# Energy Conservation Program: Test Procedure for Automatic Commercial Ice Makers > Briefs, arguments, decisions, and more. URL: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/documents/fr%3A2022-22927 ## Record - **Collection:** Federal Register - **Document type:** Rule - **Published:** November 1, 2022 - **Citation:** 87 FR 65856 ## Text DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 10 CFR Parts 429 and 431 [EERE-2017-BT-TP-0006] RIN 1904-AD81 Energy Conservation Program: Test Procedure for Automatic Commercial Ice Makers AGENCY: Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Department of Energy. ACTION: Final rule. SUMMARY: In this final rule, the U.S. Department of Energy (“DOE”) amends the test procedure for automatic commercial ice makers to update incorporated references to the latest version of the industry standards; establish a relative humidity test condition; provide additional detail regarding certain test conditions, settings, setup requirements, and calculations; include a voluntary measurement of potable water use; clarify certification and reporting requirements; and add enforcement provisions. This final rule also provides additional detail to the DOE test procedure to improve the representativeness and repeatability of the current test procedure. DATES: The effective date of this rule is December 1, 2022. The final rule changes will be mandatory for equipment testing starting October 27, 2023. The incorporation by reference of certain publications listed in the rule is approved by the Director of the Federal Register on December 1, 2022. ADDRESSES: The docket, which includes Federal Register notices, public meeting attendee lists and transcripts, comments, and other supporting documents/materials, is available for review at www.regulations.gov. All documents in the docket are listed in the www.regulations.gov index. However, not all documents listed in the index may be publicly available, such as those containing information that is exempt from public disclosure. A link to the docket web page can be found at www.regulations.gov/docket/EERE-2017-BT-TP-0006. The docket web page contains instructions on how to access all documents, including public comments, in the docket. For further information on how to review the docket contact the Appliance and Equipment Standards Program staff at (202) 287-1445 or by email: ApplianceStandardsQuestions@ee.doe.gov. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Julia Hegarty, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Building Technologies Office, EE-2J, 1000 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20585-0121. Telephone: (202) 586-0729. Email: ApplianceStandardsQuestions@ee.doe.gov. Ms. Sarah Butler, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of the General Counsel, GC-33, 1000 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20585-0121. Telephone: (202) 586-1777. Email: Sarah.Butler@hq.doe.gov. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: DOE incorporates by reference the following industry standards into part 431: AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1, “Performance Rating of Automatic Commercial Ice-Makers,” January 2018; and ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 29-2015, “Method of Testing Automatic Ice Makers,” approved April 30, 2015. AHRI standards can be obtained from the Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI), 2111 Wilson Blvd., Suite 500, Arlington, VA 22201, 703-524-8800, ahri@ahrinet.org, or www.ahrinet.org. ASHRAE standards can be purchased from the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, Inc. (ASHRAE), 1791 Tullie Circle NE, Atlanta, GA 30329, (404) 636-8400, ashrae@ashrae.org, or www.ashrae.org. (Co-published with American National Standards Institute (ANSI).) For a further discussion of these standards, see section IV.N of this document. Table of Contents I. Authority and Background A. Authority B. Background II. Synopsis of the Final Rule III. Discussion A. Scope B. Definitions 1. Refrigerated Storage ACIM 2. Portable ACIM 3. Industry Standard Definitions C. Industry Test Standards Incorporated by Reference D. Additional Amendments 1. Low-Capacity ACIMs 2. Stability Criteria 3. Test Conditions 4. Test Setup and Equipment Configurations 5. Modulating Capacity Ice Makers 6. Standby Energy Use and Energy Use Associated With Ice Storage 7. Calculations and Rounding Requirements 8. Potable Water Use E. Representations of Energy Use and Energy Efficiency 1. Sampling Plan and Determination of Represented Values 2. Test Sample Value Rounding Requirements 3. Enforcement Provisions F. Test Procedure Costs and Harmonization 1. Test Procedure Costs and Impact 2. Harmonization With Industry Standards G. Effective and Compliance Dates IV. Procedural Issues and Regulatory Review A. Review Under Executive Orders 12866 and 13563 B. Review Under the Regulatory Flexibility Act C. Review Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 D. Review Under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 E. Review Under Executive Order 13132 F. Review Under Executive Order 12988 G. Review Under the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 H. Review Under the Treasury and General Government Appropriations Act, 1999 I. Review Under Executive Order 12630 J. Review Under Treasury and General Government Appropriations Act, 2001 K. Review Under Executive Order 13211 L. Review Under Section 32 of the Federal Energy Administration Act of 1974 M. Congressional Notification N. Description of Materials Incorporated by Reference V. Approval of the Office of the Secretary I. Authority and Background Automatic commercial ice makers (“ACIMs” or “ice makers”) are included in the list of “covered equipment” for which the U.S. Department of Energy (“DOE”) is authorized to establish and amend energy conservation standards and test procedures. (42 U.S.C. 6311(1)(F)) DOE's energy conservation standards and test procedures for ACIMs are currently prescribed at 10 CFR 431.136 and 431.134, respectively. The following sections discuss DOE's authority to establish test procedures for ACIMs and relevant background information regarding DOE's consideration of test procedures for this equipment. A. Authority The Energy Policy and Conservation Act, as amended (“EPCA”), 1 authorizes DOE to regulate the energy efficiency of a number of consumer products and certain industrial equipment. (42 U.S.C. 6291-6317) Title III, Part C 2 of EPCA established the Energy Conservation Program for Certain Industrial Equipment, which sets forth a variety of provisions designed to improve energy efficiency. This equipment includes ACIMs, the subject of this document. (42 U.S.C. 6311(1)(F)) 1 All references to EPCA in this document refer to the statute as amended through the Energy Act of 2020, Public Law 116-260 (Dec. 27, 2020), which reflect the last statutory amendments that impact Parts A and A-1 of EPCA. 2 For editorial reasons, upon codification in the U.S. Code, Part C was redesignated Part A-1. The energy conservation program under EPCA consists essentially of four parts: (1) testing, (2) labeling, (3) Federal energy conservation standards, and (4) certification and enforcement procedures. Relevant provisions of EPCA specifically include definitions (42 U.S.C. 6311), test procedures (42 U.S.C. 6314), labeling provisions (42 U.S.C. 6315), energy conservation standards (42 U.S.C. 6313), and the authority to require information and reports from manufacturers (42 U.S.C. 6316; 42 U.S.C. 6296). The Federal testing requirements consist of test procedures that manufacturers of covered equipment must use as the basis for: (1) certifying to DOE that their equipment complies with the applicable energy conservation standards adopted pursuant to EPCA (42 U.S.C. 6316(a); 42 U.S.C. 6295(s)), and (2) making other representations about the efficiency of that equipment (42 U.S.C. 6314(d)). Similarly, DOE must use these test procedures to determine whether the equipment complies with relevant standards promulgated under EPCA. (42 U.S.C. 6316(a); 42 U.S.C. 6295(s)) Federal energy efficiency requirements for covered equipment established under EPCA generally supersede State laws and regulations concerning energy conservation testing, labeling, and standards. (42 U.S.C. 6316(a) and 42 U.S.C. 6316(b); 42 U.S.C. 6297) DOE may, however, grant waivers of Federal preemption for particular State laws or regulations, in accordance with the procedures and other provisions of EPCA. (42 U.S.C. 6316(b)(2)(D)) Under 42 U.S.C. 6314, EPCA sets forth the criteria and procedures DOE must follow when prescribing or amending test procedures for covered equipment. EPCA requires that any test procedures prescribed or amended under this section must be reasonably designed to produce test results which reflect energy efficiency, energy use, or estimated annual operating cost of a given type of covered equipment during a representative average use cycle (as determined by the Secretary) and requires that test procedures not be unduly burdensome to conduct. (42 U.S.C. 6314(a)(2)) EPCA prescribed the first Federal test procedure for ACIMs, directing that the ACIM test procedure shall be the AHRI Standard 810-2003, “Performance Rating of Automatic Commercial Ice-Makers” (“AHRI Standard 810-2003”). (42 U.S.C. 6314(a)(7)(A)) EPCA requires if AHRI Standard 810-2003 is amended, that DOE must amend the Federal test procedures as necessary to be consistent with the amended AHRI standard, unless DOE determines, by rule, published in the Federal Register and supported by clear and convincing evidence, that to do so would not meet the requirements for test procedures to be representative of actual energy efficiency and to not be unduly burdensome to conduct. (42 U.S.C. 6314(a)(7)(B)(i)) EPCA also requires that, at least once every 7 years, DOE evaluate test procedures for each type of covered equipment, including ACIMs, to determine whether amended test procedures would more accurately or fully comply with the requirements for the test procedures to not be unduly burdensome to conduct and be reasonably designed to produce test results that reflect energy efficiency, energy use, and estimated operating costs during a representative average use cycle. (42 U.S.C. 6314(a)(1)) If the Secretary determines, on her own behalf or in response to a petition by any interested person, that a test procedure should be prescribed or amended, the Secretary shall promptly publish in the Federal Register proposed test procedures and afford interested persons an opportunity to present oral and written data, views, and arguments with respect to such procedures. The comment period on a proposed rule to amend a test procedure shall be at least 60 days and may not exceed 270 days. In prescribing or amending a test procedure, the Secretary shall take into account such information as the Secretary determines relevant to such procedure, including technological developments relating to energy use or energy efficiency of the type (or class) of covered products involved. (42 U.S.C. 6293(b)(2)) If DOE determines that test procedure revisions are not appropriate, DOE must publish its determination not to amend the test procedures. DOE is publishing this final rule in satisfaction of the 7-year review requirement specified in EPCA. (42 U.S.C. 6314(b)(1)) B. Background DOE's existing test procedures for ACIMs appear at title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (“CFR”), part 431, § 431.134. On March 19, 2019 , DOE published a request for information (“RFI”) to solicit comment and information to inform DOE's determination of whether to propose amendments to the current ACIM test procedure. 84 FR 9979 (“March 2019 RFI”). Following the RFI and in consideration of the comments received, DOE published a notice of proposed rulemaking (“NOPR”) on December 21, 2021, to seek feedback on initial proposals. 86 FR 72322 (“December 2021 NOPR”). In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE proposed the following amendments to the test procedure: (1) Updating the referenced methods of test to AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 and ASHRAE Standard 29-2015, except for the provisions as discussed; (2) Including definitions and test requirements for low-capacity ACIMs; (3) Incorporating changes to improve test procedure representativeness, accuracy, and precision, which include: clarifying calorimeter constant test instructions; specifying ambient temperature measurement requirements; establishing a relative humidity test condition; establishing an allowable range of water hardness; clarifying the stability requirements that were updated in ASHRAE Standard 29-2015; clarifying water pressure requirements; and increasing the tolerance on capacity collection time; (4) Specifying certain test settings, conditions, and installations, including: clarifying ice hardness test conditions; clarifying baffle use for testing; amending clearance requirements; clarifying automatic purge control settings; and providing instructions for testing ACIMs with automatic dispensers; (5) Including voluntary provisions for measuring potable water use; (6) Including clarifying language for calculations, rounding requirements, sampling plan calculations, and certification instructions; and (7) Adding language to the equipment-specific enforcement provisions. DOE received comments in response to the December 2021 NOPR from the interested parties listed in Table I.1. Table I.1—List of Commenters With Written Submissions in Response to the December 2021 NOPR Commenter(s) Reference in this final rule Comment No. in the docket Commenter type Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute AHRI 13 Trade Association. Appliance Standards Awareness Project; American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy; Natural Resources Defense Council ASAP, ACEEE, NRDC (Joint Commenters) 15 Efficiency Advocacy Organizations. Hoshizaki America, Inc Hoshizaki 14 Manufacturer. Mile High Equipment Co. DBA Ice-O-Matic Ice-O-Matic (IOM) 11 Manufacturer. Pacific Gas and Electric Company; San Diego Gas and Electric; and Southern California Edison; collectively, the California Investor-Owned Utilities CA IOUs 16 Utilities. Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers AHAM 3 18 Trade Association. A parenthetical reference at the end of a comment quotation or paraphrase provides the location of the item in the public record. 4 3 DOE received AHAM's late comment on September 1, 2022, which was past the comment deadline of February 22, 2022. Although this comment was received 191 days after the close of the comment period, DOE has included the comment and responses in this final rule. AHAM indicated it did not file timely comments on the proposed test procedure because AHAM was not aware that the proposed test procedure included AHAM products in its scope. DOE has determined that AHAM's comments may provide a unique stakeholder perspective not included in other comments received during this rulemaking, and therefore DOE has considered them in this final rule despite the late submission. 