ACR Journal

August | September 2020 CHILLERS 28 Dave Richards, UK Head of Sales for Climalife UK, looks at how the choice of refrigerant is changing. Refrigerant evolution in HVAC chillers Volume 6 No.5 Chillers play a vital role in the Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning (HVAC) and Refrigeration industry. They have become an essential part of a whole range of commercial facilities such as oces, hotels, restaurants, hospitals and various manufacturing plants. Most commercial buildings nowadays use HVAC systems as a means to cool and dehumidify the building and similar to other areas of the industry, there is a growing need for these systems to be both ecient and sustainable. There are many dierent types of chiller, however in terms of refrigerant they can be split into three types based on the pressure of the refrigerant. As always legislation is driving and influencing the choice of refrigerant. The F-Gas legislation in Europe has not implemented any bans for chiller applications as they have not used refrigerant with a GWP>2500, but the quota phase down steps will have a profound eect on the choice of refrigerant used in new chillers in the next few years. With the next phase down step in 2021 and a further one in 2024, chiller manufacturers are already moving to lower GWP refrigerants. In the US it still remains likely that the use of 134a, 407C and 410A will be prohibited in new chillers from 2025. There is a growing need for chiller systems to be both efficient and sustainable