AHRI, U.S. government agencies, and energy-efficiency advocacy groups have all worked diligently for many years to ensure a phasedown of these refrigerants.
The Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) announced that it applauds the agreement reached in Kigali, Rwanda, by the Parties to the Montreal Protocol to include HFC refrigerants under the treaty.
AHRI Guideline N previously stipulated that specific paint colors be used for refrigerant containers as an additional means of refrigerant identification. However, with the increasing number of refrigerants approved for use, there was concern over the potential misidentification of similarly colored containers.
The Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) today expressed disappointment at the decision of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to decline to extend the proposed effective date of the status change of certain refrigerants used in liquid chillers under its SNAP program.
AHRI reps argued the DOE failed to follow its procedures and its analysis was flawed. AHRI also raised concerns regarding the DOE issuing test-procedure amendments after amending efficiency standards.
It may be that different levels of RDL are set in the same way that a driving license here [in Europe] allows you to drive a car or a small van up to a certain level, but to drive a bigger van or a motorbike requires some further testing or qualifications. It’s early days in our discussions, and there are a number of big issues to iron out before the project starts looking at any conclusion.
The HVACR industry is primarily concerned with producing an amendment to the protocol that defines a hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) phasedown schedule, paving the way for the use of alternative refrigerants.