Print this page HVAC Made Easy - Environmental Issues and Refrigerants
A. Bhatia, B.E.
Course Outline
This 2 hour course discusses the issues related to Ozone layer depletion, Global warming, Green house effect and the Refrigerants. The refrigerants are considered to be one of the major sources of ozone layer depletion. The environmental concerns have put a tremendous pressure on the phase out of certain refrigerants, which have traditionally ruled the global air-conditioning & refrigeration industry for decades. Current and anticipated future restrictions limit or prohibit the use of ozone depletion substances. Refrigerant selection has become a single most important aspect to the life cycle analysis of the air-conditioning plant that shall tip the scales one-way or the other. The course is intended for use primarily to the students, end users, environmentalists, consultants, architects, contractors and HVAC designers.
This course includes
a multiple-choice quiz at the end, which is designed to enhance the understanding
of the course materials.
Learning Objective
At the conclusion of this course, the student will:
- Be aware of the environmental issues related to ozone layer depletion and global warming
- Be knowledgeable
about the refrigerants
The majority of
air-conditioning and refrigeration installations operating worldwide are based
on the vapor compression chillers that use refrigerants. The most common categories
of refrigerants namely CFC and HCFC compounds were synonym with air-conditioning
and refrigerators for decades. The mounting international environmental pressure
lays a mandatory elimination of these compounds from production and usage in
a phased manner. Thus a new facility air-conditioning design shall require a
careful analysis of the legislation and selecting the products that shall be
available up to the life cycle of the plant.
The course shall discuss on the current environmental issues very briefly with
an intention to provide awareness and shall focus on the alternate refrigerant
substitutes. The course is divided as follows:
- PART I: Environmental Concerns of Ozone Layer Depletion and Global Warming
- PART II:
Alternatives and Facts about Refrigerants
Course Content
The the course content is in a PDF file HVAC Made Easy - Environmental Issues and Refrigerants. You need to open or download this document to study this course.
Course Summary
As a consumer of
refrigeration or air conditioning services, it is important to be aware of changing
legislative requirements and activities designed to minimize ozone depletion.
The chiller machines shall be selected for non-CFC and non-toxic refrigerant
looking into the potential replacements to account for leakages in the life
cycle of refrigeration plant.
As your own social responsibility towards environment,
- Where and when available, choose products that contain alternate or low ozone-depleting substances.
- Only qualified service personnel are allowed to service air conditioning and refrigeration systems.
- All used appliances going to salvage must have the refrigerants removed prior to final disposal.
- If your car or home has air conditioning, have it checked periodically to prevent seal damage. A certified technician can check for leaks with an electronic leak detector.
- The preferred
method of leak testing involves removing and recovering refrigerant, pressurizing
the system with dry nitrogen and then recharging the system with refrigerant.
The chiller machines shall use R-134a or equivalent non-CFC refrigerant. Where there is a possibility of significant heat recovery potential, the option of putting a vapor absorption machine must be evaluated. The vapor absorption machine uses water as the refrigerant that is the most natural product available in abundance.
Related Reading
Glossary and
Acronyms
The course HVAC made easy - 'Glossary and Acronyms of HVAC systems' is a compilation
of most common HVAC terminology and is a recommended reading. The abbreviations
and terms that may be unfamiliar to someone exploring HVAC systems for the first
time have been carefully selected and presented in alphabetical order.
More on Refrigerants
and Environment
Refer to A. D Little Report; section 7 ' The Alliance for Responsible Atmospheric
Policy'. The report contains a very well summarized statistical data that provides
insight to the alternate refrigerants, energy impact, and ideal COP and efficiency
levels of chillers with different refrigerants. Follow the link http://www.arap.com/adlittle-1999/7.html
Life Cycle Assessment
HVAC system is a significant proportion of the overall building cost. Life cycle
assessment (LCA) is a decision making process that is applied to large scale
building projects for evaluating the appropriate selection. The LCA takes into
account all capital costs, recurring operation & maintenance (O&M) expenses,
replacement costs, energy, environment and the code issues for the life cycle
of equipment. The overview of life cycle assessment (LCA) is presented in a
course titled HVAC made easy- 'Overview of Life cycle assessment'. This is a
generic one-hour course recommended for engineering and financial planners.
Chiller package
The chiller package comprising of refrigerant compressor is a heart of main
cooling system. The chiller is a single most expensive item of the air-conditioning
system that influences the life cycle economics of the air-conditioning system.
The chillers have been discussed exclusively in another course HVAC made easy
- 'Selection tips for chiller compressors'. This 2-hour course summarizes briefly
merits and demerits of using different compressors.
Vapor Absorption
Machine
The vapor absorption machine is the old technology alternative that is modernized
to meet the present challenges of water chilling. The technology is widely used
in countries like Japan and is becoming popular particularly in the industrial
applications where many a times a chilling is made free from the potential heat
recovery. Though the COP of the vapor absorption machine is low compared to
the compression machines, the overall benefits of environment conservation are
immense. Read more in another dedicated course HVAC made easy - ' Vapor Absorption
Chiller Applications'
These sub-systems have a little influence on the selection of main system and assume significant importance while detailing. These have been discussed separately in another HVAC made easy series.
Once
you finish studying the
above course content,
you need to
take a quiz
to obtain the PDH credits.
DISCLAIMER: The materials contained in the online course are not intended as a representation or warranty on the part of PDHonline.com or any other person/organization named herein. The materials are for general information only. They are not a substitute for competent professional advice. Application of this information to a specific project should be reviewed by a registered professional engineer. Anyone making use of the information set forth herein does so at their own risk and assumes any and all resulting liability arising therefrom.
