Refrigerant Levy Panel Working Bank What are the op8ons? Peter Brodribb B. Eng (Mech), MBA

Transcription

1 Refrigerant Levy Panel Working Bank What are the op8ons? Peter Brodribb B. Eng (Mech), MBA

2 The Working Bank 40,100 metric tonnes contained in 37 million devices spread across the economy Mobile air condi8oning 23% Domes8c refrigerators & freezers 5% Sta8onary air condi8oning 60% Non- domes8c refrig (excl sc) 11% Non- domes8c refrigera8on: self- contained 2% Service consump8on 9% of bank p.a.

3 The Working Bank HFC- 407C: 4% of bank GWP of 1,526 Levy $35 per kg Bulk imports: 160 to 170 mt p.a. HFC- 410A CFCs 2% HFC- 410A: 22% of bank GWP of 1,725 Levy $40 per kg Bulk imports: 560 mt p.a. Equipment imports: 100 mt p.a. Equipment imports: 1,350 mt p.a. HFC- 407C HFC- 404A: 9% of bank GWP of 3,260 Levy $75 per kg Bulk imports: 800 mt p.a. HFC- 404A HCFC- 22 HCFC- 22: 30% of bank GWP of 1,500 No Levy $0 per kg Bulk imports: 1,100 mt p.a. HFC- 134a: 32% of bank GWP of 1,300 Levy $30 per kg Bulk imports: 1,650 to 1,700 mt p.a. Equipment imports: 730 mt p.a. HFC- 134a HCFC Mix 1% Note: All data & analysis based on 2010 imports

4 What can be done? Improve refrigerant containment Transi8on to available low and reduced GWP alterna8ves Wait for emerging technology

5 Refrigerant containment Maintain equipment Automa8c and rou8ne leak detec8on Log books Iden8fy and eliminate top sources and causes of leaks

6 The risk of leaks depends on: Size and complexity of the refrigera8on system Equipment design and quality Types of connec8ons (i.e. flare, solder or screw) Vintage of the equipment Opera8ng condi8ons (i.e. pressures, ambient temperatures, vibra8on) Quality of maintenance and many other factors Copyright 2012 Expert Group

7 The dirty dozen 1 Flared connec8ons commonly used on components such as filter driers, TX valves, solenoid valves, sight glasses, check valves and pressure regulator controls (crankcase and evaporator) 2 Lack of regular service, maintenance and leak tes8ng 3 Failure of condenser and evaporators, par8cularly on return bends 4 Poor installa8on (i.e. vibra8on elimina8on and pipe support) 5 Schrader valves (i.e. uncapped and overused by industry) 6 Poor installa8on (i.e. brazing) 7 Old equipment overdue for replacement, par8cularly open drive equipment with leaky shal seals 8 Service valves (i.e. uncapped, plas8c caps and wear of glad/spindle/overheated during installa8on) 9 Pressure switch connec8ons (i.e. PVC flexible lines and capillary lines) 10 Corrosion, par8cularly on condensate tray pipe work, evaporators and outdoor condensers 11 Mechanical joints and flanges 12 Inferior quality equipment, par8cularly cheap imports Copyright 2012 Expert Group

8 Transi8on to low and reduced GWP alterna8ves Natural refrigerants (CO 2, ammonia & hydrocarbons) - no carbon levy Reduced GWP refrigerants (HFC- 32, GWP of 600) Minimise GWP risk (charge size and HFC- 134a, GWP of 1300) Drop in replacements: HFC- 407A (GWPs of 2,107) and HFC- 407F (GWPs of 1,824), approx. half of HFC- 404A Beware of magic po8ons, if it sounds to good to be true, it probably is!

9 How do I assess new HVAC&R equipment alterna8ves? AIRAH Best Prac8ce Guideline Methods of Calcula8ng Total Equivalent Warming Impact (TEWI), 2012 Sum of two parts, they are: 1. Direct emissions - refrigerant released during the life8me of the equipment, including unrecovered losses on final disposal, and 2. Indirect emissions - impact of CO 2 emissions from fossil fuels used to generate energy to operate the equipment throughout its life8me Simplified version of Life Cycle Climate Performance (LCCP) assist facility operators, designers and industry prac88oners Available on AIRAH website (incl. calculators for common applica8ons)

10 Wait for technology to emerge Transi8on to non- HFC or low GWP substances is inevitable Australia is a technology taker in many applica8on segments Uptake of non- HFC or low GWP gases - constrained by limited market demand, labor force limita8ons and commercial barriers Maintain exis8ng systems, solu8on will emerge in the next five years Emerging natural refrigerant technologies (i.e. ammonia packaged systems) DuPont and Honeywell have developed three classes of new candidate low or reduced GWP refrigerants: HFO- 1234yf (GWP of around 4) Azeotropes, which are blends of refrigerant gases for which the composi8on of the liquid and the vapor phase are the same, such as Opteon XP10 (GWP of about 600) Developmental refrigerants are made up of mixtures of HFO- 1234yf and other stable refrigerants, including HFCs Replicate characteris8cs of common refrigerants (HFC- 410A and HCFC- 22 with GWPs < around 400 )