It has been more than two decades since the first refrigerant recovery unit came to the HVACR market and became part of the tool arsenal for service technicians. Over that time, two things have become clear: Even a repairable unit doesn’t last forever and the newest units are able to do far more than their predecessors.

The gravity of refrigerant leakage has evoked fines from the EPA of up to $25,000 per day for each violation. The unfortunate reality is that refrigerant leak sites are usually discovered only after there has been a loss of cooling due to discomfort, spoilage, or production difficulty. Repairing refrigerant leaks is not the problem - finding them is.

Ferris State University’s Commercial Refrigeration Laboratory has gone totally chlorine-free. By replacing the refrigerant HCFC-22 that was in two medium-temperature commercial refrigeration cases in the laboratory, the students in the associate degree program in HVACR can boast that the lab is now chlorine-free.

U.S. District Court Judge Adalberto Jordan sentenced Brendan Clery to 18 months in prison and ordered him to pay a $10,000 criminal fine and forfeit illegal proceeds in the amount of $935,240 for illegally importing R-22 refrigerant.

Five major HVAC manufacturers have sent a letter to the EPA requesting a rulemaking to close the loophole that is allowing the continued sale of R-22 a/c units.

Warren Heeley, president of Refrigerant Management Canada (RMC), announced the implementation of a new disposal fee for CFC-11 refrigerant.

According to the Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Institute of Canada (HRAI), effective Oct. 1, Refrigerant Management Canada (RMC) increased the environmental levy on HCFCs by $1.00.

When mechanical refrigeration came along, refrigerants such as sulfur dioxide and ammonia and the fluorocarbons were introduced. The latter two — ammonia and f-gases — are still being used. Of the fluorocarbons, the choices were pretty simple: CFCs -11, -12, and -502. It is not so simple these days.

The ongoing approval process to bring online an innovative approach to dealing with refrigerants that have reached the end of their useful life has taken another step forward.

The year 2011 introduced the concept of dry-shipping HCFC-22 condensing units for retrofit applications, and that shipping and use is expected to continue through 2012.