4 The parenthetical reference provides a reference for information located in the docket of DOE's rulemaking to develop test procedures for ACIMs. (Docket No. EERE-2017-BT-TP-0006, which is maintained at www.regulations.gov ) The references are arranged as follows: (commenter name, comment docket ID number, page of that document). II. Synopsis of the Final Rule In this final rule, DOE amends the representation provisions, product-specific enforcement provisions, and test procedure for ACIMs as follows: (1) Updating the referenced methods of test to AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 and ASHRAE Standard 29-2015, except for the provisions as discussed; (2) Including definitions and test requirements for low-capacity ACIMs; (3) Incorporating changes to improve test procedure representativeness, accuracy, and precision, which include: clarifying calorimeter constant test instructions; specifying ambient temperature measurement requirements; establishing a relative humidity test condition; clarifying the stability requirements that were updated in ASHRAE Standard 29-2015; and clarifying water pressure requirements; (4) Specifying certain test settings, conditions, and installations, including: clarifying ice hardness test conditions; clarifying baffle use for testing; amending clearance requirements; clarifying automatic purge control settings; and providing instructions for testing ACIMs with automatic dispensers; (5) Including voluntary provisions for measuring potable water use; (6) Including clarifying language for calculations, rounding requirements, sampling plan calculations, and certification instructions; and (7) Adding language to the equipment-specific enforcement provisions. The adopted amendments are summarized in Table II.1 compared to the test procedure provisions prior to the amendment, as well as the reason for the adopted change. Table II.1—Summary of Changes Established in This Final Rule Current DOE approach Amended approach Attribution References industry standard AHRI Standard 810-2007 with Addendum 1 “2007 Standard for Performance Rating of Automatic Commercial Ice Makers” (“AHRI Standard 810-2007”), which refers to ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 29-2009 “Method of Testing Automatic Ice Makers,” (including Errata Sheets issued April 8, 2010 and April 21, 2010), approved January 28, 2009 (“ASHRAE Standard 29-2009”) Updates reference to industry standard AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1, which refers to ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 Adopts latest industry standards. Scope includes ACIMs with capacities between 50 and 4,000 lb/24 h Includes definitions for low-capacity ACIMs and expands test procedure scope to include low-capacity ACIMs with capacity less than or equal to 50 lb/24 h; includes additional instructions to allow for testing low-capacity ACIMs Ensures representative, repeatable, and reproducible measures of performance for ACIMs currently not in scope. Does not specify the ambient & water temperature and water pressure when harvesting ice to be used in determining the ice hardness factor Specifies that the harvested ice used to determine the ice hardness factor must be produced at the Standard Rating Conditions presented in section 5.1.2 of AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 Harmonizes with industry standard; improves representativeness, repeatability, and reproducibility. Does not specify where to measure the temperature of the ice block used to determine the calorimeter constant Specifies that the temperature measurement location must be at approximately the geometric center of the block of ice and that any liquid water on the block of ice must be wiped off the surface prior to placement in the calorimeter Improves representativeness, repeatability, and reproducibility. Capacity measurements begin after the unit has been stabilized All cycles or samples used for the capacity test must meet the stability criteria Clarifies industry test procedure (“TP”) to reduce test burden while maintaining representative results; harmonize with industry standard. Continuous ACIMs shall be considered stabilized when the weights of three consecutive 14.4-minute samples taken within a 1.5-hour period do not vary by more than ±2 percent Continuous ACIMs shall be considered stabilized when the weights of two consecutive 15.0 min ± 2.5 s samples having no more than 5 minutes between the end of a sample and the start of the next sample do not vary more than ±2 percent or 0.055 pounds, whichever is greater Harmonizes with industry TP update. Does not specify relative humidity test condition Adds an average minimum relative humidity test condition of 30.0 percent Improves representativeness, repeatability, and reproducibility. Use of baffles and purge setting addressed in guidance. Incorporates existing guidance into the test procedure; allows for an alternate ambient measurement location instead of shielding the thermocouple and for rear clearances which are less than the required inlet measurement distance Improves representativeness, repeatability, and reproducibility. ACIMs shall be tested with a clearance of 18 inches on all four sides ACIMs shall be tested according to the manufacturer's specified minimum rear clearances requirements, or 3 feet from the rear of the ACIMs, whichever is less; all other sides of the ACIMs and all sides of the remote condensers, if applicable, shall be tested with a minimum clearance of 3 feet or the minimum clearance specified by the manufacturer, whichever is greater Improves representativeness, repeatability, and reproducibility and updates certain requirements to harmonize with industry standard. Does not specify use of weighted/unweighted sensors to measure ambient temperature Specifies that unweighted sensors shall be used for all ambient temperature measurements Improves representativeness, repeatability, and reproducibility. Does not specify how to measure water inlet pressure requirements Specifies that the water pressure shall be measured within 8 inches of the ACIM and within the allowable range within 5 seconds of water flowing into the ACIM Improves representativeness, repeatability, and reproducibility. Does not specify how to collect capacity samples for ACIMs with dispensers Provides instruction to test certain ACIMs with an automatic dispenser with an empty internal bin at the start of the test and to allow for the continuous production and dispensing of ice, with samples collected from the dispenser through a conduit connected to an external bin one-half full of ice In response to waiver. Does not specifically reference potable water usage Includes voluntary reference to potable water use in 10 CFR 431.134 based on AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 Harmonizes with industry standard; improves representativeness, repeatability, and reproducibility. Rounds energy use in multiples of 0.1 kWh/100 lb and harvest rate to the nearest 1 lb/24 h Rounds energy use in multiples of 0.01 kWh/100 lb; rounds harvest rate to the nearest 0.1 lb/24 h for ACIMs with harvest rates of 50 lb/24 h or less Harmonizes with latest industry standard; improves representativeness, repeatability, and reproducibility. Does not specify if intermediate values used in calculations should be rounded Clarifies that the calculations of intermediate values be performed with raw measured data and only the final results be rounded; clarifies that the energy use, condenser water use, and potable water use (if voluntarily measured) be calculated by averaging the calculated values for the three measured samples for each respective metric Improves representativeness, repeatability, and reproducibility. Does not specify how to calculate the percent difference between two measurements Specifies that the percent difference between two measurements be calculated by taking the absolute difference between two measurements and divide by the average of the two measurements Improves representativeness, repeatability, and reproducibility. References “maximum energy use” and “maximum condenser water use” at 10 CFR 429.45, no reference to water use in sampling plan Removes “maximum” from the referenced terms; adds reference to condenser water use in sampling plan Improves clarity. Defines “maximum condenser water use” at 10 CFR 431.132 Modifies the term and definition of “maximum condenser water use” to instead refer to the term “condenser water use” Improves clarity. Defines “cube type ice” at 10 CFR 431.132 Removes “cube type ice” from 10 CFR 431.132; removes reference to cube type ice in the definition of “batch type ice maker” Improves clarity. Does not specify how the represented value of harvest rate for each basic model should be determined based on the test sample The represented value of harvest rate for the basic model is determined as the mean of the harvest rate for each tested unit Improves representativeness, repeatability, and reproducibility. Does not specify rounding requirements for represented values in 10 CFR 429.45 Specifies that represented values determined in 10 CFR 429.45 must be rounded consistent with the test procedure rounding instructions, upon the compliance date of any amended standards Improves representativeness, repeatability, and reproducibility. No equipment-specific enforcement provisions The certified harvest rate will be considered for determination of the energy consumption and condenser water use levels only if the average measured harvest rate is within five percent of the certified harvest rate, otherwise the measured harvest rate will be used to determine the applicable standards Improves clarity. DOE has determined that while the amendments will introduce additional test requirements compared to the current approach, any impact to the measured efficiency of certified ACIMs is expected to be de minimis. For low-capacity ACIMs newly added within scope of the test procedure, testing according to the amended test procedure for purposes of certifications of compliance will not be required until the compliance date of any energy conservation standards for that equipment. However, if a manufacturer chooses to make representations of the energy efficiency or energy use of a low-capacity ACIM, beginning 360 days after publication of the final rule in the Federal Register , the manufacturer will be required to base such representations on the DOE test procedure. (42 U.S.C. 6314(d)(1)) While DOE does not expect that manufacturers will incur additional cost as a result of the amended test procedure, DOE provides a discussion of testing costs in section III.F.1 of this final rule. DOE has also determined that the amended test procedure will not be unduly burdensome to conduct. Discussion of DOE's amendments are addressed in detail in section III of this final rule. The effective date for the amended test procedures adopted in this final rule is 30 days after publication of this document in the Federal Register . Representations of energy use or energy efficiency must be based by testing in accordance with the amended test procedures beginning 360 days after the publication of this final rule. III. Discussion In the following sections, DOE describes the amendments to the test procedures for ACIMs. This reflects DOE's review of the updates to the referenced industry test procedures, the comments received in response to the March 2019 RFI and the December 2021 NOPR, and other relevant information. A. Scope DOE defines automatic commercial ice maker as a factory-made assembly (not necessarily shipped in 1 package) that: (1) consists of a condensing unit and ice-making section operating as an integrated unit, with means for making and harvesting ice and (2) may include means for storing ice, dispensing ice, or storing and dispensing ice. 10 CFR 431.132 (see also, 42 U.S.C. 6311(19)) The current DOE test procedure for ACIMs applies to both batch type and continuous type ice makers 5 with harvest rates between 50 and 4,000 lb/24 h. DOE further subdivides the batch type and continuous type equipment ACIM categories into several distinct equipment classes based on the equipment configuration, condenser cooling method, and harvest rate in pounds per 24 hours (lb/24 h), as shown in Table III.1. See also, 10 CFR 431.136(c) and (d). ACIM configurations include ice-making heads, remote condensing equipment (both with and without a remote compressor), and self-contained equipment. Ice-making heads and self-contained equipment can be either air- or water-cooled; however, DOE prescribes standards only for remote condensing equipment that are air-cooled. Self-contained ACIMs include a means for storing ice, while ice-making heads and remote condensing equipment are typically paired with separate ice storage bins. At 10 CFR 431.132, DOE defines these configurations, as well as several metrics related to ACIMs. 5 A batch type ice maker is defined as an ice maker that has alternate freezing and harvesting periods, including ACIMs that produce cube type ice and other batch technologies. 10 CFR 431.132. Batch type ice makers also produce tube type ice and fragmented ice. A continuous type ice maker is defined as an ice maker that continually freezes and harvests ice at the same time. Id. Continuous type ice makers primarily produce flake and nugget ice. Table III.1—Summary of ACIM Equipment Classes Equipment configuration Condenser cooling fluid Ice-making mechanism Harvest rate (lb/24 h) Ice-Making Head Water Batch <300. ≥300 and <850. ≥850 and <1,500. ≥1,500 and <2,500. ≥2,500 and <4,000. Continuous <801. ≥801 and >2,500. ≥2,500 and >4,000. Air Batch <300. ≥300 and >800. ≥800 and <1,500. ≥1,500 and <4,000. Continuous <310. ≥310 and >820. ≥820 and <4,000. Remote-Condensing (but not remote compressor) Air Batch <988. ≥988 and <4,000. Continuous <800. ≥800 and <4,000. Remote-Condensing and Remote Compressor Air Batch <930. ≥930 and <4,000. Continuous <800. ≥800 and <4,000. Self-Contained Water Batch <200. ≥200 and <2,500. ≥2,500 and <4,000. Continuous <900. ≥900 and <2,500. ≥2,500 and <4,000. Air Batch <110. ≥110 and <200. ≥200 and <4,000. Continuous <200. ≥200 and <700. ≥700 and <4,000. The regulatory and statutory definitions of ACIM are not limited by harvest rate ( i.e., capacity). ( See 10 CFR 431.132 and 42 U.S.C. 6311(19), respectively) However, the scope of DOE's test procedure is limited explicitly to ACIMs with capacities between 50 and 4,000 lb/24 h. 10 CFR 431.134(a). DOE is aware of ACIMs available in the market with harvest rates less than or equal to 50 lb/24 h (hereafter referred to as “low-capacity ACIMs”). DOE had previously considered test procedures for low-capacity ACIMs in a December 16, 2014, NOPR for test procedures for miscellaneous refrigeration products (“MREFs”). 79 FR 74894 (“December 2014 MREF Test Procedure NOPR”). 6 In a supplemental notice of proposed determination regarding miscellaneous refrigeration products coverage, DOE noted that a working group established to consider test procedures and standards for miscellaneous refrigeration products made two observations: (1) ice makers are fundamentally different from the other product categories considered as miscellaneous refrigeration products; and (2) ice makers are covered as commercial equipment and there is no clear differentiation between consumer and commercial ice makers. 