The “Changing State” of Refrigerants

Gary Parker – Refrigerants Product Manager - RSD

The “Changing State” of Refrigerants

Gary Parker – Refrigerants Product Manager - RSD

The “Changing State” of Refrigerants

Legislative History

The US Clean Air Act

Status of the HCFC ( R22) Phase out

Ozone Friendly Alternatives

Choosing the best alternative for your customer

Lubricant Choice and how the impact performance – Other Factors

Changes in the Legislative Landscape

Global Warming

New Generation Alternatives

HFO Refrigerants

The “Changing State” of Refrigerants

CFC = Chlorofluorocarbon

Rapid phase-out

Stopped U.S. production in 1996

R-11, R-12, R-113, R-114, R-500, R-502

Legislative History

The “Changing State” of Refrigerants

Legislative History •HCFC = Hydrochlorofluorocarbon

Slower, staged phase-out

U.S Product/Imports will stop in 2020 R-123 in 2030

R-22, R-123, R-124, R-142b

R-401a,b R-402a,b, R-408a, R-409a, R-414b, R-416a

The “Changing State” of Refrigerants

Legislative History •HFC = Hydrofluorocarbon

No U.S. phase-out planned – at this time ….

R-134a, R-143a, R-152, R-125, R-32,

R-404a, R-407a,c,f R-410a, R422a,b,c,d R-438a….

3/26/2014

0

65%

19

99

20

01

20

03

20

05

20

07

20

09

20

11

20

13

20

15

20

17

20

19

20

21

Year

Status of the HCFC R-22 Phase-Out

100%

2015 90% Reduction

13

SEER

2010 No New R-22

Equipment Allowed

2003 US restricts R-22 Imports & Exports.

HCFC R-141b phased out

2020 No HCFC Product.

2004 35% Reduction in R-22 production and import

35%

25%

10%

Effective 1-2011 Annual 10% step-down

Effective 10-07 2010 Reduction was

amended from 65 to 75%

Effective 1-2012 EPA Announced a

Immediate 45% cut

Effective 1-2013 EPA Announced a

Immediate 29% cut

On 3-28-13 the EPA Rescinded the 2013 cut &

added 6M in rights

The “Changing State” of Refrigerants

Status of the HCFC ( R22) Phase out

Company Base Yr 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

Arkema 64.9 27.2 24.6 22.1 19.5 16.9

Dupont 85.3 35.7 32.6 29.1 25.6 22.2

Honeywell 77.8 32.6 29.5 26.5 23.4 20.3

Others 34.7 14.6 13.3 11.8 10.4 8.9

Total 263 110.2 100 63 61 50

2015 Cap Unknown

The “Changing State” of Refrigerants

Ozone Friendly Alternatives

Most all Refrigerant Blends are a mixture of some or all of the following

components

HFC R-32, R-125, R-134a, R-143a

Hydrocarbon R-200 Series(Propane), R-600 Series (Butane)

The mixture and percentage of each component varies depending on the blend

and with (R290/R600) used solely to promote oil return in Mineral Oil systems

The “Changing State” of Refrigerants

The “Changing State” of Refrigerants

The “Changing State” of Refrigerants

The “Changing State” of Refrigerants

The “Changing State” of Refrigerants

The “Changing State” of Refrigerants

Lubricant Choice and the Effect on Performance

Proper Oil Return is critical for any Refrigeration or AC System. Miscibility

between the refrigerant and the oil is essential.

Some refrigerants claim to be no-oil-change solutions, but in most cases,

system performance and compressor life are impacted.

With a non-miscible combination oil logging can occur.

Oil logging not only is bad for the compressor but can have a significant impact

on the performance of the system. Oil can act as an insulator and inhibits heat

transfer.

The “Changing State” of Refrigerants

Lubricant Choice and the Effect on Performance When converting from Mineral/AB to POE lubricant, The common belief is

the oil are not compatible, making multiple oil changes necessary.

