Refrigerants

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With the phaseout of R-22, many food retailers are adapting to future R-22 supply constraints by transitioning away from this refrigerant. Because many of the substitute refrigerants are potent greenhouse gases, it is important that food retailers use the retrofitting process as an opportunity to tighten system leaks.

The following article was prepared by Parker Hannifin Corp. Micro Thermo Technologies and describes one of the approaches for use of CO2 in transcritical systems for refrigeration.

Polar Technology has announced that the California supermarket chain Stater Bros. is implementing a cloud-based refrigerant management program called TrakRef.

Here’s an interesting head scratcher for those of you who have been in the refrigeration sector of the HVACR industry for quite some time. Earlier this year, I was at an event called FMI Connect. One of the exhibitors was showing products for secondary and indirect (distributed) systems.

TrakRef® LLC, formerly a division of Polar Technology LLC, became its own entity when Hudson Technologies Inc. acquired Polar Technology, its reclamation facilities, and refrigerant program. TrakRef is wholly owned by refrigerant industry veteran, Ted Atwood, president and founder of the company.

Mexichem, a global specialty chemicals company that produces refrigerant gases, announced that the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) has ruled that imports of R-134a refrigerant from China do not harm United States industry. This ruling, however, runs counter to a U.S. Department of Commerce proposed final resolution.

Hudson Technologies Inc. has announced the acquisition of the reclamation business and assets of Polar Technologies, a full service refrigerant reclaimer. Polar serves several hundred wholesale customers from three reclamation facilities located in Nashville, Tennessee; Ontario, California; and Puerto Rico.

Contractors who have found virgin hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC)-22 readily available at their local supply houses had best prepare for a drastic drop-off in such supplies very soon.

Today, recovering refrigerant from a system during major repairs is a routine practice for technicians and contractors.

In a settlement announced Sept. 3 by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Justice, Costco will pay $335,000 in penalties for federal Clean Air Act violations and improve refrigerant management at 274 stores at an estimated cost of $2 million over the next three years.