Chat with us, powered by LiveChat

INDUSTRIAL CHILLER REFRIGERANTS

WHAT IS A REFRIGERANT?

Industrial chillers remove heat from liquid via vapor-compression, adsorption refrigeration, or absorption refrigeration cycles. Refrigerants, or working fluids, are the substances used in refrigeration cycles where in most cases they transition from a liquid to a gas and back again. Fluorocarbons, especially chlorofluorocarbons, became commonplace refrigerants in the 20th century, but are now being phased out because of their ozone depletion effects. Other common refrigerants are ammonia, sulfur dioxide, and non-halogenated hydrocarbons such as propane.

IDEAL REFRIGERANT PROPERTIES

The ideal refrigerant would be non-toxic, non-flammable, non-explosive, non-corrosive, not harmful to the environment, cheap and easy to produce and work with and have good thermodynamic properties operating at low pressures.

The desired thermodynamic properties are a boiling point somewhat below the target temperature and a high latent heat of vaporization to move more heat per volume when it boils. Ideally, the refrigerant should have moderate density in liquid form, a relatively high density in gaseous form, and evaporate and condenses at temperatures easily manipulated with compression. Since boiling point and gas density are affected by pressure, refrigerants may be made more suitable for a particular application by appropriate choice of operating pressures. Lastly, refrigerants should mix well with oil, so that the oil can effectively lubricate the compressor.

 

In reality, different refrigerants have varying degrees of these desired properties making choice a matter of trade off. The change in priorities over the last century from safety to environmental protection continues to drive change in refrigerant choice.

HISTORY & REGULATION OF REFRIGERANTS

The first commercial refrigerants used toxic or flammable gases, such as ammonia, methyl chloride, or propane that could result in fatal accidents when they leaked. A non-toxic and non-flammable chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) gas was developed in 1928 (R-12) and branded Freon by DuPont later replaced by hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC) commonly R-22 and hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) refrigerants. These refrigerants were frequently used for industrial purposes as they delivered a high level of safety and efficiency combined with low installation costs.

Most of these common CFC, HCFC, and HFC refrigerants are greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming and may deplete the ozone layer when leaked to the atmosphere. R-22 for example has a global warming potential (GWP) about 1,800 times higher than CO2.

Protocol in 1987 and the Kyoto Protocol in 1997 resulting in a shift to refrigerants with even lower environmental impact. In the UK, regulations came into force in 2002 banning the use of ozone-depleting HCFC refrigerants such as R-22 in new systems. Legacy chillers that use this refrigerant however can still be serviced and maintained.

EU F-gas regulations came into force in 2015 to reduce emissions of fluorinated greenhouse gases (F Gases) through phasedown quotas, bans and maintenance requirements.
The first commercial refrigerants used toxic or flammable gases, such as ammonia, methyl chloride, or propane that could result in fatal accidents when they leaked. A non-toxic and non-flammable chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) gas was developed in 1928 (R-12) and branded Freon by DuPont later replaced by hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC) commonly R-22 and hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) refrigerants.

 

 

These refrigerants were frequently used for industrial purposes as they delivered a high level of safety and efficiency combined with low installation costs.

Most of these common CFC, HCFC, and HFC refrigerants are greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming and may deplete the ozone layer when leaked to the atmosphere. R-22 for example has a global warming potential (GWP) about 1,800 times higher than CO2.

Regulations have become increasingly strict with the Montreal Protocol in 1987 and the Kyoto Protocol in 1997 resulting in a shift to refrigerants with even lower environmental impact. In the UK, regulations came into force in 2002 banning the use of ozone-depleting HCFC refrigerants such as R-22 in new systems. Legacy chillers that use this refrigerant however can still be serviced and maintained.

EU F-gas regulations came into force in 2015 to reduce emissions of fluorinated greenhouse gases (F Gases) through phasedown quotas, bans and maintenance requirements.

These regulations and market demand for more environmentally friendly solutions has driven much innovation in industrial process and HVAC temperature control with many new refrigerants such as R-454b and R-513a being adopted.

REFRIGERANT SAFETY CLASSIFICATIONS

Refrigerants are categorised according to toxicity and flammability. There are two classes for toxicity; lower toxicity (Class A) where toxic concentrations are less than or equal to 400 parts per million (PPM) by volume and higher toxicity (Class B).