81 FR 11454, 11456 (Mar. 4, 2016). In a 2016 final rule, DOE determined that ice makers were significantly different from the other product categories considered, and ice makers were not included in the scope of coverage or test procedure for miscellaneous refrigeration products. 81 FR 46773 (July 18, 2016). 6 Available at www.regulations.gov/document?D=EERE-2013-BT-TP-0029-0011. As discussed, EPCA defines “covered equipment” to include certain types of “industrial equipment,” including automatic commercial ice makers. 42 U.S.C. 6311(1). EPCA defines “industrial equipment” to mean equipment, including automatic commercial ice makers, (1) which in operation consumes, or is designed to consume, energy, (2) which, to any significant extent, is distributed in commerce for industrial or commercial use; and (3) which is not a “covered product” as defined in 42 U.S.C. 6291(a)(2), other than a component of a covered product with respect to which there is in effect a determination under 42 U.S.C. 6312(c); without regard to whether such article is in fact distributed in commerce for industrial or commercial use. 42 U.S.C. 6311(2). As discussed, the regulatory and statutory definitions of ACIM are not limited by harvest rate (s ee 10 CFR 431.132 and 42 U.S.C. 6311(19), respectively) and low-capacity ACIMs are not a covered product as defined in 42 U.S.C. 6291-6292. DOE has determined that low-capacity ACIMs are, to a significant extent, distributed in commerce for commercial use. DOE reviewed the low-capacity ACIM market and found that manufacturers specifically market certain low-capacity ACIMs for commercial use and/or using commercial air and water ambient rating conditions ( i.e., 90 °F air temperature and 70 °F water temperature which are the same air and water ambient rating conditions used in DOE's test procedures for ACIMs currently prescribed at 10 CFR 431.134) 7 and distributors sell low-capacity ACIMs for commercial use. 8 As such, notwithstanding that low-capacity ACIMs may also be distributed in commerce for personal use or consumption by individuals, low-capacity ACIMs meet the definition of “industrial equipment” and therefore are covered under the EPCA definition of “covered equipment.” 7 See www.scotsman-ice.com/service/Specs%20Sheets/2017/SIS-SS-CU0415_0117%20LR.pdf, http://www.hoshizaki.com/docs/color-specs/AM-50BAJ-(AD)DS.pdf, http://www.hoshizaki.com/docs/color-specs/IM-50BAA-Q.pdf, http://www.hoshizaki.com/docs/color-specs/C-80BAJ-(AD)DS.pdf, https://www.manitowocice.com/asset/?id=qsoqru®ions=us&prefLang=en, https://www.scotsman-ice.com/service/Specs%20Sheets/2018/SIS-SS-CU-CU50_0118%20LR.pdf, https://iom-stage.azurewebsites.net/getattachment/b06fdb7c-aaaa-4e5b-b5a6-b091e657a0d3/UCG060A-Spec-Sheet, and https://www.summitappliance.com/catalog/model/BIM44GCSS. 8 See www.katom.com/cat/countertop-ice-makers.html?brand=Danby, https://www.katom.com/cat/undercounter-ice-makers.html?suggested_use=Commercial&production_range_lb%2Fday=1%20-%2099%20lbs, https://www.ckitchen.com/313767/ice-machine-with-bin.html?filter=type-of-cooling:air-cooled;4-hr-production:10-50lbs, https://www.webstaurantstore.com/13283/undercounter-ice-machines.html?filter=24-hour-ice-yield:38~102-pounds, and www.staples.com/ice+maker/directory_ice%2520maker. In the December 2014 MREF Test Procedure NOPR, DOE stated it is aware that manufacturers are using the DOE ACIM test procedure to represent the energy use of consumer ice makers ( i.e., low-capacity ACIMs). 79 FR 74894, 74916. DOE also stated that it is unaware of any test procedure that has been specifically developed for consumer ice makers ( i.e., low-capacity ACIMs). Id. In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE proposed a test procedure for low-capacity ACIMs and requested comment on the proposal to include test procedure provisions for low-capacity ACIMs within the scope of the ACIM test procedure. 86 FR 72322,72328. In response to the December 2021 NOPR, the Joint Commenters responded that there are many low-capacity models on the market, and these units currently are not subject to DOE efficiency standards or test procedures. (Joint Commenters, No. 15, p. 1) The CA IOUs and the Joint Commenters expressed support for DOE's proposal to include ACIMs with daily harvest rates below 50 lb/day into the scope of the test procedure, with the Joint Commenters adding that this will ensure any manufacturer claims about capacity and efficiency will be based on standardized test procedures to help purchasers make informed choices. (CA IOUs, No. 16, p. 1; Joint Commenters, No. 15, p. 1) The CA IOUs stated that they believe extending the scope of the test procedure to low-capacity ice makers is a reasonable first step to a future rulemaking to set minimum energy efficiency standards for these low-capacity ACIM units. (CA IOUs, No. 16, p. 1) Hoshizaki and AHRI stated that they do not agree with adding provisions for low-capacity ACIMs. (Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 1; AHRI, No. 13, p. 2) AHAM stated that they do not agree with adding provisions for low-capacity ACIMs to the extent that they include consumer or residential ice makers. (AHAM, No. 18, p. 2) IOM stated that it supports the goal of developing an industry standard to allow for the consistent testing of low-capacity ACIMs.. (IOM, No. 11, p. 1) However, IOM, AHRI, and Hoshizaki stated that such a standard should be developed by an industry organization (ASHRAE 29 or AHRI 810) to determine proper methodology for consistent testing. (IOM, No. 11, p. 1; AHRI, No. 13, p. 2; Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 1) AHAM stated that DOE first examined establishing coverage for consumer stand-alone ice makers as part of the rulemaking to establish coverage for miscellaneous refrigeration products. (AHAM, No. 18, p. 2) AHAM noted that, per the recommendation of an Appliance Standards Rulemaking Advisory Committee (ASRAC) working group and its agreed-upon term sheet, DOE declined to cover consumer stand-alone ice makers as part of that rulemaking with the stated reasoning that those products were too different from the other products over which DOE was proposing to establish coverage under the miscellaneous refrigeration product category. Id. AHAM noted that the ASRAC stakeholders never suggested or determined that the difference between stand-alone small capacity ice makers and other miscellaneous refrigeration products was that ice makers were commercial equipment. (AHAM, No. 18, p. 3) AHAM stated that consumer stand-alone ice makers are not automatic commercial ice makers. Id. AHAM stated that Congress intended to include only commercial products under the scope of “automatic commercial ice makers” as demonstrated by the word “commercial” and did not intend to cover residential/consumer products. Id. AHAM stated that, in EPCA, automatic commercial ice makers are included in 42 U.S.C. Part A-1 for “Certain Industrial Equipment”, not Part A, which is for “Consumer Products other than Automobiles”. Id. AHAM stated that automatic commercial ice makers fall under the EPCA definition of “covered equipment” which means that, as a threshold matter, it is a type of “industrial equipment”. Id. AHAM commented that DOE's guidance states that “consumer products and industrial equipment are mutually exclusive categories. An appliance model can only be considered commercial under the Act if it does not fit the definition of `consumer product' ”. 9 (AHAM, No. 18, p. 4) AHAM states that stand-alone ice makers that are capable of making 50 pounds per day or less more squarely fit under DOE's definition of a consumer product and that residential ice makers that fit under the counter or on the countertop are regularly distributed in commerce for personal use or consumption by individuals. (AHAM, No. 18, p. 3) 9 See https://www1.eere.energy.gov/buildings/appliance_standards/pdfs/cce_faq.pdf. AHAM commented that there are several distinguishing design features or characteristics of stand-alone or under-counter ice makers with low capacities including: space constraints, ice quality ( i.e., clear, cubed ice or nugget type ice), countertop designs (portable ice makers only), lack of connection to the water supply (portable ice makers only), infrequent and low ice usage, different durability requirements, different sanitary considerations, lack of requirement for National Sanitation Foundation (“NSF”) certifications/listings, different manufacturer warranties, and different safety standards ( i.e., Underwriters' Laboratories (“UL”) 60335-2-89, Particular Requirements for Commercial Refrigerating Appliances and Ice makers with an Incorporated or Remote Refrigerant Unit or Motor-Compressor and UL 60335-2-24, Particular Requirements for Refrigerating Appliances, Ice-Cream Appliances, and Ice Makers). (AHAM, No. 18, p. 4-6) Hoshizaki commented that repeatability is key with low-production models where one cube or chunk could cause the test to be out of tolerance. (Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 1) Hoshizaki stated that a very low-production machine could have 31% stability swings and could prove impossible to meet the stability threshold in the ASHRAE 29 test. Id. In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE also requested comment on whether there are any industry test procedures for testing and rating low-capacity ACIMs, specifically asking about features specific to low-capacity ACIMs that might need addressed to produce results representative of an average use cycle. 86 FR 72322,72328. Hoshizaki, AHRI, and AHAM commented they are not aware of any test procedures for low-capacity ice makers. (Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 1; AHRI, No. 13, p. 2; AHAM, No. 18, p. 8) AHRI and Hoshizaki added that a study would be needed to determine a repeatable process to accurately represent ice capacity and energy use. Id. AHRI recommended DOE bring this to the ASHRAE Standard Project Committee (“SPC”) 29 for consideration. (AHRI, No. 13, p. 2) As stated in the December 2021 NOPR, the energy performance of low-capacity ACIMs are typically either not specified or based on the existing ACIM industry test procedures. 86 FR 72322,72328. However, the lack of a DOE test procedure could allow for manufacturers to make performance claims using other unknown test procedures, which could result in inconsistent ratings from model to model. Id. DOE is still unaware of an industry test procedure for testing and rating low-capacity ACIMs. Manufacturers continue to use the DOE ACIM test procedure to represent the energy use of low-capacity ACIMs or do not specify the energy use. DOE acknowledges the comments regarding including low-capacity ACIMs within scope of industry test standards and will consider any updated industry test standards, if available, during future ACIM test procedure rulemakings. DOE discusses stability requirements for low-capacity ACIMs in section III.D.1 of this final rule. In response to AHAM's comments regarding low-capacity ACIMs, as previously stated, EPCA defines “industrial equipment” to mean equipment (1) which in operation consumes, or is designed to consume, energy, (2) which, to any significant extent, is distributed in commerce for industrial or commercial use; and (3) which is not a “covered product” as defined in 42 U.S.C. 6291(a)(2), other than a component of a covered product with respect to which there is in effect a determination under 42 U.S.C. 6312(c); without regard to whether such article is in fact distributed in commerce for industrial or commercial use. 42 U.S.C. 6311(2). DOE has determined that low-capacity ACIMs (1) consume energy; (2) are, to a significant extent, distributed in commerce for commercial use; and (3) are not covered products. As such, notwithstanding that low-capacity ACIMs may also be distributed in commerce for personal use or consumption by individuals, low-capacity ACIMs meet the definition of “industrial equipment” and therefore are covered under the EPCA definition of “covered equipment.” DOE has determined that establishing a test procedure for low-capacity ACIMs will allow purchasers to make more informed decisions regarding the performance of low-capacity ACIMs. DOE is amending the scope of the ACIM test procedure to include all automatic commercial ice makers with capacities up to 4,000 lb/24 h ( i.e., to include within the scope of the test procedure, low-capacity ACIMs with a harvest rate less than 50 lb/24 h). Under the amended test procedure, were a manufacturer to choose to make representations of the energy efficiency or energy use of a low-capacity ACIM, beginning 360 days after publication of the final rule in the Federal Register , manufacturers would be required to base such representations on the DOE test procedure. (42 U.S.C. 6314(d)(1)) B. Definitions As noted, 10 CFR 431.132 provides definitions concerning ACIMs. DOE adds new definitions to support test procedure amendments elsewhere in this document, as discussed in the following paragraphs. 1. Refrigerated Storage ACIM Typical self-contained ACIMs have an ice storage bin that is insulated but provides no active refrigeration. As a result, the ice melts at a certain rate and the ice maker must periodically replenish the melted ice. Conversely, some self-contained low-capacity ACIMs feature a refrigerated storage bin that prevents melting of the stored ice. Because of the additional refrigeration system components, ACIMs with a refrigerated storage bin ( i.e., refrigerated storage ACIMs) have different energy use characteristics than ACIMs without refrigerated storage. In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE proposed to define “refrigerated storage automatic commercial ice maker” as an automatic commercial ice maker that has a refrigeration system that actively refrigerates the self-contained storage bin in 10 CFR 431.132 for refrigerated storage ACIMs. 86 FR 72322, 72328. In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE requested comment on the proposed definitions for refrigerated storage automatic commercial ice maker. 86 FR 72322, 72328. In response to the December 2021 NOPR, Hoshizaki commented that it is not aware of any standard, self-contained refrigerated storage commercial ice makers. (Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 1) AHRI commented it was unable to categorize this equipment class with the information provided and would appreciate clarification on this equipment class and the desired intent behind its potential inclusion. (AHRI, No. 13, p. 2) Hoshizaki additionally requested examples of this product, and requested that this be addressed in AHRI 810 and ASHRAE 29 for definition. (Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 1) As stated in the December 2021 NOPR, DOE included a definition of refrigerated storage ACIMs to effectively differentiate refrigerated storage ACIMs from ACIMs with unrefrigerated storage bins, and to support the proposed test provisions for refrigerated storage ACIMs. 86 FR 72322, 72328. An example of a refrigerated storage ACIM is the Whynter UIM-155. 