ATLANTA - Revisions to the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers’ (ASHRAE’s) Standard 34 are designed to make it easier for manufacturers to prepare applications for refrigerant number assignment and safety classification.

ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 34-2007, Designation and Safety Classification of Refrigerants, establishes a simple means of referring to common refrigerants in place of chemical names, formulas, or trade names. It also establishes safety classifications based on toxicity and flammability data. The 2007 standard contains a total of 16 new refrigerants.

The new standard contains revisions to the flammability classification and details on the flammability and fractionation testing procedures. These should make it easier for manufacturers to prepare applications for refrigerant number assignment and safety classification, according to Bill Walter, Standard 34 committee chair.

In addition, a new section has been added specifying the criteria to determine recommended refrigerant concentration limits (RCL) in occupied spaces. The addition of RCL values is expected to be useful in application of refrigerants in the field.

“In general, incorporating the 23 approved addenda into one document makes the standard easier to read and understand, making it easier for users to determine the current requirements to get a refrigerant listed in the standard,” Walter said.

The cost of Standard 34-2007 is $49 ($39, ASHRAE members).

To order, contact ASHRAE Customer Service at 800-527-4723 (United States and Canada) or 404-636-8400 (worldwide), by mail at 1791 Tullie Circle NE, Atlanta, GA 30329, or visit the ASHRAE online bookstore at www.ashrae.org.

Publication date:06/25/2007