by Holly Gregory

Created on: March 24, 2009

ow to Understand Government Laws Regarding Refrigerant Gases (R-22 HCFCs)

In the United States, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has set strict standards for regulating and monitoring a refrigerant leak. The Montreal Protocol and Kyoto Protocols were both created to establish similar environmental standards internationally. These regulations include protocols for repairing refrigerant leaks or disposing of systems within a certain timeframe.

Refrigerant gases are those used in climate control in commercial and business facilities such as warehouses, stores and office buildings. The refrigerants used in commercial heating, ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) or regular air conditioning (AC) units include hydrofluorocarbons (HCFCs), chlorofluorocarbon (CFCs) and perfluorocarbon (PFCs).

Hydrofluorocarbons (HCFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs), and chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) are destructive Greenhouse Gases (GHGs) as well as harmful to the upper ozone layer. HCFCs do not have any of the organic chemicals chlorine or bromine, but they still do have a possibility of causing ozone depletion. These refrigerant gases are not only considered Ozone Depleting Substances (ODS) but many of them also have very high Global Warming Potential ratios which results in their detailed tracking, monitoring, and reporting related to their Global Warming effects.

While perfluorocarbons do not contribute to the depletion of the ozone layer, scientists worry that PFCs can contribute to global warming since they have a very high global warming potential (GWP). GWP is a ratio developed to determine which chemical substances and refrigerant gases released into the atmosphere create more warming. The most common greenhouse gas (GHG) talked about the most often is carbon dioxide (CO2) or just carbon for short.

CFCs have been used since the early 1930s and were found to deplete ozone in the 1970s. A chemical reaction caused by ultraviolet (UV) radiation breaks off the chlorine atom in CFCs. This chlorine atom binds with oxygen already in the atmosphere. The depletion of the ozone is the result of chemical reactions where chlorine and oxygen are split apart.

Refrigerant management and knowing, down to the pound level where all refrigerant gases reside, is critical for the safety of the environment and to limit the release of Greenhouse Gases (GHG). The result of refrigerant emissions is either ozone destruction or increased Global Warming, both contributing to climate change. EPA Inspectors,

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