10 To clarify and provide more information on the scope of the refrigerated storage ACIM definition, DOE has added “ice” to the definition to differentiate refrigerated storage ACIMs from other refrigeration equipment that is not intended only for ice storage, so the phrase at the end of the definition reads “self-contained ice storage bin”. 10 See www.whynter.com/product/uim-155/. DOE will consider any updated industry standards, if available, during future ACIM test procedure rulemakings. DOE is modifying the definition of refrigerated storage automatic commercial ice maker in this final rule. 2. Portable ACIM Some low-capacity ACIMs are “portable” and do not require connection to water supply plumbing to operate. Instead, these units contain a reservoir that the user manually fills with water prior to operation and must refill when it becomes empty. In the December 2014 MREF Test Procedure NOPR, DOE proposed to define “portable ice maker” as an ice maker that does not require connection to a water supply and instead has one or more reservoirs that would be manually supplied with water. 79 FR 74894, 74916. DOE noted that the lack of a fixed water connection and the small size of these units contribute to their portability. Id. DOE did not receive comments on the proposed definition for portable ice makers in response to the December 2014 MREF Test Procedure NOPR. In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE proposed a definition for a portable ice maker as proposed in the December 2014 MREF Test Procedure NOPR, but with additional specification that ACIMs with an optional connection to a water supply line would not be considered portable ACIMs ( i.e., a unit would be considered portable if the water supplied to the unit is only via one or more reservoirs). 86 FR 72322, 72328. DOE proposed to define “portable automatic commercial ice maker” as an automatic commercial ice maker that does not have a means to connect to a water supply line and has one or more reservoirs that are manually supplied with water in 10 CFR 431.132. Id. In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE requested comment on the proposed definition for portable automatic commercial ice maker. Id. In response to the December 2021 NOPR, AHRI commented that the proposed definitions seemed reasonable. (AHRI, No. 13, p. 2-3) However, Hoshizaki and AHRI requested that DOE work with AHRI and ASHRAE to add this definition in both AHRI 810 and ASHRAE 29. (Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 1-2; AHRI, No. 13, p. 2-3) AHAM stated that portable ice makers are designed to fit on the countertop and rely on a reservoir instead of being plumbed into the water supply. (AHAM, No. 18, p.4) The CA IOUs commented on two types of portable ACIMs: portable drawer ice machines and portable bin ice machines. (CA IOUs, No. 16, p. 3) The CA IOUs commented that portable drawer ice machines are designed without a door, and the ice drops directly from the evaporator into a drawer. Id. The CA IOUs stated that in this design, the user does not have to open a door to access the drawer. Id. The CA IOUs commented that portable bin ice machines are similar to traditional self-contained machines where the evaporator is in the bin itself; however, the evaporator uses a pipe trickle design to create semi-hollow or gourmet ice. Id. The CA IOUs noted that water can be filled directly into the evaporator in the portable bin ice machines, but both portable drawer and portable bin low-capacity ice machine designs can reuse ice-melt water to feed the evaporator. Id. DOE notes that the proposed definition of portable automatic commercial ice maker does not distinguish between portable ACIMs with and without doors. DOE has also not identified any need to differentiate between these portable ACIM configurations for the purposes of testing. Therefore, all portable ACIMs would be included under this definition and any further categorization of portable ACIM equipment classes could be investigated in any energy conservation standards rulemaking for portable ACIMs. DOE is maintaining the definition of portable automatic commercial ice maker in this final rule, consistent with the December 2021 NOPR. 3. Industry Standard Definitions In addition to the definitions specified at 10 CFR 431.132, the current DOE test procedure at 10 CFR 431.134 references section 3, “Definitions” of AHRI Standard 810-2007, which includes many of the same terms DOE defines at 10 CFR 431.132 and 31.134. In the December 2021 NOPR, to avoid potential confusion regarding multiple definitions of similar terms, DOE proposed to clarify in 10 CFR 431.134 that where definitions in AHRI Standard 810 conflict with those in DOE's regulations, the DOE definitions take precedence. 86 FR 72322, 72328-72329. AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 updated its definition of “Energy Consumption Rate” to require expressing the rate in multiples of 0.01 kWh/100 lb of ice. To maintain consistency with the industry standard, DOE proposed to incorporate this same rounding requirement in its definition of “Energy use” at 10 CFR 431.132 instead of the current requirement of multiples of 0.1 kWh/100 lb of ice. 86 FR 72322, 72328. AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 also deleted its definition of “Cubes Type Ice Maker” and replaced it with a definition of “Batch Type Ice-Maker.” 86 FR 72322, 72328. To be consistent with this industry update, DOE proposed to remove the reference to cubes type ice maker in the definition of “batch type ice maker” in 10 CFR 431.132. Id. DOE also proposed to remove “cube type ice” from the list of DOE definitions at 10 CFR 431.132, consistent with the industry standard update. 86 FR 72322, 72329. In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE requested comment on its proposal to amend 10 CFR 431.132 to revise the previously described definitions, consistent with updates to AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1, additionally requesting feedback on the proposed clarification that the DOE definitions take precedence over any conflicting industry standard definitions. 86 FR 72322, 72329. Hoshizaki agreed with this proposal, but requested that AHRI 810, ASHRAE 29, and 10 CFR 431.132 definitions be consistent. (Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 2) AHRI commented that the proposed definitions seemed reasonable, but stated that this should go to ASHRAE SPC 29 and AHRI standard 810 for consideration and inclusion. (AHRI, No. 13, p. 2-3) DOE is amending 10 CFR 431.132 to revise the previously described definitions in this final rule. These updates are consistent with updates in the current industry standard AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1. DOE is also maintaining in this final rule the clarification that the DOE definitions take precedence over any conflicting industry standard definitions, consistent with the December 2021 NOPR. The following section discusses additional updates included in the latest versions of the industry standards. C. Industry Test Standards Incorporated by Reference The existing DOE ACIM test procedure incorporates by reference AHRI Standard 810-2007 and ASHRAE Standard 29-2009. 10 CFR 431.134(b). Since publication of the January 11, 2012 test procedure final rule (“January 2012 final rule”), both AHRI and ASHRAE have published new versions of the referenced standards. 77 FR 1591. The most recent versions are AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 and ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 (reaffirmed in 2018). DOE has reviewed the most recent versions of both AHRI Standard 810 and ASHRAE Standard 29 and has compared the updated versions of these industry standards to those currently incorporated by reference in the ACIM test procedure. The updates in ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 provide additional specificity to several aspects of the test method. In general, these updates increase the precision and improve the repeatability of the test method, but do not fundamentally change the testing process, conditions, or results. In addition, ASHRAE made several grammatical, editorial, and formatting changes to improve the clarity of the test method. DOE summarizes these changes in Table III.2. Table III.2—Summary of Changes Between ASHRAE Standard 29-2009 and ASRHAE Standard 29-2015 Requirement ASHRAE standard 29-2009 ASHRAE standard 29-2015 Test Room Operations None No changes to the test room shall be made during operation of the ice maker under test that would impact the vertical ambient temperature gradient or the ambient air movement. Temperature Measuring Instruments Accuracy of ±1.0 °F and resolution of ≤2.0 °F Accuracy and resolution of ±1.0 °F; where accuracy greater than ±1.0 °F, the resolution shall be at least equal to the accuracy requirement. Harvest Water Collection None Harvest water shall be captured by a non-perforated pan located below the perforated pan. Ice Collection Container Specifications “Perforated pan, bucket, or wire basket” and “non-perforated pan or bucket.” Requirements regarding water retention weight and perforation size for perforated pans and “solid surface” for non-perforated pans. Pressure Measuring Instruments None Accuracy of and resolution of ±2.0 percent of the quantity measured. Sampling Rate None Maximum interval between data samples of 5 sec. Supply Water Temperature and Pressure ±1 °F (water supply temperature). ±1 °F (water supply temperature) and “within 8 in. of the ice maker . . . within the specified range” (water pressure) during water fill interval. Inlet Air Temperature Measurement Measure a minimum of 2 places, centered 1 ft from the air inlet(s) Measure at a location geometrically center to the inlet area at a distance 1 ft from each inlet. Clearances 18 inches on all sides 3 ft or the minimum clearance allowed by the manufacturer, whichever is greater. Stabilization Criteria Three consecutive 14.4 min samples (continuous) taken within a 1.5 hr period or two consecutive batches (batch) do not vary by more than ±2 percent Two consecutive 15.0 min ± 2.5 sec samples taken within 5 mins of each other within 2 percent or 0.055 lbs (continuous) or calculated 24-hour ice production rate from two consecutive batches within ±2 percent or 2.2 lb (batch). Capacity Test Ice Collection Three consecutive 14.4 min samples (continuous) or batches (batch) Specifies that batch ice must be weighed 30 ± 2.5 sec after collection and continuous ice samples must be within 5 mins of each other. Calorimetry Testing (1) Room temperature is not specified. (2) To determine the calorimeter constant, 30 lbs of water must be added. (3) Rate of stirring is described as “vigorously”. (4) To determine the calorimeter constant, 6 lbs of ice must be added. (5) The block of ice is seasoned at room temperature. A temperature measurement location is not specified for the block of ice. (6) To determine the calorimeter constant, it is not explicitly stated to continue stirring for 15 minutes after the ice has melted. (7) The calorimeter constant shall be determined twice, at the beginning and at the end of the daily tests. (8) The calorimeter constant shall be no greater than 1.02. (1) Room temperature shall be within 65-75°F during the entire procedure. (2) To determine the calorimeter constant, add a quantity of water 5 times the mass of ice (see #4 below). (3) Rate of stirring is to be 1 ± 0.5 revolutions/second. (4) To determine the calorimeter constant, add a mass of ice between 50-200% of the rated ice production for a period of 15 minutes of the ice maker to be tested, or 6 lbs, whichever is less. (5) The block of pure ice must reach an equilibrium temperature measured by a thermocouple embedded in the interior of the block and free of trapped water. (6) To determine the calorimeter constant, continue stirring for 15 minutes after ice has disappeared. (7) The calorimeter constant shall be determined, at a minimum, each time the temperature measuring and weighting instruments are calibrated or if there is a change to the container or stirring apparatus. (8) The calorimeter constant must be within 1.0-1.02. (9) To determine the net cooling effect, stir the water for 15 minutes prior to the addition of the harvested ice. (10) Section 7.2.4 specifies that the ice sample used for calorimetry testing shall be intercepted using a non-perforated container, precooled to ice temperature, and collected from a stabilized ice maker over a time period of 15 min or until 6 lbs has been captured. (9) To determine the net cooling effect, the water must stand in the calorimeter for 1 min before adding harvested ice. (10) Section 7.2.3 specifies that the ice sample used for calorimetry testing shall be intercepted in a manner similar to that prescribed in section 7.2.2 (7.2.2 reads: Record the required data (see section 8).), except that the sample size shall be suitable for the test. Recorded Data Specifies 7 discrete elements be recorded Specifies that ambient temperature gradient (at rest), maximum air-circulation velocity (at rest), and water pressure must also be recorded. DOE also reviewed the updates to AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 and identified the following revisions: new definitions for, among others, ice hardness factor and potable water use rate; and an updated rounding requirement for energy consumption rate (from 0.1 kilowatt hours per 100 pounds (“kWh/100 lb”) to 0.01 kWh/100 lb). The changes to AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 are primarily clerical in nature and provide greater consistency in the use of terms and specific definitions for those terms. DOE also compared the latest version of ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 to the requirements in the current DOE test procedure in 10 CFR 431.134. These test methods specify different conditions for calorimetry testing of continuous ice makers. Specifically, the current DOE test procedure requires an ambient air temperature of 70 ± 1 °F, with an initial water temperature of 90 ± 1 °F. 10 CFR 431.134(b)(2)(ii). ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 states in appendix A3 that room temperature shall be kept between 65 °F and 75 °F, and that the water temperature is 20 °F ± 1 °F above room temperature. In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE tentatively determined that the current ambient and water condition requirements for calorimetry testing in the DOE test procedure are appropriate because they provide more precise and repeatable measurements than the tolerances described in ASHRAE Standard 29-2015. 86 FR 72322, 72331. Additionally, manufacturers have been meeting the requirements to maintain 70 °F ± 1 °F ambient air temperature and 90 °F ± 1 °F initial water temperature for calorimetry testing as part of the current DOE test procedure in 10 CFR 431.134. The current DOE test approach also is consistent with the industry test standard requirements, i.e., a test performed at the DOE-required temperature conditions meets the temperature conditions specified in ASHRAE Standard 29-2015. Therefore, in the December 2021 NOPR, DOE did not propose to amend the 70 °F ± 1 °F ambient air temperature and 90 °F ± 1 °F initial water temperature requirements for calorimetry testing. 