There are four classes of flammability: 1, 2L, 2 or 3. Class 1 is for refrigerants that show no flame propagation at 140°F (60°C) ranging to class 3 highly flammable. The purpose of the 2L subclass is to reflect the lower flammability properties of the new low-GWP refrigerants, such as hydrofluoro-Olefins (HFOs), like R-1234yf and R-1234ze.

OZONE DEPLETION POTENTIAL (ODP) AND GLOBAL WARMING POTENTIAL (GWP)

All refrigerants have an Ozone Depletion Potential (ODP) and Global Warming Potential (GWP) rating. The Ozone Depletion Potential (ODP) is the relative amount of degradation to the ozone relative to R-11 (or CFC-11) being fixed at an ODP of 1.0. It is the ratio of global loss of ozone to the global loss of ozone from CFC-11 of the same mass.

Hydrochlorofluorocarbons have ODPs mostly in range 0.005 – 0.2 due to the presence of the hydrogen which causes them to react readily in the troposphere, therefore reducing their chance to reach the stratosphere where the ozone layer is present. Hydrofluorocarbons (HFC) have no chlorine content, so their ODP is essentially zero.

Global Warming Potential (GWP) is the heat absorbed by any greenhouse gas in the atmosphere, as a multiple of the heat that would be absorbed by the same mass of carbon dioxide (CO2). GWP
is a measure of how environmentally detrimental refrigerants can be relative to C02 which has a GWP of 1.0.

 

NEW LOW GWP REFRIGERANTS

Whilst the EU market was 71% R-410a for new equipment sold in 2020, new lower GWP refrigerants such as R-454b are poised to take over from 2021.

Learn more about R-454B HFO Refrigerant here.

Talk To An Expert

Why not pick up the phone and talk to our friendly and experienced team? We make it easy - whether your need is big, small, long or short term, we're here to help.

