There’s one thing that is universally known around the world about Canadians — they love their ice hockey. As such, a lot of blood, sweat, and tears went into the design, commission, and upkeep of the facilities that house their beloved ice.
Located just North of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, lies a small community of about 12,000 people and its brand-new community centre. The Martinsville Recreation Centre features a main ice, practice ice, spectator lounge, climbing wall, indoor playground, field house, and space for two additional sheets of ice.
The new ice-making system was designed and constructed by Ainsworth and specifies Opteon XL40, or more commonly known as R-454A, refrigerant with a low GWP of just 239. As of Jan. 1, Canadian regulations require new rink chillers to have a maximum GWP of 750.
The system uses a modular design that is based on multiple independent refrigeration circuits. Martenville’s rink uses five modules that provide -34 tons of cooling capacity each to meet the refrigeration needs for both a full-size ice rink and the smaller practice rink. “We’ve got five modules for this system. They are 100 per cent independent of each other. That means that each has a compressor, electrical panel, pump, condenser, circuit, chiller,” shared Rhett Svingen, controls and engineering manager for Ainsworth Saskatoon. “This is what we decided was the best solution for any ice rink. We’ve been doing it through experience. If I want a system that I don’t get phone calls at night, I want to sell them this system.”
This will allow multiple modules to be put into action when required, such as hockey tournaments with repeated resurfacing and a warmer building due to the increased number of spectators. “There are periods of peak demand on any ice rink, and I always thought it might be in the summer when it’s hot out.
It’s actually probably more during the winter when there’s heavy tournament usage and a lot of resurfacing,” shared Svingen. “That’s when all the demand for the refrigeration really kicks-in. Building ice in the beginning is when you need a lot of demand and then during peak usage.”
Codes to follow
This was the first project of this size that the engineering team has worked on utilizing an A2L refrigerant. The most difficult part of the project, from a design perspective, was simply navigating code requirements. “But other than that, it’s just like any other refrigerant,” explained Svingen. In Canada, the important Canadian refrigeration code is CSA B52 and ASHRAE Standard 15.
One of the reasons the system was designed with multiple circuits was to create redundancy built into the design, which makes it extremely unlikely to lose any of the ice if one single component were to fail.
“We’ve dealt with those issues, where it’s a single chiller system, and then they have a problem with their chiller mid-season. That basically ends their season,” warned Svingen. “You can’t get a replacement chiller and you’re just out of luck.”
The smaller, individual modules also mean that if there were a refrigerant leak, only a fraction of the total refrigerant would be lost compared to large single systems that could lose hundreds of kilograms of refrigerant in a similar scenario.
Speaking in terms of leaks, one of the reasons R-454A was chosen was due to its lower toxicity (Class A) when compared to refrigerants like ammonia (Class B), which also has a higher toxicity level. It’s important to remember that “there’s always an asphyxiation risk with any gas that can displace oxygen,” shared Svingen.
The compressors chosen for the system design don’t require any rebuilding or oil changes. This means that the yearly maintenance requirements, like with most ammonia systems, will be lower. Any technician who has worked on systems found in supermarkets or other similar commercial refrigeration systems is expected to be able to work on a system like this.
Environmental approach
As previously stated, the refrigerant used in the project was R-454A. This is the same class as R-454B, which is used in residential heat pumps and air conditioners. An A2L refrigerant has the same low toxicity as in other common refrigerants, such as R-134a, R-22, and R-507.
Since the project officially opened for business in October 2024, there have been no reported concerns regarding the safety of the A2L system, according to Nustadia, the company responsible for overseeing and monitoring the rink’s activities.
“From an environmental perspective, I think this is another cool feature of this design. If you know someone were to break a line, or something were to happen in the mechanical room, or if there was a leak, the loss of refrigeration is going to be pretty small. Unlike a single chiller system that could have 1,000s of pounds of gas and there is a leak, you lose a whole charge. In this case, if something were to happen in one of the circuits, the loss of refrigerants is much smaller. And with a refrigerant with such a low GWP already, it’s pretty insignificant,” shared Svingen. The anticipated lifespan for this specific system is around 25 to 30 years. This project reportedly began back in spring 2014, when Ken Muench, Martenville’s mayor, called for the creation of a new community centre and arena.