--- title: How does a chiller work? description: The laws of thermodynamics tell us that heat will always move from hotter to colder areas. But the outside air is often hotter than the air on the inside. How then, does a chiller work? image: https://blog.swegon.com/hubfs/AdobeStock_1230757446_LifestyleImages_600x350.jpeg --- [![](https://www.swegon.com/Static/img/logo.svg?v=3)](https://www.swegon.com/) Menu - [Solutions & services](https://www.swegon.com/solutions-and-services/) - [Products](https://www.swegon.com/products/) - [References & Insights](https://www.swegon.com/references-and-insights/) - [Support & software](https://www.swegon.com/support/) - [Sustainability](https://www.swegon.com/sustainability/) - [Why Swegon?](https://www.swegon.com/why-swegon/) - [Product Search](https://www.swegon.com/product-search-result/) - [Document Search](https://www.swegon.com/support/find-documents/) - [Career](https://www.swegon.com/career/) - Global - [Contact](https://www.swegon.com/contact/) ## Choose a market [Or visit our global site](https://www.swegon.com) - [Belgium - French](https://www.swegon.com/fr-be/) - [Belgium - Dutch](https://www.swegon.com/nl-be/) - [Denmark](https://www.swegon.com/da/) - 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[Fabio Polo](https://blog.swegon.com/en/author/fabio-polo) 7/21/20, 6:00 AM **The laws of thermodynamics tell us that heat will always move from hotter to colder areas. But the outside air, where the heat is to be dissipated, is often hotter than the air on the inside. How then, does a chiller work?**   The purpose of a chiller is to cool down a fluid, which in turn can be used to cool down other things; for example the air in an air conditioning unit, or servers and other equipment. ![chillerbackground](https://blog.swegon.com/hs-fs/hubfs/chillerbackground.png?width=1250&name=chillerbackground.png) The water in the chiller is looped through an evaporator, giving up heat to a refrigerant in a separate loop. A refrigerant is a substance with particular properties; specifically it has to have a boiling point that can be manipulated by pressure changes to match the temperature of the water the chiller needs to produce. The refrigerant evaporates, becoming gas while subtracting heat from the water in the process. The refrigerant is then led through a compressor, a component in the chiller which increases the pressure of the refrigerant. This is the trick that allows chillers to move heat from cooler to hotter areas: the increased pressure raises the boiling point of the refrigerant, so that it will become liquid again at a temperature that is higher than the one in the outside environment. [![schema-pac-en-e700](https://blog.swegon.com/hs-fs/hubfs/schema-pac-en-e700.jpg?width=918&name=schema-pac-en-e700.jpg)](http://www.blueboxcooling.com/en/prodotti/air-cooled.html#main_menu)The refrigerant in its gas form is then led through a condenser, giving up heat as it becomes liquid. The heat is dissipated to the external air or to a source of water, in the case of a water cooled chiller. Next, the refrigerant is led through an expansion valve, which lowers the pressure, allowing the refrigerant to be looped again to the evaporator. And round and round it goes. In order for this process to work the chiller needs energy to run the compressor. Also, the air and all liquids need to be moving, through the use of pumps and fans.  Would you like to know more about chillers? See our [product range](http://www.blueboxcooling.com/en/prodotti/air-cooled.html#main_menu) at our website or [contact us for more guidance](https://www.swegon.com/contact/). Topics: - [Cooling & Heating](https://blog.swegon.com/en/tag/cooling-heating) - - - [![Fabio Polo](https://blog.swegon.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Fabio%20Polo-1.jpg?width=200&name=Fabio%20Polo-1.jpg)](https://blog.swegon.com/en/author/fabio-polo) [Fabio Polo](https://blog.swegon.com/en/author/fabio-polo) At Swegon Fabio Polo is Head of Strategic Product Management within the cooling and heating business. Fabio has deep knowledge about cooling and heating solutions dedicated to space heating, and he is passionate about energy savings and whole system optimization - both within Swegon and the industry as a whole. ## Recommended reading - [Cooling & Heating](https://blog.swegon.com/en/tag/cooling-heating) - [Sustainability](https://blog.swegon.com/en/tag/sustainability) ### [Luca Filippetto](https://blog.swegon.com/en/author/luca-filippetto) ## [Our experts explain Europe's adoption of propane as a refrigerant](https://blog.swegon.com/en/our-experts-explain-europes-adoption-of-propane-as-a-refrigerant?hsLang=en) The transition to more sustainable alternatives in the HVAC industry … - [Cooling & Heating](https://blog.swegon.com/en/tag/cooling-heating) ### [Fabio Polo](https://blog.swegon.com/en/author/fabio-polo) ## [How to choose the right chiller](https://blog.swegon.com/en/choosingtherightchiller?hsLang=en) There are aspects to consider when choosing the right chiller. A few … - [Indoor Climate Knowledge](https://blog.swegon.com/en/tag/indoor-climate-knowledge) - [Cooling & Heating](https://blog.swegon.com/en/tag/cooling-heating) ### [Fabio Polo](https://blog.swegon.com/en/author/fabio-polo) ## [How to simplify product comparisons - explained through an e-bike example](https://blog.swegon.com/en/how-to-make-it-less-complex-to-compare-a-bike-example?hsLang=en) In today’s world, things are moving at record speed, and it may seem … Get updates from the blog directly to your inbox. #### Get to know us - [Why Swegon?](https://www.swegon.com/why-swegon/) - [Solutions & services](https://www.swegon.com/solutions-and-services/) - [Products](https://www.swegon.com/products/) - [References & Insights](https://www.swegon.com/references-and-insights/) - [Support & Software](https://www.swegon.com/support/) - [Sustainability](https://www.swegon.com/sustainability/) #### More Swegon - [About us](https://www.swegon.com/about-swegon/) - [Our Brands](https://www.swegon.com/about-swegon/our-brands/) - [News](https://blog.swegon.com/en/news?hsLang=en) - [For suppliers](https://www.swegon.com/for-suppliers/) - [The Swegon Blog](https://blog.swegon.com/en) - [Swegon Air Academy](https://www.swegonairacademy.com/en/) #### Subscribe to The Swegon Blog [![](https://www.swegon.com/siteassets/logos/logo.svg?v=1620107735)](https://www.swegon.com/) Swegon Group AB, JA Wettergrens gata 7, SE-421 30 Västra Frölunda, Tel +46 (0)31-89 58 00, Fax +46 (0)31-89 94 69, info@swegon.com - [Privacy statement](https://www.swegon.com/privacy-policy/) - [Cookies](https://www.swegon.com/cookies/) - [Processing personal data](https://www.swegon.com/privacy-policy/processing-personal-data/) - [![Youtube](https://www.swegon.com/Static/img/youtube.svg)](https://www.youtube.com/user/SwegonAB) - [![Linkedin](https://www.swegon.com/Static/img/linkedin.svg)](https://www.linkedin.com/company/swegon-ab/) - [![Facebook](https://www.swegon.com/Static/img/facebook.svg)](https://www.facebook.com/swegongroup)