ACR Journal

CMYK / .ai CMYK / .ai CMYK / .ai acrjournal.uk 21 REFRIGERANTS we explained that effective refrigerant management is part of the solution and not part of the problem. Reclaimed refrigerant sent to A-Gas reprocessing centres undergoes chemical analysis, is cleaned of contaminants and goes through our separation plant to create a product that matches that of virgin refrigerant specification. This refrigerant becomes fully reclaimed product and is returned to the market in line with the AHRI 700 standard. Reclaimed refrigerant is quota free and gases saved from disposal and returned to use also reduce raw material usage, energy consumption and unnecessary transport normally associated with virgin production. Tools that make refrigerant recovery easier and quicken the process are valuable. A-Gas Rapid Recovery, the F-Gas compliant on-site recovery service, is a good example of how having the right equipment can make a difference. The ease with which the refrigerants are removed is made possible by our mobile A-Gas Rapid Recovery teams. They are used to getting their hands dirty and shifting refrigerant from equipment located in the most inaccessible of places. The quantities removed and the speed can be astonishing at times. The ingenuity employed by our teams to get the refrigerant out and into recovery cylinders and on board our vehicles rarely fails to impress me. Dealing with refrigerants that have reached the end of their useful lives is a crucial part of refrigerant management. While end-of-life recovery for destruction is currently mandated across Europe, unless it is incentivised, destruction rates will remain low and most unusable refrigerant will probably be vented illegally. This is likely to become a bigger problem when certain refrigerants are finally phased out or where demand no longer exists. Complete refrigerant management capability To further expand our services in dealing with the destruction of high global warming refrigerants unfit for further use A-Gas has made an important acquisition. A-Gas bought the entire business and intellectual property of Salience Solutions. This acquisition adds to our existing in- house destruction capability through the addition of PyroPlas plasma arc destruction technology for fluorocarbon and non- fluorocarbon gases. This means that A-Gas can now offer the most complete refrigerant management capability in the world. Over some years A-Gas has enjoyed a good working relationship with the founders of Salience Solutions. We have bought technology and expertise from them in the past to grow our destruction capability in the US. We are pleased to be able to bring this team and technology into A-Gas so that we can offer similar end of life services to all our customers on a global basis. The reclamation and destruction of refrigerants form part of a flourishing carbon offset market in the US. The offsets are generated by displacing the production of virgin refrigerants or, in some cases, the permanent removal of legacy CFC refrigerants through destruction. The offsets are verified by independent carbon registries. This pragmatic environmental solution – currently not adopted in the UK and across Europe – is speeding up the phase down of greater amounts of high global warming refrigerants and importantly providing an incentive to dispose of end-of-life refrigerants. Greater amounts of high global warming refrigerants are being destroyed than ever before and we are also recovering and re-using larger quantities of gases – especially in the UK. Regulators have a key role to play in helping to shape the future of our planet by incentivising options for the reuse of refrigerants and facilitating the safe environmental disposal of these gases when they can no longer be used. The upcoming review of the F-Gas Regulation is an opportunity for the UK to be bold and lead the world. With climate change at stake, there is no doubt that each piece of the jigsaw is important in the bigger picture. www.agas.com Refrigerant management is one of the key solutions highlighted by A-Gas and Project Drawdown