86 FR 72322, 72331. DOE proposed to explicitly provide that the harvested ice used to determine the ice hardness factor be produced at the Standard Rating Conditions specified in section 5.2.1 of AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1. Id. These conditions are provided in the industry standard, indicating that they are currently used by manufacturers and therefore this clarification would not change how manufacturers test. Additionally, added specificity may be needed to accurately determine the calorimeter constant. DOE has found that the lack of specificity as to the location of the temperature measurement of the block of pure ice may lead to variation in the resulting calorimeter constant. Therefore, in the December 2021 NOPR, DOE proposed to specify that the block of pure ice, as specified in section A2.e of ASHRAE Standard 29-2015, is measured by a thermocouple embedded at approximately the geometric center of the interior of the block. 86 FR 72322, 72331. Furthermore, DOE proposed to specify that any liquid water present on the block of ice must be wiped off the surface of the block before placing the block into the calorimeter. Id. In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE proposed to adopt by reference AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 and ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 (note that AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 refers to ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 and not the 2018 re-affirmed version) as the basis for DOE's ACIM test procedure, with additional proposed provisions as specified in the December 2021 NOPR. 86 FR 72322, 72331. In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE requested comment on its proposal to maintain the current specifications for ambient air temperature and initial water temperature for calorimetry testing. 86 FR 72322, 72331. DOE additionally requested comment on its proposal to clarify that the harvested ice used to determine the ice hardness factor be collected from the ACIM under test at the Standard Rating Conditions specified in section 5.2.1 of AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1. Id. In response to the December 2021 NOPR, Hoshizaki commented that it does not agree with this change, and requested that any changes to the test procedure be brought to the ASHRAE 29 standard committee for clarification and acceptance. (Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 2) Similarly, AHRI commented that members are not opposed to this change but note that such a change must follow the proper channels and first be incorporated into the ASHRAE 29 method of test before being adopted into federal regulation. (AHRI, No. 13, p. 3) AHAM commented that requiring the ice sample to be used for calorimetry testing be intercepted using a non-perforated container, precooled to ice temperature is not necessary because the measurement of ice sample weight is very quick (about five seconds) and will not reduce the accuracy due to the ice sample melting or evaporating. (AHAM, No. 18, p. 13) AHAM stated that this requirement does not add a large burden, but it is an unnecessary burden. Id. The test approach proposed in the December 2021 NOPR is consistent with the industry test standard requirements and manufacturers have been meeting the requirements to maintain 70 °F ± 1 °F ambient air temperature and 90 °F ± 1 °F initial water temperature for calorimetry testing as part of the current DOE test procedure in 10 CFR 431.134. DOE is maintaining in this final rule the current specifications for ambient air temperature and initial water temperature for calorimetry testing and clarifying that the harvested ice used to determine the ice hardness factor be collected from the ACIM under test at the Standard Rating Conditions specified in section 5.2.1 of AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1. Additionally, DOE requested comment on its proposal to clarify that the temperature of the block of pure ice, as specified in section A2.e. of ASHRAE Standard 29-2015, is measured by a thermocouple embedded at approximately the geometric center of the interior of the block. 86 FR 72322, 72331. DOE also requested comment on its proposal to clarify that any water that remains on the block of ice must be wiped off the surface of the block before placing the ice into the calorimeter. Id. In response to the December 2021 NOPR, Hoshizaki requested that any clarification of wording in ASHRAE 29 be brought to the ASHRAE 29 standard committee for discussion and acceptance. (Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 2) AHRI encouraged DOE to bring any requests for clarification or interpretation to the proper industry working groups for consideration, since consistency and repeatability are of utmost importance to ensure that all original equipment manufacturers (“OEMs”) and testing bodies address these provisions in a constant manner. (AHRI, No. 13, p. 3) The test approach proposed in the December 2021 NOPR is consistent with the industry test standard requirements and would limit variation in determining the calorimeter constant. Therefore, DOE is maintaining these clarifications in this final rule, consistent with the December 2021 NOPR. Additionally, DOE requested comment on its proposal to adopt by reference AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 and ASHRAE Standard 29-2015, except for the provisions for calorimetry testing as discussed previously, for all ACIMs. 86 FR 72322, 72331. Hoshizaki and AHRI agreed to the adoption of AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 and ASHRAE 29-2015. (Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 2; AHRI, No. 13, p. 3) However, Hoshizaki supports adoption of the standards in their entirety with no exceptions, otherwise there is a risk that changes not reflected in the standards will not be realized by testers. (Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 2) Hoshizaki and AHRI requested that any proposed changes be brought before the relevant standard committees for discussion and acceptance. (Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 2) DOE is adopting by reference AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 and ASHRAE Standard 29-2015, except for the additional amendments as specified in this final rule. DOE has determined that the additional amendments are consistent with the test requirements in the industry standards but provide added specificity to limit variation in testing. These modifications are consistent with section 8(c) of 10 CFR part 430, subpart C, appendix A (the “Process Rule”), applicable to ACIMs under 10 CFR 431.4, which states that DOE may adopt industry test procedure standards with modifications, or craft its own procedures as necessary to ensure compatibility with the relevant statutory requirements, as well as DOE's compliance, certification, and enforcement requirements. Additional modifications to the industry standard test methods are discussed in the following sections. D. Additional Amendments As part of this rulemaking, DOE conducted testing to identify whether ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 and AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 could potentially benefit from additional detail and to investigate topics discussed in the March 2019 RFI and December 2021 NOPR. The testing and initial findings are discussed along with any corresponding amendments in the following sections. 1. Low-Capacity ACIMs DOE examined the comments received in response to the December 2014 MREF Test Procedure NOPR to consider what test method would be appropriate for low-capacity ACIMs. During the December 2014 MREF Test Procedure NOPR public meeting, True Manufacturing commented that there are very few differences between ice makers with harvest rates less than 50 lb/24 h and those with harvest rates greater than 50 lb/24 h. (Public Meeting Transcript, No. EERE-2013-BT-TP-0029-0014 at p. 31) Hoshizaki commented in response to the December 2014 MREF Test Procedure NOPR that the ASHRAE 29 test needs to be evaluated for accuracy for units that make less than 50 lb/24 h, as they are outside the listed scope of the standard. (Hoshizaki, No. EERE-2013-BT-TP-0029-0011 at p. 1) In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE evaluated the provisions in its existing ACIM test procedure to determine if any modifications are necessary to ensure the proposed test method would provide representative and repeatable measures of performance for low-capacity ACIMs and would not be unduly burdensome to conduct. 86 FR 72322, 72331. DOE also evaluated the provisions in AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 and ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 to determine their applicability to low-capacity ACIMs. Id. During investigative testing of batch type low-capacity ACIMs, DOE observed that the ice collection container requirements in section 5.5.2(a) of ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 may not be appropriate for this equipment. Section 5.5.2(a) requires that the collection container have a water retention weight that is no more than 1.0 percent of that of the smallest batch of ice for which the container is used. For low-capacity batch type ACIMs, the weight of ice in each batch is significantly lower than for other higher capacity ACIMs. Accordingly, 1.0 percent of an individual batch represents a very small weight for low-capacity ACIMs. For example, one such low-capacity ACIM has a typical batch weight of 0.087 pounds; 1.0 percent of that would be 0.00087 pounds, the equivalent of 0.080 teaspoons of water. The water retention weight of a typical very small collection container is approximately 0.0030 pounds. DOE was not able to identify collection containers that would meet this threshold for the low-capacity ACIMs with the lowest batch weights. From its test sample, DOE determined that a water retention weight of no more than 4.0 percent would allow for testing low-capacity ACIMs with the lowest batch weights with a typical collection container. Accordingly, in the December 2021 NOPR, DOE proposed that the water retention requirement in section 5.5.2(a) not apply to batch type low-capacity ACIMs, and instead to require a water retention weight of no more than 4.0 percent of the smallest batch of ice for which the container is used. 86 FR 72322, 72332. During the January 24, 2022, webinar to discuss the December 2021 NOPR, AHRI commented that the water retention weight requirement for low-capacity ACIMs and DOE's test data should be considered by the method of test committee ( e.g., ASHRAE 29). (AHRI, January 24, 2022, webinar to discuss the December 2021 NOPR 11 ) 11 See pages 19-20; www.regulations.gov/document/EERE-2017-BT-TP-0006-0012. DOE will consider any updated industry standards, if available, during future ACIM test procedure rulemakings. DOE is maintaining that the water retention requirement in section 5.5.2(a) of ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 not apply to batch type low-capacity ACIMs, and instead to require a water retention weight of no more than 4.0 percent of the smallest batch of ice for which the container is used, consistent with the December 2021 NOPR. a. Portable ACIMs For portable ACIMs, DOE has determined that some provisions for measuring and maintaining inlet water conditions in ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 are not appropriate: i.e., sections 5.4, 5.6, 6.2, and 6.3. These sections include instrument specifications, test conditions, and measurement instructions regarding inlet water flow, pressure, and temperature. These sections are not applicable to portable ACIMs because such equipment does not have a fixed water connection, and therefore the conditions in these sections would not provide representative conditions for portable ACIMs. Portable ACIMs instead require that the fill reservoir be manually filled with a maximum volume of water that is recommended by the manufacturer. To determine typical operation and the corresponding need for additional test procedure instructions regarding the water supply for portable ACIMs, DOE conducted tests on portable ACIMs according to the requirements of AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 and ASHRAE Standard 29-2015, except for sections 5.4, 5.6, 6.2, and 6.3 of ASHRAE Standard 29-2015. From this testing, DOE has determined that additional instructions are needed regarding supply water characteristics and filling the water reservoirs in portable ACIMs. Section 5.2.1 of AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 specifies an inlet water temperature of 70.0 °F for ACIM testing. Because portable ACIMs do not have a continuous water supply, the water filled in the water reservoir is not maintained at a constant temperature; the temperature may change after the initial fill based on heat transfer with the ambient air and the other components of the ACIM. Accordingly, DOE has determined that specifying only the initial fill temperature of the water supplied to the reservoir is most representative of typical use. In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE proposed to establish the initial water temperature in a separate external container before transferring the water to the water reservoir. 86 FR 72322, 72332. In DOE's experience, using an external container to establish and verify the initial water temperature is significantly less burdensome than measuring and adjusting the water temperature within the water reservoir itself. Therefore, in the December 2021 NOPR, DOE proposed that the initial water temperature condition be established in an external container and verified by inserting a temperature sensor into approximately the geometric center of the water in the external container. 86 FR 72322, 72332. The initial water temperature would be defined as 70 °F ± 1.0 °F, consistent with the condition as specified in section 5.2.1 of AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 and the tolerance as specified in section 6.2 of ASHRAE Standard 29-2015. Id. Portable ACIM users may have an option of filling the reservoirs to varying levels. To determine the appropriate fill level for testing, DOE reviewed operating instructions for portable ACIMs available from a range of manufacturers. DOE observed that the operating instructions typically instruct the user to fill to the maximum specified level, or to any level up to the maximum. To ensure repeatable and reproducible test results, DOE determined that filling the water reservoir to the maximum volume of water as specified by the manufacturer is representative of typical use. In addition, specifying a consistent fill level for testing at the maximum fill level would limit variability associated with reservoir water temperature and would ensure the portable ACIM has sufficient water to conduct the test. In summary, in the December 2021 NOPR, DOE proposed that portable ACIMs be subject to the test procedure as proposed in the NOPR, except that sections 5.4, 5.6, 6.2, and 6.3 of ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 would not apply. 