Call now

for a free no obligation quote

Please enter a valid First Name.
Please enter a value for First Name.
Please enter a valid Last Name.
Please enter a value for Last Name.
Please enter a valid Company.
Please enter a value for Company.
Please enter a valid Site Postcode.
Please enter a value for Site Postcode.
Please enter a valid Telephone Number.
Please enter a value for Telephone Number.
Please enter a valid Email Address.
Please enter a value for Email Address.
Please enter a valid I confirm I have read the privacy policy and agree my personal details can be collected and stored electronically. Please note you have the right to remove your consent any time..
Please tick the privacy consent tickbox to send your message.
Sending Message...
{"fr":{"msg":"Voulez-vous voir la version fran\u00e7aise du site ICS Cool Energy?","msg_text_yes":"Oui","msg_text_no":"Non","default_language":"fr","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/fr\/refrigerants-industriels-pour-refroidisseurs\/?region=fr","languages":{"fr":"fr"}},"uk":{"msg":"Would you like to see the UK version of the ICS Cool Energy website?","msg_text_yes":"Yes","msg_text_no":"No","default_language":"en","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/industrial-chiller-refrigerants\/?region=uk","languages":{"en":"en"}},"de":{"msg":"M\u00f6chten Sie zur deutschen Version unserer Website wechseln?","msg_text_yes":"Ja","msg_text_no":"Nein","default_language":"de","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/de\/?region=de","languages":{"en":"en","de":"de"}},"nl":{"msg":"Would you like to see the UK version of the ICS Cool Energy website?","msg_text_yes":"Yes","msg_text_no":"No","default_language":"nl","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/nl\/industrial-chiller-refrigerants\/?region=nl","languages":{"nl":"nl"}},"ch":{"msg":"M\u00f6chten Sie zur deutschen Version unserer Website wechseln?","msg_text_yes":"Ja","msg_text_no":"Nein","default_language":"de","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/de\/?region=ch","languages":{"en":"en","de":"de","fr":"fr"}},"at":{"msg":"M\u00f6chten Sie zur deutschen Version unserer Website wechseln?","msg_text_yes":"Ja","msg_text_no":"Nein","default_language":"de","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/de\/?region=at","languages":{"en":"en","de":"de"}},"be":{"msg":"Wilt u de Belgische versie van de ICS Cool Energy website zien?","msg_text_yes":"Ja","msg_text_no":"Nee","default_language":"nl","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/nl\/industrial-chiller-refrigerants\/?region=be","languages":{"en":"en","de":"de","fr":"fr","nl":"nl"}},"ie":{"msg":"Would you like to see the Ireland version of the ICS Cool Energy website?","msg_text_yes":"Yes","msg_text_no":"No","default_language":"en","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/industrial-chiller-refrigerants\/?region=ie","languages":{"en":"en"}},"it":{"msg":"Vuoi vedere la versione italiana del sito ICS Cool Energy?","msg_text_yes":"s\u00ec","msg_text_no":"no","default_language":"en","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/industrial-chiller-refrigerants\/?region=it","languages":{"en":"en","de":"de","fr":"fr","nl":"nl","it":"it"}},"tr":{"msg":"There is no Turkish translation of our website. Would you like to see the UK version of the ICS Cool Energy website?","msg_text_yes":"Yes","msg_text_no":"No","default_language":"en","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/industrial-chiller-refrigerants\/?region=tr","languages":{"en":"en","de":"de","fr":"fr","it":"it"}},"ro":{"msg":"\u00cen prezent nu avem o traducere \u00een rom\u00e2n\u0103 a site-ului nostru web, continua\u021bi \u00een englez\u0103?","msg_text_yes":"Yes","msg_text_no":"No","default_language":"en","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/industrial-chiller-refrigerants\/?region=ro","languages":{"en":"en","de":"de","fr":"fr","it":"it"}},"il":{"msg":"Would you like to see the UK version of our website?","msg_text_yes":"Yes","msg_text_no":"No","default_language":"en","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/industrial-chiller-refrigerants\/?region=il","languages":{"en":"en","de":"de","fr":"fr"}},"pl":{"msg":"Aktualnie nie posiadamy polskiego t\u0142umaczenia naszej strony internetowej. Chcesz kontynuowa\u0107 w j\u0119zyku angielskim?","msg_text_yes":"Yes","msg_text_no":"No","default_language":"en","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/industrial-chiller-refrigerants\/?region=pl","languages":{"en":"en","de":"de","fr":"fr"}},"gr":{"msg":"\u0391\u03c5\u03c4\u03ae\u03bd \u03c4\u03b7 \u03c3\u03c4\u03b9\u03b3\u03bc\u03ae \u03b4\u03b5\u03bd \u03ad\u03c7\u03bf\u03c5\u03bc\u03b5 \u03b5\u03bb\u03bb\u03b7\u03bd\u03b9\u03ba\u03ae \u03bc\u03b5\u03c4\u03ac\u03c6\u03c1\u03b1\u03c3\u03b7 \u03c4\u03bf\u03c5 \u03b9\u03c3\u03c4\u03cc\u03c4\u03bf\u03c0\u03bf\u03cd \u03bc\u03b1\u03c2, \u03c3\u03c5\u03bd\u03b5\u03c7\u03af\u03c3\u03c4\u03b5 \u03c3\u03c4\u03b1 \u03b1\u03b3\u03b3\u03bb\u03b9\u03ba\u03ac;","msg_text_yes":"Yes","msg_text_no":"No","default_language":"en","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/industrial-chiller-refrigerants\/?region=gr","languages":{"en":"en","de":"de","fr":"fr","it":"it"}}}
