Refrigerants

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Asahi Glass Co. Ltd. (AGC) has announced the development of AMOLEA™, a new refrigerant for air conditioning systems that has a global warming potential (GWP) of about one-sixth that of HFC-410A while delivering equivalent performance.

When it comes to things like refrigerants and regulations, challenges remain for compressor manufacturers.

Migration of refrigerant to the compressor’s crankcase during an off cycle is a serious problem, as significant compressor damage can occur if the problem is not remedied. 

Europe is now only a year away from a total ban on R-22 and other hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs). And the European HVAC industry has to act fast to get the message across to customers.

India has continued to block the move for a global hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) phasedown at a meeting of Montreal Protocol nations due to concerns over cost and availability of technology.

As an HVACR contractor, you may be the first to spot signs of abuse, and your awareness may save a life. 

Retrofitting HFC refrigerants into systems designed for HCFC-22 is gaining attention especially in refrigeration because that sector moved especially fast to R-22 when CFCs faced phaseout. This article from Honeywell is a detailed look at retrofit procedures.

The 2013 editions of ASHRAE’s major refrigerants-related standards, incorporating 41 new addenda, have been published.

Many advocates and policy makers are taking action now to find and use refrigerants with much lower GWPs than HFCs to anticipate the phase down and avoid what could be a costly double transition. 

One field problem frequently encountered with this type of metering device is that it can become plugged with system debris, causing a restriction. When this happens, the cap tube will typically need to be replaced.