86 FR 72322, 72332. DOE proposed to provide the following additional test instructions necessary for testing portable ACIMs: ensure that the ice storage bin is empty; fill an external container with water; establish a water temperature in the external container that is consistent with the requirements of section 5.2.1 of AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 and the tolerance specified in section 6.2 of ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 ( i.e., 70 °F ± 1.0 °F); verify the water temperature in the external container by inserting a temperature sensor into approximately the geometric center of the water; after establishing water temperature, immediately transfer the water to the portable ACIM reservoir and fill the reservoir to the maximum level as specified by the manufacturer. Id. DOE also determined that additional instructions are needed for portable ACIMs to meet the requirements of section 6.6 of ASHRAE Standard 29-2015, which requires that “bins shall be used when testing and shall be filled one-half full with ice.” Because section 6.6 of ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 does not specify how the bin would be filled with ice, a laboratory may fill the ice storage bin one-half full of externally produced ice ( i.e., ice that was made by a separate ACIM), for example to avoid waiting for the unit under test to produce enough ice to fill the bin one-half full prior to initiating the start of the test. Using externally produced ice does not directly affect the performance of a non-portable ACIM because the conditions within the ice storage bin do not have a direct impact on the incoming potable water temperature. In contrast, the conditions within the ice storage bin of a portable ACIM do directly impact performance because portable ACIMs typically recycle the melt water (at 32 degrees) from the internal ice storage bin and combine it with water from the reservoir (initially at 70 degrees) to make additional ice. Accordingly, any externally produced ice introduced to a portable ACIM to fill the bin one-half full prior to testing could affect the performance of the system during the test when compared to the tested performance using ice produced by the portable ACIM under test. To limit test variability that could occur due to the introduction of externally produced ice, in the December 2021 NOPR DOE proposed that for portable ACIMs, the ice storage bin must be empty prior to the initial water fill, and the unit under test must be operated to produce ice into the ice storage bin until the bin is one-half full ( i.e., precluding the use of externally produced ice to fill the bin one-half full prior to testing). 86 FR 72322, 72333. DOE proposed to define one-half full as half of the vertical dimension of the storage bin, based on the maximum possible fill level. Id. Once the ice storage bin is one-half full of ice, testing would proceed according to section 7 of ASHRAE Standard 29-2015, consistent with non-portable ACIM testing. Id. In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE requested comment on its proposal regarding reservoir water and ice storage bin instructions for portable ACIMs. 86 FR 72322, 72332-72333. Hoshizaki agreed with the proposal if the portable units have a way to collect the ice in a way not to confuse the ice made in each cycle from the 1/2 full bin. (Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 2-3) Hoshizaki and AHRI requested that this be brought to the ASHRAE 29 standard committee for consideration. (Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 2-3; AHRI, No. 13, p. 3) AHRI commented that consistency and repeatability are of utmost importance to ensure that all manufacturers and testing bodies address these provisions in a constant manner. (AHRI, No. 14, p. 3) AHAM commented that the 70 °F ± 1.0 °F tolerance requirement for the initial water temperature is unnecessarily tight for low-capacity ACIMs, including portable ACIMs, which adds unnecessary test burden. (AHAM, No. 18, p. 10-11) AHAM commented that the test procedure should specify that the water should be stirred to eliminate gradients that would naturally occur because some models recirculate melt water to the reservoir and that, for all low-capacity ACIMs, the temperature of the inlet water will vary throughout the entire test with little effect on the ultimate result. Id. AHAM commented that the DOE's proposed test procedure for portable ACIMs does not specify that the bin should be emptied and dried out before the first 15-minute run, which AHAM suggests may be implicit in the proposed test procedure but should be stated clearly. (AHAM, No. 18, p. 12) DOE notes that, in the December 2021 NOPR, DOE proposed that the ice storage bin is empty prior to the initial potable water reservoir fill and that the initial water temperature of 70 °F ± 1.0 °F for testing portable ACIMs is only required to be verified in an external container immediately before filling the portable ACIM water reservoir. 86 FR 72322, 72332-72333. DOE testing has shown that portable ACIMs are able to have ice collected in a similar manner to non-portable ACIMs which distinguish the ice made in each cycle from the ice already present in the ice storage bin. DOE has additionally determined that the additional provisions regarding reservoir water fill are necessary to allow for testing of portable ACIMs. DOE is maintaining the test requirements as proposed in the December 2021 NOPR for portable ACIMs in this final rule. b. Refrigerated Storage ACIMs DOE has determined that refrigerated storage ACIMs can be tested according to the current DOE ACIM test procedure as well as AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 and ASHRAE Standard 29-2015. DOE investigated whether additional specification was necessary to ensure that these test methods would provide representative and repeatable results for refrigerated storage ACIMs and would not be unduly burdensome to conduct. DOE identified two aspects of refrigerated storage ACIM testing that may need further specification to limit variability: door openings for refrigerated storage ACIMs and refrigeration set point controls. Door opening durations may affect the measured performance of refrigerated storage ACIMs more than non-refrigerated storage ACIMs because the refrigeration system provides cooling for the entire self-contained storage bin rather than only for the ice making evaporator. Thus, when opening the storage container door to collect ice from refrigerated storage ACIMs, some portion of cold air from the storage container will likely be replaced by higher temperature ambient air. Both the duration and the extent of the door opening can contribute to this air exchange within the storage container. Therefore, specifying the duration and the extent of the door opening would limit variability from test to test, thus promoting repeatable and reproducible test results. From investigative testing, DOE has determined that the process of opening the bin door, carefully removing or replacing the ice collection container, and closing the door can be readily performed in under 10 seconds. Therefore, in the December 2021 NOPR, DOE proposed that for refrigerated storage ACIMs, any storage bin door openings shall be conducted with the door in the fully open position for 10 ± 1 seconds. 86 FR 72322, 72333. DOE proposed to specify that “fully open” means opened to an angle of not less than 75 degrees (or to the maximum angle possible, if that is less than 75 degrees), which is consistent with the definition for fully open in ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 72-2018, “Method of Testing Open and Closed Commercial Refrigerators and Freezers.” Id. To ensure a consistent number of door openings, DOE also proposed to specify that door openings would occur only when collecting the ice sample and when returning the empty collection container to the ice storage compartment ( i.e., two separate door openings per sample collection). Id. Refrigeration set point controls may also affect the measured performance of refrigerated storage ACIMs, if the controls can be adjusted by the user to maintain different storage compartment temperatures. DOE investigated whether refrigerated storage ACIMs allow the user to adjust the refrigeration set point of the ACIM and if so, how. DOE reviewed user manuals for several refrigerated storage ACIMs and found that the models either do not allow the user to adjust the refrigeration set point, or have a factory preset temperature control that can be adjusted by the user, but not in an easily accessible manner ( e.g., temperature control screws adjustable only with a screwdriver or accessible behind grilles). The ability to adjust the refrigeration set point on some refrigerated storage ACIMs does not appear to be a setting that users would typically adjust and is likely used only for troubleshooting. Based on this information, DOE proposed in the December 2021 NOPR that the refrigeration set point for testing a refrigerated storage ACIM be consistent with section 4.1.4 of AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 ( i.e., per the manufacturer's written instructions with no adjustment prior to or during the test). 86 FR 72322, 72333. In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE requested comment on its proposal to test refrigerated storage ACIMs consistent with AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1, with the specified proposed door opening duration and frequency. 86 FR 72322, 72333. DOE requested comment on whether a specific refrigeration set point or internal air temperature should be specified instead of the manufacturer's factory preset. Id. In response to the December 2021 NOPR, Hoshizaki and AHRI both requested DOE clarify refrigerated storage ACIMs and share examples before feedback can be given. (Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 3; AHRI, No. 13, p. 4) AHRI commented that ASHRAE 29 does not cover products installed in residential refrigerators or freezers, and if these are the type of systems being referred to as self-contained refrigerated storage ACIMs, the scope of both ASHRAE 29 and the DOE rulemaking would need to be expanded to cover such equipment. (AHRI, No. 13, p. 4) AHRI suggested that DOE clarify the equipment type and bring this issue to ASHRAE SPC 29 for consideration. Id. AHAM commented that DOE's proposed test procedure draws heavily from AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 and ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 that were not developed with residential products in mind. (AHAM, No. 18, p. 9) DOE is not referring to products installed in residential refrigerators or freezers in this Final rule. Refrigerated storage ACIMs are explicitly excluded from the freezer definition at 10 CFR 430.2 and differ from the refrigerator-freezer definition at 10 CFR 430.2 because refrigerated storage ACIMs only produce and store ice in a single compartment. Section III.B.1 provides further clarity and an example of refrigerated storage ACIMs. Because DOE did not receive any comments regarding the refrigerated storage ACIM proposals, DOE is maintaining the test requirements as proposed in the December 2021 NOPR for refrigerated storage ACIMs in this final rule. 2. Stability Criteria The current DOE test procedure, through reference to section 7.1.1 of ASHRAE Standard 29-2009, defines ACIM stability based on the harvest rate. Specifically, continuous type ice makers shall be considered stabilized when the weights of three consecutive 14.4-minute samples taken within a 1.5-hour period do not vary by more than ±2 percent. Batch type ice makers are considered stable when the weights from the samples from two consecutive cycles do not vary by more than ±2 percent. a. Capacity Test Cycles or Samples Section 7.1.1 of ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 revised the stabilization criteria to consider continuous type ice makers stable when the weights of two consecutive 15.0 minute ± 2.5 seconds samples do not vary by more than the greater of ±2 percent, or 0.055 pounds. Section 7.1.1. of ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 specifies that batch type ice makers are considered stable when the 24-hour calculated ice production rate from samples taken from two consecutive cycles do not vary by the greater of ±2 percent or 2.2 pounds. Compared to the 2009 version, ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 added absolute stability criteria of 0.055 lb/15 minutes for continuous equipment and 2.2 lb/24 h for batch equipment. In addition, ASHRAE Standard 29-2009 states that the unit must be stable before the capacity tests are started. This provision was changed in ASHRAE Standard 29-2015, which instead states that the ice maker must be stable for capacity test data to be valid. In application, the stability provision in ASHRAE Standard 29-2009 means that any cycle or sample after the stability criteria is met is valid to be used for the capacity test. DOE notes that the applicability of the stability criteria in ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 could be understood in one of two ways: (1) Unchanged from ASHRAE Standard 29-2009, meaning that any cycle or sample after the stability criteria are met is valid to be used for the capacity test; or (2) the ice production rate for each cycle used for the capacity test relative to any other cycle or sample used for the capacity test must be within the greater of ±2 percent and 2.2 lb/24 h for batch type ice makers, and each sample used for the capacity test must be within the greater of ±2 percent and 0.055 lb/15 mins for continuous ice makers. The second interpretation limits potential variability compared to the first interpretation because it puts specific limits on the variability between cycles and samples to be used for the capacity tests. The difference in the potential interpretations of the stability provisions in ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 could result in variation in capacity ratings. Additionally, the second interpretation limits test burden by not requiring separate cycles for meeting the stability criteria and for testing performance. Under the second interpretation, the same cycles are used to determine stability and performance. In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE proposed to expressly provide that the second interpretation be used for determining stability, such that all cycles or samples used for the capacity test are stable. 86 FR 72322, 72334. DOE does not expect that this proposal would impact ACIM performance as measured under the existing test procedure as it would not substantively change the cycles required for evaluating performance. Id. In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE requested comment on its interpretation of section 7.1.1 of ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 and proposal to require that all cycles or samples used for the capacity test meet the stability criteria. 