#
{"fr":{"msg":"Voulez-vous voir la version fran\u00e7aise du site ICS Cool Energy?","msg_text_yes":"Oui","msg_text_no":"Non","default_language":"fr","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/fr\/refrigerants-industriels-pour-refroidisseurs\/?region=fr","languages":{"fr":"fr"}},"uk":{"msg":"Would you like to see the UK version of the ICS Cool Energy website?","msg_text_yes":"Yes","msg_text_no":"No","default_language":"en","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/industrial-chiller-refrigerants\/?region=uk","languages":{"en":"en"}},"de":{"msg":"M\u00f6chten Sie zur deutschen Version unserer Website wechseln?","msg_text_yes":"Ja","msg_text_no":"Nein","default_language":"de","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/de\/?region=de","languages":{"en":"en","de":"de"}},"nl":{"msg":"Would you like to see the UK version of the ICS Cool Energy website?","msg_text_yes":"Yes","msg_text_no":"No","default_language":"nl","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/nl\/industrial-chiller-refrigerants\/?region=nl","languages":{"nl":"nl"}},"ch":{"msg":"M\u00f6chten Sie zur deutschen Version unserer Website wechseln?","msg_text_yes":"Ja","msg_text_no":"Nein","default_language":"de","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/de\/?region=ch","languages":{"en":"en","de":"de","fr":"fr"}},"at":{"msg":"M\u00f6chten Sie zur deutschen Version unserer Website wechseln?","msg_text_yes":"Ja","msg_text_no":"Nein","default_language":"de","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/de\/?region=at","languages":{"en":"en","de":"de"}},"be":{"msg":"Wilt u de Belgische versie van de ICS Cool Energy website zien?","msg_text_yes":"Ja","msg_text_no":"Nee","default_language":"nl","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/nl\/industrial-chiller-refrigerants\/?region=be","languages":{"en":"en","de":"de","fr":"fr","nl":"nl"}},"ie":{"msg":"Would you like to see the Ireland version of the ICS Cool Energy website?","msg_text_yes":"Yes","msg_text_no":"No","default_language":"en","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/industrial-chiller-refrigerants\/?region=ie","languages":{"en":"en"}},"it":{"msg":"Vuoi vedere la versione italiana del sito ICS Cool Energy?","msg_text_yes":"s\u00ec","msg_text_no":"no","default_language":"en","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/industrial-chiller-refrigerants\/?region=it","languages":{"en":"en","de":"de","fr":"fr","nl":"nl","it":"it"}},"tr":{"msg":"There is no Turkish translation of our website. Would you like to see the UK version of the ICS Cool Energy website?","msg_text_yes":"Yes","msg_text_no":"No","default_language":"en","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/industrial-chiller-refrigerants\/?region=tr","languages":{"en":"en","de":"de","fr":"fr","it":"it"}},"ro":{"msg":"\u00cen prezent nu avem o traducere \u00een rom\u00e2n\u0103 a site-ului nostru web, continua\u021bi \u00een englez\u0103?","msg_text_yes":"Yes","msg_text_no":"No","default_language":"en","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/industrial-chiller-refrigerants\/?region=ro","languages":{"en":"en","de":"de","fr":"fr","it":"it"}},"il":{"msg":"Would you like to see the UK version of our website?","msg_text_yes":"Yes","msg_text_no":"No","default_language":"en","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/industrial-chiller-refrigerants\/?region=il","languages":{"en":"en","de":"de","fr":"fr"}},"pl":{"msg":"Aktualnie nie posiadamy polskiego t\u0142umaczenia naszej strony internetowej. Chcesz kontynuowa\u0107 w j\u0119zyku angielskim?","msg_text_yes":"Yes","msg_text_no":"No","default_language":"en","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/industrial-chiller-refrigerants\/?region=pl","languages":{"en":"en","de":"de","fr":"fr"}},"gr":{"msg":"\u0391\u03c5\u03c4\u03ae\u03bd \u03c4\u03b7 \u03c3\u03c4\u03b9\u03b3\u03bc\u03ae \u03b4\u03b5\u03bd \u03ad\u03c7\u03bf\u03c5\u03bc\u03b5 \u03b5\u03bb\u03bb\u03b7\u03bd\u03b9\u03ba\u03ae \u03bc\u03b5\u03c4\u03ac\u03c6\u03c1\u03b1\u03c3\u03b7 \u03c4\u03bf\u03c5 \u03b9\u03c3\u03c4\u03cc\u03c4\u03bf\u03c0\u03bf\u03cd \u03bc\u03b1\u03c2, \u03c3\u03c5\u03bd\u03b5\u03c7\u03af\u03c3\u03c4\u03b5 \u03c3\u03c4\u03b1 \u03b1\u03b3\u03b3\u03bb\u03b9\u03ba\u03ac;","msg_text_yes":"Yes","msg_text_no":"No","default_language":"en","default_url":"https:\/\/www.icscoolenergy.com\/industrial-chiller-refrigerants\/?region=gr","languages":{"en":"en","de":"de","fr":"fr","it":"it"}}}
You are currently viewing the UK version of the ICS Cool Energy website.
Click a flag to change language...