Stirling Ultracold has announced the release of energy consumption test results for the company’s model SU780UE upright ultra-low temperature freezer (ULT), in response to requested data from the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Stirling Ultracold is the first ULT freezer manufacturer to provide this data, in accordance with the EPA’s new ENERGY STAR® Product Specification for Laboratory Grade Refrigerators and Freezers, and Ultra-Low Temperature Freezers Final Test Method. Publically announced by the EPA on July 16, 2014, this test method defines the first industry standard for testing energy consumption of ultra-low freezers.
The release of Stirling Ultracold test data complied with testing definitions, conditions, setup, methodology and reporting guidelines, as specified by the EPA-published standard. The freezer Energy consumption, as defined by the final test method, was 7.97 kWh/day over the steady-state period of the test and 9.24 kWh/day over the complete 24-hour test.
“We’re thrilled that the EPA and DOE have led the way through this process and now our industry has an agreed-upon and uniform testing standard,” noted Stirling Ultracold’s CEO Neill Lane. “It is our hope that this will eventually offer the same clarity to ultra-low freezer buyers that the EPA’s MPG standard has provided to car buyers for many years. Ultimately medical research can advance more rapidly if the energy cost to run ultra-low freezers is reduced.”
This EPA-led testing standard was established as part of a longer term initiative by the Office of Air and Radiation for eventually instituting an ENERGY STAR® rating for both users and manufacturers of laboratory grade refrigerators and freezers. The EPA is currently engaged in several such programs which encourage the adoption of energy-efficient products, practices, and services through valuable partnerships, objective measurement tools, and consumer education.