Refrigerants

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Emerson Climate Technologies Inc. will host a webinar, “Seven Keys to Servicing CO₂ Systems,” to explore the many operating implications of a CO₂ (R-744)-based refrigeration system. The complimentary webinar will be held Tuesday, July 14, from 2 to 3 p.m. EDT.

If it sometimes seems confusing and difficult to identify and keep track of the various treaties and regulations that are having an effect on the refrigerants industry, that’s because it is. Here is a brief primer.

Between the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), HVACR contractors might feel as if they are facing a one-two regulatory punch. Especially on the refrigeration side, new regulations roll out of both the DOE and EPA regularly enough to keep things — shall we say — interesting.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) have announced a final settlement with Millard Refrigerated Services that resolves alleged violations related to an airborne release of ammonia from Millard’s Theodore, Alabama, facility in 2010.

The world is moving toward natural refrigerants. That was the message from the leadership of the International Institute of Ammonia Refrigeration (IIAR) at the 2015 IIAR Industrial Refrigeration Conference and Exhibition in San Diego.

Maintaining and servicing these systems is not difficult, but it does require specific knowledge of the machine’s design and operation. 

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) 20th Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks shows a 2 percent increase in greenhouse gas emissions in 2013 from 2012 levels, but a 9 percent drop in emissions since 2005.

If 30 percent of hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) refrigerants currently in use are reclaimed for reuse by 2040, approximately 18 billion metric tons carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalent would be prevented from reaching the atmosphere over the next 25 years, according to a white paper released by EOS Climate.

Thinking back on my attempt as a young man to charge my car’s air conditioner, I was stunned to see a commercial on TV the other day for A/C PRO, a do-it-yourself a/c recharge kit for cars and trucks. I went to the website and, sure enough, they’re selling recharging canisters of R-134a for do-it-yourselfers.