Can I use oil as a heat transfer fluid?
Oil is not part of the standard process fluid offering for ATC chillers.
ATC’s standard chillers are specified for use with approved Hexid or CoolFlow inhibited glycol-based coolants. If your application requires oil as the heat transfer fluid, this is considered a non-standard requirement and should be discussed with ATC before selecting or ordering a chiller.
Our Sales and Engineering teams can review the application and determine whether a suitable solution can be provided.
Why might an application require oil?
Some specialist processes use oil as the heat transfer medium because of the particular requirements of the application or the equipment being cooled.
If your existing process uses oil, or your equipment manufacturer specifies an oil-based heat transfer fluid, let ATC know at the beginning of the chiller specification process.
Do not assume that a standard ATC chiller suitable for an inhibited glycol-based coolant will also be suitable for oil.
Why does an oil application need to be reviewed?
Changing the process fluid can affect several aspects of chiller and cooling system performance.
Different fluids have different physical and thermal properties, and the characteristics of the particular oil can influence factors such as heat transfer, coolant flow, and pump performance.
Compatibility with the materials and components within the coolant circuit also needs to be considered.
For this reason, an oil application requires technical assessment rather than simply substituting oil for the standard process.
What information should I provide to ATC?
If your application requires oil, provide as much information as possible about the process and intended fluid, including:
- The application or equipment being cooled
- The specific oil or heat transfer fluid
- Manufacturer and product information for the fluid, where available
- Required operating temperature or temperature range
- Process heat load
- Required coolant flow
- Known system pressure requirements
- Expected ambient conditions
- Details of any existing cooling equipment being replaced
A fluid technical datasheet can be particularly useful when assessing a specialist process fluid.
ATC can then review the requirement and advise whether a suitable non-standard chiller specification can be offered.
Can I put oil into an existing ATC chiller?
Do not change an existing ATC chiller from its approved process fluid to oil without first consulting with ATC.
The existing cooling circuit may not be suitable for the proposed fluid, and changing fluid could affect cooling performance and equipment reliability.
If you have an existing ATC chiller and need to change to an oil-based process fluid, provide us with the chiller model and serial number, together with details of the proposed oil.
Our team can then review the existing equipment and application.
What fluids does ATC recommend for standard chillers?
For standard ATC products, the recommended process fluids are Hexid or CoolFlow inhibited glycol-based coolants.
Oil applications sit outside this standard offering and require individual assessment.
See “How do I choose a heat transfer fluid?” for more information about ATC’s standard process fluids and fluid compatibility.
Contact ATC to discuss an application requiring oil or another specialist heat transfer fluid.
