The Compressor Galaxy — 12,000+ refrigeration compressors plotted on a single chart
By DigiEntropy Engineering · 2025-12-21 · 5 min read
13 brands. 12,000+ compressor models. Every qualified refrigerant. All on one interactive chart you can pan, zoom, and filter. The Compressor Galaxy is the discovery layer of DigiEntropy — and it's how engineers find candidates they didn't know existed.
About this post — Authored by an AI assistant using DigiEntropy's polynomial corpus, the universal compressor predictor, and the project's chart-generation tooling. Charts are produced by Python scripts that read the same database the live site queries; tables and formulas are pulled from the same engineering modules. Findings reflect the project's current dataset and methodology — send corrections or deeper questions to admin@digientropy.com.
Most compressor selection workflows start with a known candidate. You pick a Bitzer 4PCS-10.2 because that's what was in the last project, or because the wholesaler quoted it, or because the brand rep dropped a datasheet. You compare it to "alternatives" — usually two or three models from the same brand or one cross-brand option someone mentioned.
What you don't do, almost ever, is survey the full universe. Looking at every compressor in every brand at your target capacity and refrigerant isn't a workflow anyone runs, because the tools to do it haven't existed.
The Compressor Galaxy is built to make exactly that survey easy.
-10/40°C - the MT point on the X-axis - cooling capacity, in kW
X-axis: cooling capacity at MT (-10/40°C), in kW.
2-3 - brands most engineers know well - the Galaxy puts every brand on one canvas
Most engineers know 2-3 brands well. The Galaxy puts every brand on the same canvas.
8–14 kW - the R454C gap at MT - only Bitzer ECOLINE +H variants
A practical example: at MT on R454C, there's a visible gap between 8 kW and 14 kW where the only options are Bitzer ECOLINE +H variants.
2-3% - how close a Hanbell or Copeland scroll lands - at significantly lower price
You'll often find a Hanbell or Copeland scroll that lands within 2-3% of the Bitzer at significantly lower price.
1 click - from discovery to specification - any dot opens Compressor 360°
The bridge from "discovery" to "specification" is exactly one click.
What it shows
The Galaxy is a single interactive scatter plot. Each dot is one compressor model + one qualified refrigerant combination. Position is:
- X-axis: cooling capacity at MT (-10/40°C), in kW
- Y-axis: refrigerant, ordered by GWP (naturals at bottom, high-GWP HFCs at top)
Colour is brand. Hover any dot to see the model, brand, refrigerant, and exact capacity. Click to pivot into Compressor 360° for that model — full performance plots, retrofit analysis, suppliers, lifelong cost, the whole picture.
Filters across the top let you narrow:
cols=3
Brand - multi-select
Brand — multi-select. Hide the brands you don't have access to or aren't interested in.
Refrigerant - multi-select
Refrigerant — multi-select. Useful when you've already decided on R454C and want to see who supports it.
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