Refrigeration

RSS

As Alexander Pope said in his famous An Essay on Man, “Hope springs eternal in the human breast.” I think of that saying every year at the beginning of baseball season. Everybody has hope for their team on Opening Day. In business, however, an owner or manager doesn’t have the motivation of the playoffs and World Series.

California’s Air Resources Board (ARB) has released a proposed strategy aimed at curbing emissions of short-lived climate pollutants, including hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs). The proposal targets near term emission reductions that will help California meet its 2030 greenhouse gas reduction targets.

Compressor manufacturer Bitzer has approved the hydrofluoroolefin (HFO) refrigerants R-1234yf and R-1234ze(E) for its CSH and CSW screw compressors. The two alternatives to R-134a have a global warming potential (GWP) of less than 10.

Honeywell has entered into a supply agreement with a Chinese manufacturer to produce Honeywell Solstice® yf (HFO-1234yf), further extending its global supply base for this low-global warming potential (GWP) hydrofluoroolefin refrigerant.

Diversified Pure Chem, a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-certified refrigerant reclaimer based in Dallas, has opened three new facilities to offer small cylinder exchange and refrigerant buyback services in the following markets: Cincinnati; Louisville, Kentucky; Indianapolis; Greensboro, North Carolina; and central Florida.

An investment in innovation came to fruition as Emerson officially introduced its $35 million Helix Innovation Center on April 27. The 40,000-square-foot center, located on the University of Dayton campus, will serve as a commercial building controls and HVAC technology lab.

The latest forum was held Feb. 18 in Atlanta and was highlighted by Drusilla Hufford, director, stratospheric protection division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), who gave a national and global regulatory update, as well as Rajan Rajendran, vice president, systems innovation center and sustainability, Emerson Climate Technologies, who briefed attendees on refrigerant and energy regulations.

Diagnosing an air conditioning system isn’t easy. A service technician must be a trained professional to diagnose a system efficiently and correctly — no longer can a tech rely on rules of thumb for coil temperatures or pressures.