86 FR 72322, 72334. Hoshizaki agreed that all cycles should meet the stability criteria. (Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 3) AHRI commented that the stability criteria should match the requirements of ASHRAE 29. (AHRI, No. 13, p. 4) AHRI commented that some units vary in performance each cycle due to water dump frequency by design, and DOE should ask the ASHRAE committee for an interpretation if DOE is concerned about ambiguity in ASHRAE 29. (AHRI, No. 13, p. 4) IOM commented that this proposal would take the stabilization criteria further than ASHRAE Standard 29-2009 and ASHRAE Standard 29-2015, requiring that all cycles not differ by more than 2%. (Ice-O-Matic, No. 11, p. 1) IOM added that a dataset with small linear growth (100, 102, and 104 lb/24 hr) would not be considered stabilized under this DOE rule, while it would be considered stabilized under ASHRAE Standard 29-2015. Id. IOM commented that in practice it is not uncommon for units which achieved stabilization under ASHRAE Standard 29-2009 to produce capacity test samples which vary in excess of ±2 percent. Id. IOM stated that because allowable variance during capacity tests is already being reduced by changing from ASHRAE 29-2009 to ASHRAE 29-2015, IOM finds DOE's proposal to further reduce potential variance excessive, and believes it has the potential to increase test burden on manufacturers. Id. IOM generally supported using test cycles to also confirm stability following the requirements for stability as defined in ASHRAE Standard 29-2015. (IOM, No. 11, p. 3) DOE has determined that clarifying the stability criteria specified in ASHRAE 29-2015 will produce test results that are more representative, repeatable, and reproducible. As indicated in the IOM comment, the current ASHRAE 29-2009 approach may introduce potential variability in test results. Additionally, reducing the number of cycles or samples required for the capacity test will reduce test burden by reducing total test time. DOE discusses test burden in section III.F.1 of this final rule. Therefore, DOE is maintaining in this final rule its interpretation of section 7.1.1 of ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 and requirement that all cycles or samples used for the capacity test meet the stability criteria, consistent with the December 2021 NOPR. b. Test Sample Duration Section 7.1.1 of ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 added a requirement that the duration of each sample for continuous type ice makers be 15.0 minutes ±2.5 seconds. DOE testing indicated that removing the plastic pan or bucket within the tolerance of ±2.5 seconds can be difficult depending on the specific test setup ( e.g., removing the container from the ice maker or bin without spilling ice). An increased tolerance would reduce burden on manufacturers to test continuous ice makers, while still sufficiently limiting the variability between samples used for the capacity test to the criteria proposed. In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE proposed to increase the tolerance to collect samples for continuous ice makers from 15.0 minutes ± 2.5 seconds to 15.0 minutes ± 9.0 seconds. 86 FR 72322, 72334. Increasing the tolerance to 9.0 seconds could affect the weight of each sample; however, variability would not increase because the samples used for the capacity test would still need to meet the proposed stability criteria. Id. With the 9-second tolerance, the maximum and minimum allowable collection times would vary by approximately 2 percent, which is consistent with the allowable variation in capacity to determine stability. Id. DOE expected that this proposal would reduce the test burden compared to the ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 approach and would ensure that valid samples can be obtained. Id. Additionally, in the December 2021 NOPR, DOE did not expect that this proposal would affect measured performance as compared to the existing test procedure because the sample collection period as proposed is not substantively different from the existing test procedure approach. Id. In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE requested comment on the proposal to increase the tolerance for continuous ice makers to collect samples to 15.0 minutes ± 9.0 seconds. 86 FR 72322, 72334. In response to the December 2021 NOPR, IOM commented in support of the proposal to increase the tolerance on sample collection for continuous ice makers. (Ice-O-Matic, No. 11, p. 1) Hoshizaki and AHRI commented that they do not agree with the proposed change. (Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 3; AHRI, No. 13, p. 4) Hoshizaki commented such time could impact high-capacity continuous models and have a significant impact on capacity and energy totals, and AHRI added that the proposed changes could impact the output depending on the capacity of the unit. Id. AHRI stated that this proposal could change the integrity of the test and would need further evaluation prior to being considered. Id. AHRI added that the increase to ±9.0 seconds would allow high-capacity units to potentially collect a greater sample and while the test was not designed to be applied to low-capacity machines, the impact of this proposed change could be substantially less. Id. Hoshizaki requests that further discussion be put through the ASHRAE 29 committee. (Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 3) DOE has re-evaluated its proposal and determined that although a greater tolerance would reduce test burden on manufacturers to test continuous ACIMs, the collection duration tolerance in ASHRAE 29-2015 provides a repeatable and reproducible method of test. DOE has determined that the specified tolerance included in ASHRAE 29-2015 demonstrates that manufacturers can meet the specified tolerance without the need for an increased tolerance. Therefore, DOE is declining to allow for a greater collection duration tolerance than the tolerance specified for continuous ACIMs in ASHRAE 29-2015 ( i.e., ±2.5 seconds). c. Low-Capacity ACIM Stability Criterion Section 7.1.1 of ASHRAE 29-2015 includes stabilization requirements, which specify: (1) For continuous ACIMs, collected weights must not vary by more than ±2 percent or 25 g (0.055 lb), whichever is greater; or (2) for batch ACIMs, the calculated 24-hour ice production rates must not vary by more than ±2 percent or 1 kg (2.2 lb), whichever is greater. Based on investigative testing conducted as part of this rulemaking, DOE observed that the absolute stability criteria of 2.2 lb/24 h for batch type ice makers would not necessarily represent stable operation for low-capacity batch ACIMs. DOE conducted a market assessment and observed batch low-capacity ACIMs with harvest rates as low as 7 lb/24 h. Based on this harvest rate of 7 lb/24 h, a 2.2 lb/24 h stability criteria could result in a harvest rate variation of up to 31 percent ( i.e., 2.2 lb/24 h divided by 7 lb/24 h). Because of the potential high variability in the stability criteria for low-capacity ACIMs, DOE proposed in the December 2021 NOPR to not apply the absolute stability criteria specified in ASHRAE 29-2015 to the proposed test procedure for low-capacity ACIMs. 86 FR 72322, 72334. DOE also considered whether applying only the ±2 percent stability criterion would be appropriate for low-capacity ACIMs. Due to the lower overall ice harvest rates, a ±2 percent stability requirement represents much smaller weight variations for low-capacity ACIMs. For example, a 2 percent stability requirement for the 7 lb/24 h model represents a variation of 0.14 lb/24 h, which may be difficult to achieve for low-capacity ACIMs. The ±2 percent stability requirement is also not currently applicable to the lowest capacity ACIMs currently in scope for the DOE test procedure ( i.e., the requirement is 2 percent or 2.2 lb/24 h, whichever is greater). Accordingly, the effective stability requirement for the lowest capacity ACIMs currently in scope is approximately 4 percent ( i.e., 2.2 lb/24 h divided by 50 lb/24 h). In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE determined that applying this same percentage ( i.e., 4 percent) as the low-capacity ACIM stability requirement would be more appropriate than applying either the 2 percent or 2.2 lb/24 h stability requirements currently defined in section 7.1.1 of ASHRAE 29-2015. 86 FR 72322, 72334. DOE observed through testing that low-capacity ACIMs are able to achieve stability based on a 4 percent requirement. Id. Therefore, for consistency (on a percentage basis) with the ASHRAE 29-2015 test requirements for the lowest capacity ACIMs currently in scope and to limit test burden, in the December 2021 NOPR, DOE proposed to require a ±4 percent stability criterion (without an absolute stability criterion) for testing low-capacity ACIMs. 86 FR 72322, 72334. In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE requested comment on the proposal to require that all cycles or samples of low-capacity ACIMs used for the capacity test meet a ±4 percent stability criterion and not be subject to an absolute stability criterion. 86 FR 72322, 72334. In response to the December 2021 NOPR, Hoshizaki and AHRI requested that this proposal be brought to the ASHRAE 29 standard committee with supporting testing to show that this stability is necessary and adequate for these products since currently they are outside of the scope, and that ASHRAE 29 was not developed for low-capacity ACIMs. (Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 3; AHRI, No. 13, p. 4-5) AHRI added that the units should not be allowed to bypass stability requirements currently in the standard simply because the method of test has not been designed to incorporate such units. (AHRI, No. 13, p. 4-5) AHRI commented that members do not currently have testing data to show that 4 percent would be accurate or comparable for this equipment type. Id. AHAM commented in support of the ±4 percent stability criterion for low-capacity ice makers. (AHAM, No. 18, p. 11) AHAM stated that DOE's ACIM energy conservation standards or test procedure need a method to account for this planned variation such that the variation does not penalize manufacturers when the test procedure is used for enforcement purposes. Id. DOE observed from testing of low-capacity ACIMs to support the December 2021 NOPR that a ±4 percent stability criterion is appropriate and ensures representative, repeatable, and reproducible measures of performance for low-capacity ACIMs. A ±4 percent stability criterion is consistent with the absolute stability requirements from ASHRAE 29-2015 for the lowest capacity ACIMs currently in scope ( i.e., 2.2 lb/24 h divided by 50 lb/24 h). A ±4 percent stability criterion does not bypass any requirement because low-capacity ACIMs are not currently subject to the DOE test procedure and are not within the scope of ASHRAE 29-2009 or ASHRAE 29-2015. DOE will consider any updated industry standards, if available, during future ACIM test procedure rulemakings. DOE discusses enforcement provisions for ACIMs in section III.E.3 of this final rule. DOE is maintaining in this final rule the requirement that all cycles or samples of low-capacity ACIMs used for the capacity test meet a ±4 percent stability criterion and not be subject to an absolute stability criterion, consistent with the December 2021 NOPR. 3. Test Conditions The DOE test procedure specifies standard test conditions to ensure that test results reflect energy use during a representative average use cycle and are not unduly burdensome for manufacturers to perform. DOE discusses test conditions, including tolerances and instrumentation accuracies, in the following sections. a. Relative Humidity Variation in the moisture content of ambient air may affect the energy consumption of automatic commercial ice makers. However, neither the current DOE test procedure, nor AHRI Standard 810 (I-P)-2016 with Addendum 1 or ASHRAE Standard 29-2015 include requirements to control for moisture content for testing. In contrast, industry test standards for other refrigeration equipment, such as commercial refrigerators, freezers and refrigerator-freezers (“CRE”) and refrigerated bottled or canned beverage vending machines (“BVMs”), have requirements for the moisture content. In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE presented data from three ACIMs tested at relative humidity levels of 35, 55, and 75 percent at the standard rating conditions to investigate the effect of relative humidity on energy use, as replicated in Table III.3. 86 FR 72322, 72335. The results showed a wide range of impacts on energy use among the three tested units when relative humidity is varied. Id. Test Unit 1 showed less than 1 percent variation in energy use among the three relative humidity test conditions. Id. Whereas, Test Unit 2 showed a 35 percent difference in energy use between the 35 percent and 75 percent relative humidity test conditions. Id. Test Unit 3 showed a 4 percent difference in energy use between the 35 percent and 75 percent relative humidity conditions. Id. DOE stated in the December 2021 NOPR that it was unable to determine why Test Unit 2 showed significantly greater variation in performance compared to the other test units. Id. In summary, these results indicated that for certain ACIM models, relative humidity has a significant impact on measured energy use. Table III.3—Comparison of Energy Use Rates at Different Relative Humidity Test Conditions as Presented in the December 2021 NOPR Test unit Type 35% relative humidity (kWh/100 lb) 55% relative humidity (kWh/100 lb) 75% relative humidity (kWh/100 lb) Difference from 35% relative humidity to 55% relative humidity (%) Difference from 35% relative humidity to 75% relative humidity (%) 1 Batch 8.27 8.28 8.28 +0.2 +0.2 2 Batch 8.47 10.49 11.47 +24 +35 3 Continuous 4.27 Not Tested 4.43 N/A +4 In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE considered relative humidity test conditions for ACIMs by comparing the test conditions required for testing other types of commercial food service equipment, including CRE, BVMs, and refrigerated buffet and preparation tables. 86 FR 72322, 72335. In particular, DOE compared the moisture content level corresponding to the combination of ambient temperature and relative humidity specified for these other equipment types. Id. DOE summarized these test condition requirements along with the proposed relative humidity test condition of 35 percent for ACIMs, as replicated in Table III.4. Id. Table III.4—Comparison of Relative Humidity Test Conditions as Presented in the December 2021 NOPR Equipment type Test standard Ambient temperature (°F) Wet Bulb temperature (°F) Relative humidity (percent) Corresponding moisture content (lbs water vapor/lbs dry air) Commercial Refrigeration Equipment ASHRAE 72-2005† 75.2 64.4 * 55 0.010 Refrigerated Beverage Vending Machines ASHRAE 32.1-2010† 75 No requirement 45 0.008 Refrigerated Buffet and Preparation Tables ASTM Standard F2143-2016 86 No requirement 35 0.009 Automatic Commercial Ice Makers Proposed 90 No requirement ** 35 0.011 * The relative humidity for commercial refrigeration equipment is calculated from the dry bulb temperature and the wet bulb temperature using a pressure of 760 mm of mercury. ** Proposed test condition. † The test conditions currently incorporated by refence in the DOE test procedures are unchanged in the most recent versions of the industry standards, ASHRAE 72-2018 and ASHRAE 32.1-2017. Based on these considerations, DOE proposed to require a relative humidity test condition of 35 percent for ACIM testing. 