In reality; providing the POE % is sufficient to ensure oil return, the oils can

co-exist.

It is now widely agreed that only percentage of POE is required to ensure

proper oil return.

System design and operating temperature will play a key role in determining

that % .

The “Changing State” of Refrigerants

Rubber (Elastomers) Seals and O-Rings all absorb refrigerant.

HCFC’s contain chlorine are absorbed freely, causing the seal to swell and

seat

When the HCFC is removed, the seals contract to near there normal size.

HFC’s do not contain chlorine and are not absorbed at the same rate so the

seals will not swell to the same size, and can cause a leak.

During a retrofit, All Elastomer seals and O-Rings must be replaced.

EPR’s , Older Solenoid Valves, Heat Reclaim Valves, Compressor shaft seals,

Schrader Cores and Seal Caps.

Elastomers Seals and Leaks

The “Changing State” of Refrigerants

All Blended Refrigerants have some

measure of glide. Glide is the temperature

range in which evaporations or condensing

occurs.

PT Charts reference both Dew and Bubble

points

Dew is used to measure Superheat

Bubble used to measure Subcooling

Control Set Points

The “Changing State” of Refrigerants

To Find the average evaporator temperature of a system using

R407C. when the gauge pressure at the evaporator outlet reads

80 psig.

Find ~80psig in Bubble column: 40°F

Find ~80psig in Dew column: 50 °F

The average coil temp = ( 40 + 50)/2 = 45°F

To Find the average condensing temperature of a system

using R407C. when the gauge pressure at the condenser outlet

reads 300 psig.

Find ~300psig in Bubble column: 120°F

Find ~300psig in Dew column: 128°F

The average coil temp = (120+128)/2 = 124°F

Control Set Points

The “Changing State” of Refrigerants

Legislative Changes Global Warming is now the focus.

Carbon containing CFC, HCFC and HFC are categorized as to High

Global Warmers.

There are regulations in place now and under review that will impact

our industry.

California Refrigerant Management Program IS NOW THE LAW

They are discussing a carbon tax on high GWP gases

Auto Makers are beginning the phase out of R-134a in auto AC.

The “Changing State” of Refrigerants

Legislative Changes The California Refrigerant Management Program • Regulates any refrigerant with a GWP value greater than 150

• At present this regulation only applies to Refrigeration Systems*

• Established a registrations and leak monitoring requirements based on

system size •Systems with 2000 lb or more started Registration 1-1-2012 – with continuous leak monitoring required.

•Systems with 200 tp 1999lbs Must be register by 1-1 2014 – with leak inspections are required quarterly.

•Systems with 50 to 199 lbs Must be registered by 1-1-2016 – with leak inspections required annually.

* In the South Coast Air Quality District, these same regulations apply to AC as

well….

The “Changing State” of Refrigerants

Next Generation Low GWP Alternatives HFO (Hydro-Fluoro-Olefin) Refrigerants • R- 1234YF: The leading replacement for R-134a in Auto Air

Conditioning. It is a pure fluid with very similar characteristics to R-134a

Jointly developed by Honeywell and DuPont - GWP rating of 4

• R- 1234ZD – Arkema and R-1234ZE – Honeywell are new LGWP

blowing agents.

• Honeywell – Solstice® Refrigerants are a new generation of Low GWP

HFO blends

N Series Non-flammable - L Series Lowest Global Warming – available in

early 2015 for selected markets

The “Changing State” of Refrigerants

Next Generation Low GWP Alternatives HFO Refrigerants and Centrifugal Chillers

• Medium Pressure Centrifugals

•R-1234ZE offers equal capacity to R134A in new systems

•N-13 possible retrofit solution, more study is required on the

effects of Glide in this application.

• Low Pressure Centrifugals

•N-12 can match the efficiency of R-123 while providing higher

capacity

The “Changing State” of Refrigerants

Thank you !

For More information go to:

www.RSD.net/Refrigerant Suite

Or Call

1-800-245-8007 ex 00405