Microchannel Heat Exchanger Industry: Improved Solutions are Key to Development

With the continuous rise in prices of materials like copper, the call for "aluminum replacing copper" is once again heard in the Chinese household appliance industry. Among these, the use of all-aluminum microchannel heat exchangers in household air conditioners to replace copper tube fin heat exchangers has garnered attention. However, due to the low acceptance by complete machine manufacturers, the application of microchannel heat exchangers in the household appliance sector in China is still in the exploratory stage. How to gain recognition from complete machine manufacturers with better performance will remain the focus of microchannel heat exchanger enterprises.

#1 Hindered Application in Household Air Conditioners, Breakthrough in Heat Pump Water Heaters

Microchannel heat exchangers refer to heat exchangers with channel equivalent diameters ranging from 10μm to 1000μm. These heat exchangers have dozens of fine channels inside flat tubes, connected to circular headers at both ends of the flat tubes, with baffles installed inside the headers to divide the heat exchanger passages into several flow paths. Microchannel heat exchangers have advantages such as less refrigerant charge, high heat transfer efficiency, and energy saving.

Unfortunately, despite gradually being introduced from the automotive air conditioning field to the household air conditioning field, the application of microchannel heat exchangers in the domestic household air conditioning market has not opened up. According to various data comparisons, the current application proportion of microchannel heat exchangers in the Chinese household air conditioning industry is only 1% to 2%.

Due to the limitations of microchannel heat exchangers themselves, they are currently only used in single split air conditioners, with minimal involvement in heat pump type air conditioners, resulting in a small market share, which is a major reason hindering the development of microchannel heat exchangers in the air conditioning market.

Furthermore, an industry insider pointed out that when all-aluminum microchannel heat exchangers are used for heating in heat pump household air conditioners, frosting occurs too quickly, leading to frequent defrosting during machine operation, affecting the comfort and energy consumption of the whole machine. On the other hand, in terms of cost, for air conditioner models below 1.5HP, due to the area of the heat exchanger, the cost advantage of replacement is not significant. Sanhua stated that the usage of microchannel heat exchangers in Chinese household air conditioners is still not high, and Sanhua mainly supplies household air conditioning export products.

Compared with the situation where there is no breakthrough in the household air conditioning industry, the application of microchannel heat exchangers in the refrigerator industry is steadily growing, with the market share slightly higher than that in household air conditioners. Gao Qiang, Deputy General Manager of Sanhua Microchannel, stated that due to the improvement in energy efficiency and the high requirements for refrigerant charge control, the use of microchannel heat exchangers in refrigerators can bring significant advantages, so the application proportion continues to increase. In 2020, the sales volume of Sanhua refrigerator microchannel heat exchangers was approximately 1.1 million sets, accounting for 3% to 4% of China's refrigerator production, and it is estimated that the sales volume will reach 1.4 million sets and 2.5 million sets in 2021 and 2022, respectively.

Household heat pump water heaters are the most successful area for the promotion of microchannel heat exchangers in the household appliance industry. According to online industrial data, the proportion of microchannel heat exchangers in household heat pump water heaters is as high as 80%. It is maturely applied in household heat pump water heaters, with advantages such as high heat transfer efficiency, safe operation, and prolonged lifespan of the air energy tank, and has been widely used by companies such as Gree, Haier, and A.O. Smith.

In addition, microchannel heat exchangers have also been recognized in the heat pump dryer sector. Gao Qiang stated that with the explosive growth of the heat pump dryer market, the microchannel heat exchangers for heat pump dryers have also experienced explosive growth, with the current application proportion accounting for about 2% of the total washing machine production. The sales volume of Sanhua heat pump dryer microchannel heat exchangers was approximately 200,000 sets in 2020, and it is expected to reach 500,000 sets and 1 million sets in 2021 and 2022, respectively.

#2 Stable Competitive Landscape, Positive Market Trends

Microchannel heat exchangers produced by Sanhua can be applied in household air conditioning single cooling units, household heat pump units, heat pump water heaters, refrigerators, heat pump dryers, commercial air conditioners, and commercial refrigeration equipment, etc. Among them, the production capacity of microchannel heat exchangers for household air conditioners, household heat pump water heaters, and commercial refrigeration equipment is close to 3.5 million sets, while the production capacity of microchannel heat exchangers for small household appliances is close to 5 million sets.

Although the overall demand for microchannel heat exchangers globally has expanded, with sales showing a growth trend, in the Chinese household appliance industry, especially in the household air conditioning industry, despite the high price of copper, major brands have their own copper tube production lines. The promotion of microchannel heat exchangers will have a disruptive impact on the existing production pattern.