refrigeration processes for industrial and commercial operators. These include CPI Solest 220, 180, 170 and 120, which see active use serving screw, centrifugal and reciprocating compressors.
Retrofitting and replacing lubricants in HCFC and CFC systems
Soon, the phase out of refrigerants like CFC (chlorofluorocarbon) will demand that companies replace or retrofit the existing lubricants used in their compressor systems on site.
As mineral oil lubricants aren’t miscible with the eco-friendlier HFC refrigerants, they cause problems inside the operating system. Solest was created by CPI specifically to cope with changing methods and is completely compatible with HFC refrigerant.
Furthermore, CPI has developed an effective procedure that correctly retrofits new lubricant options inside existing systems that use mineral oil as a refrigeration lubricant. It is crucial that as much of the older mineral oil is extracted as possible, to eradicate issues like evaporator cooling and fouling.
Key benefits in applications
The Solest product range from CPI offers several operational benefits in multiple applications, which has made its fluids a sought-after solution for many companies around the world.
Reducing wear and contamination
Solest lubricants provide premium protection against wear, but also seal parts against unwanted contaminants in the system. Lubricants carry contamination away from key areas where it can be harmlessly captured in filters and removed.
Thermal stability
Professionally conducted sealed tube results have shown that Solest lubricants can supply outstanding thermal stability in systems where HFC refrigerants are in use.
Equipment compatibility
Solest lubricants have no adverse impact on metals and other construction materials, promoting longer active service life for compressor components and other system parts.
Wide refrigeration compatibility
The performance of HFC systems is optimised when the refrigerant and lubricant are miscible (mix to create a clear single phase).
Miscibility effectively lowers lubricant viscosity, so it circulates the system efficiently and returns to the compressor.
While standard mineral oils aren’t miscible with HFS, lubricants in the Solest line are specifically engineered to offer this property. While ideal for use with HFC refrigerants, as mentioned earlier, Solest lubricants are also suitable under certain conditions for use with other environmentally safer refrigerants, like HFO and HCFC.
Longevity
Solest lubricants provide exceptional lubricity, offering greater oil return, but are also durable and designed for extended use. They provide excellent protection against corrosive forces and effectively lubricate bearings – increasing the active service life of the compressor and its parts, while reducing mechanical downtime and supplying enhanced system dependability.
Energy efficiency
The improved oil management of Solest offers system efficiency gains. It also delivers optimised system efficiency, reducing energy use and running costs for operations.
Eco-friendly
CPI’s Solest lubricants range are also designed with the environment in mind.
All fluids in the line are specially formulated to be biodegradable, but were also developed to work effectively with low global warming potential (GWP) refrigerants.
Further applications for Solest lubricants
While this guide covers the main refrigeration compressor oil types in the Solest range and common applications, many possible options exist, and operators can consult their OEM or CPI distributor for further recommendations.
If your operation would like to appreciate the many benefits of using the Solest line, whether you need a solution for air conditioning, refrigeration or another industrial or commercial process, reach out for further information and state-of-the-art solutions.