86 FR 72322, 72335. As indicated in Table III.4, the proposed relative humidity condition of 35 percent, in combination with the ambient air condition of 90 °F, would correspond to a moisture content of 0.011 lbs water vapor/lbs dry air. This would closely match the moisture contents associated with the test procedures for the other types of commercial food service equipment. In the December 2021 NOPR, DOE also investigated appropriate tolerances to specify for the relative humidity test condition. 86 FR 72322, 72336. DOE considered a test condition tolerance and test operating tolerance on relative humidity. Id. A test condition tolerance is a tolerance that is calculated based on the average of all relative humidity measurements during each freeze cycle. Id. In contrast, a test operating tolerance would apply to all individual measurements during each cycle. Id. The industry standards referenced in Table III.4, ASHRAE 72-2018, ASHRAE 32.1-2017, and ASTM Standard F2143-2016, all require a test condition tolerance. Id. ASHRAE 72-2018 is the only standard mentioned in Table III.4 that also requires a test operating tolerance. Id. DOE also investigated typical accuracies of relative humidity sensors, finding that accuracies of ±2.0 percent are typical for relative humidity sensors. Id. Additionally, DOE noted that its test procedure for BVMs requires a relative humidity instrument accuracy of ±2.0 percent for a test condition tolerance of ±5.0 percent. See section 1.1 of appendix B to subpart Q of 10 CFR part 431. Id. Similarly, section 6.3 of ASTM Standard F2143-2016 also requires a relative humidity instrument accuracy of ±2.0 percent for a test condition tolerance of ±5.0 percent. Id. Based on this analysis, DOE proposed a relative humidity test condition tolerance of ±5.0 percent. Id. DOE also proposed to require a relative humidity instrument accuracy of ±2.0 percent. Id. In summary, DOE proposed to require a relative humidity test condition of 35 percent. 86 FR 72322, 72335. DOE proposed that the relative humidity be maintained and measured at the same location used to confirm ambient dry bulb temperature, or as close as the test setup permits. 86 FR 72322, 72336. DOE proposed to add a test condition tolerance on the proposed relative humidity test condition of ±5.0 percent. Id. DOE proposed to require a relative humidity instrument accuracy of ±2.0 percent. Id. DOE stated in the December 2021 NOPR that it did not expect the proposal to affect measured performance of existing ACIM models. Id. DOE requested comment on the proposal to control relative humidity at 35 ± 5.0 percent. 86 FR 72322, 72336. Specifically, DOE requested comment on the representativeness of 35 percent relative humidity in field use conditions, whether manufacturers currently control and measure relative humidity for ACIM testing (and if so, the conditions used for testing), and the burden associated with controlling relative humidity within a tolerance of ±5.0 percent. Id. In response to the December 2021 NOPR, Hoshizaki and AHRI commented that due to inherent humidity caused by ice makers in the production of ice, the control of relative humidity has been left out of the test protocols currently used ( e.g., ASHRAE 29). (Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 3; AHRI, No. 13, p. 5) AHRI, Joint Commenters, Hoshizaki, IOM, The Legacy Companies, and Manitowoc Ice commented that ACIMs respond differently to the humidity of ambient air than other refrigerated equipment because the evaporator is in a wetted setting, so units are not greatly affected by humidity changes during testing. (AHRI, No. 13, p. 5; Joint Commenters, No. 15, p. 1; Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 3; IOM, No. 11, p. 2; The Legacy Companies, January 24, 2022 webinar to discuss the December 2021 NOPR; 12 Manitowoc Ice, January 24, 2022 webinar to discuss the December 2021 NOPR) 13 AHRI and added that units are designed to handle these conditions and that humidity control is not necessary (AHRI, No. 13, p. 5; AHAM, No. 18, p. 12). 12 See pages 30-31; www.regulations.gov/document/EERE-2017-BT-TP-0006-0012. 13 See pages 32-33; www.regulations.gov/document/EERE-2017-BT-TP-0006-0012. IOM and The Legacy Companies commented that they do not support the proposal to control humidity. (IOM, No. 11, p. 2; The Legacy Companies, January 24, 2022 webinar to discuss the December 2021 NOPR) 14 Joint Commenters commented that ACIM test chambers typically do not control the relative humidity of ambient air. (Joint Commenters, No. 15, p. 1) IOM commented that they do not control for or measure humidity levels in its environmental chambers. (IOM, No. 11, p. 2) Welbilt commented that they do not have humidity control in their test chambers and that ACIM test chambers are often very specialized because of the range of ambient conditions that are needed to test ACIMs whereas CRE test chambers are typically used for testing at one or two ambient conditions. (Welbilt, January 24, 2022 webinar to discuss the December 2021 NOPR) 15 14 See pages 30-31; www.regulations.gov/document/EERE-2017-BT-TP-0006-0012. 15 See pages 29-30; www.regulations.gov/document/EERE-2017-BT-TP-0006-0012. AHRI, Hoshizaki, IOM, Joint Commenters, and Manitowoc Ice commented that test data should be reviewed and validated to confirm the need for relative humidity control. (AHRI, Public Meeting Transcript, No. EERE-2017-BT-TP-0006-0012 at p. 29; Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 3; IOM, No. 11, p. 2; Joint Commenters, No. 15, p. 1-2; Manitowoc Ice, January 24, 2022 webinar to discuss the December 2021 NOPR) 16 AHAM commented that DOE's testing is not sufficient to justify its proposed requirement. AHAM, No. 18, p. 13. Joint Commenters added that DOE should conduct additional relative humidity testing and if a large performance difference for some units is confirmed, then a relative humidity requirement is needed to ensure the reproducibility of the test procedure. (Joint Commenters, No. 15, p. 1-2) 16 See pages 32-33; www.regulations.gov/document/EERE-2017-BT-TP-0006-0012. AHRI, Hoshizaki, IOM, Welbilt, and Joint Commenters commented that a relative humidity of 35 percent may be unrepresentative of the variety of environments housing ACIMs. (AHRI, No. 13, p. 5; Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 3; IOM, No. 11, p. 2; Welbilt, January 24, 2022 webinar to discuss the December 2021 NOPR; 17 Joint Commenters, No. 15, p. 2) IOM added that commercial kitchens may have humidity much higher than 35 percent, front-of-house locations may be lower than 35 percent, and ACIMs utilizing a remote condenser may see humidity anywhere between 15 and100 percent. (IOM, No. 11, p. 2) 17 See pages 29-30; www.regulations.gov/document/EERE-2017-BT-TP-0006-0012. AHRI commented that the ambient temperatures would also vary greatly by application and such a humidity would be difficult to control while entering the test chamber for sample collection. (AHRI, No. 13, p. 5) IOM believes that a ±5 percent tolerance is too narrow and would be difficult to control during tests. (IOM, No. 11, p. 2) IOM suggested a ±10 percent tolerance if humidity is controlled. Id. AHRI, IOM, and Welbilt asserted that the addition of humidity control requirements would impose undue burden to OEMs and testing facilities without benefiting the efficiency or testing of ACIMs. (AHRI, No. 13, p. 5; IOM, No. 11, p. 2; Welbilt, January 24, 2022 webinar to discuss the December 2021 NOPR 18 ) AHRI, IOM, and Welbilt commented that it would also be extremely costly to add humidity control upgrades to testing laboratories for little wielded benefit. Id. Hoshizaki commented that full costs should be considered in adding this to the test criteria along with the cost to retest all products that currently do not have humidity control in their test. (Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 3) 18 See pages 29-30; www.regulations.gov/document/EERE-2017-BT-TP-0006-0012. Hoshizaki requested that this be addressed in the ASHRAE 29 standard committee for consensus. (Hoshizaki, No. 14, p. 3) DOE has reviewed and confirmed the validity of the test data from the three units presented in the December 2021 NOPR. DOE has also conducted further analysis of the test data from Test Unit 2 to further investigate that unit's significant variation in energy use among the different relative humidity test conditions. DOE notes that during the January 24, 2022 webinar to discuss the December 2021 NOPR, True Manufacturing commented in response to a request for comment about the relative humidity test condition that some ACIMs that have poor insulation may inadvertently make ice on the back side of the evaporator plate or other unwanted areas, which could possibly decrease the harvest rate. 19 Indeed, DOE observed for Test Unit 2 that the 75 percent relative humidity test had additional drain water collected during the freeze cycles compared to the 35 percent relative humidity test. DOE investigated whether this additional drain water could have resulted from additional condensation of moisture at the higher relative humidity, and whether the higher energy use for Test Unit 2 at the 75 percent relative humidity test condition may correspond to such additional condensate being produced at that test condition. If so, this would indicate that the higher energy use was directly related to the relative humidity test condition. 19 See pages 34-35; www.regulations.gov/document/EERE-2017-BT-TP-0006-0012. Based on the technical characteristics of Test Unit 2, DOE calculated the theoretical amount of additional energy use that would be required by Test Unit 2 to condense the amount of additional drain water measured. 20 DOE compared the resulting theoretical amount of additional energy use to the measured amount of additional energy use. Table III.5 shows the average measured drain water (in lbs) and the average measured energy use (in kWh) of the freeze cycles for Test Unit 2. Table III.6 shows the comparison of these measured values to the theoretical amount of additional energy use that would be required by Test Unit 2 to condense this amount of additional drain water, as calculated by DOE. 20 DOE calculated the additional amount of heat removal required from the evaporator of Test Unit 2 to condense the same amount of moisture from the surrounding air that was observed in the additional drain water from the 75% relative humidity test. Subsequently, DOE calculated the additional amount of compressor, sump pump, and condenser fan motor energy and additional freeze cycle duration that would be necessary to remove this additional heat based on the Test Unit 2's compressor specification data at an assumed evaporator temperature of 15 °F and condenser temperature of 115 °F, and sump pump and condenser fan motor specification data with an assumed power factor of 80%. Table III.5—Summary of Drain Water and Energy Use Measurements for Test Unit 2 Cycle description 35% relative humidity 75% relative humidity Difference between 35% and 75% relative humidity Freeze cycle drain water (lbs) 0.59 1.01 0.43 Freeze cycle energy use (kWh) 0.21 0.32 0.11 Table III.6—Comparison of Theoretical Additional Energy Use to Measured Additional Energy Use for Test Unit 2 Cycle description Measured difference between 35% and 75% relative humidity Theoretical energy use required to produce 0.43 lbs of condensate Freeze cycle energy use (kWh) 0.11 0.12 As indicated in Table III.6, DOE's calculated approach to determine the additional energy use required to condense the amount of additional drain water measured closely matched the measured approach. This indicates that the additional energy use at the 75 percent relative humidity test condition was likely due to the difference in condensed moisture accumulated at the 75 percent test condition, thus supporting that the relative humidity level during the test may have a direct impact on measured energy performance. DOE also evaluated additional test data from previous investigative ACIM testing to further confirm the effects of relative humidity on measured energy use. DOE previously tested four batch style ACIMs at 55 and 75 percent relative humidity using the standard rating conditions specified in AHRI 810. Although this testing was not conducted at 35 percent relative humidity, the test data is instructive on whether a difference in relative humidity affects ACIM performance. Table III.7 summarizes the results of this previous testing. Table III.7—Comparison of Energy Use Rates at Different Relative Humidity Test Conditions Test unit Type 55% relative humidity (kWh/100 lb) 75% relative humidity (kWh/100 lb) Difference from 55% relative humidity to 75% relative humidity (%) 4 Batch 9.45 9.30 −1.6 5 Batch 17.47 21.58 +23.5 6 Batch 30.33 30.56 +0.8 7 Batch 40.46 40.49 +0.1 These results show that for some ACIM models, a difference in relative humidity makes very little impact on ACIM performance, but for other models, a difference in relative humidity makes a significant impact on ACIM performance. Considering the three tested units presented in the December 2021 NOPR in addition to these four units, out of a total test sample of 7 ACIMs, relative humidity had a significant impact on ACIM performance for at least two ACIMs. This suggests that a difference in relative humidity may affect a substantial portion of the ACIM market. As summarized previously in this section, comments received in response to the December 2021 NOPR indicate that certain manufacturers do not measure relative humidity of the ambient air during testing, and that ACIM test chambers typically do not control the relative humidity of the ambient air. Commenters also generally suggested defining a broader tolerance as compared to the proposed tolerance of ±5 percent, asserting that controlling relative humidity to within ±5 percent during testing would be difficult. Based on the additional analysis discussed in this final rule, including consideration of comments received in response to the December 2021 NOPR, DOE is modifying the relative humidity test conditions adopted in this final rule, as compared to the provisions as proposed in the December 2021 NOPR, to instead specify a minimum threshold rather than a defined range. Specifically, this final rule adopts a requirement to maintain an average minimum ambient relative humidity of 30.0 percent throughout testing. This revised specification represents the minimum of the relative humidity tolerance, 35.0 ± 5.0 percent, as proposed in the December 2021 NOPR and will allow for a broader range of relative humidity values that will be easier to control during testing. Furthermore, DOE notes that its test data indicated that higher humidity levels are associated with higher measured energy use for certain ACIM models—suggesting that manufacturers of such models wi [Text truncated at 120,000 characters. The full text is on the page linked above.] --- Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/documents/fr%3A2022-22927. Public record. Not legal advice.