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0 9 SALES RESTRICTION As of November 14, 1994, the sale of CFC and HCFC refrigerants is restricted to certified technicians. Only technicians certified under Clean Air Act Section 609—Motor Vehicle Air Conditioning—are allowed to purchase refrigerants in containers smaller than 20 lbs. SUBSTITUTE REFRIGERANTS AND OILS Our industry is in a state of change. New refrigerants, blends of older refrigerants, and different oils have appeared in the field. R -134A is a HFC and is considered Ozone friendly. R -134A is the leading candidate for CFC R-12 retrofit, but it is not a drop-in substitute. Actually, there isn't a drop-in alternative, but R -134A can be used inmost R-12 systems by following appropriate retrofit procedures. R -134A will not mix with most refrigerant oils. The oils used inmost R -134A refrigeration systems are ESTERS. Esters cannot be mixed with other oils. It is also important to remember that when leak testing an R-I34A system to use pressurized nitrogen. There are several refrigerant blends commonly in use. Some of the blends are called Ternary, which means they are a three-part blend. Ternary blends are used with a synthetic alkylbenzene lubricant. Make certain you are using the correct oil for the refrigerant. Most refrigerant oils are hygroscopic. Hygroscopic oil has a high affinity for water. An oil sample should be taken and analyzed if a system has had a major component failure. There is some specific information you will need to know about blends. First, the components of a blended refrigerant will leak from a system at uneven rates due to different vapor pressures. Second, the proper charging method for blended refrigerants is to weigh into the high side of the system as a liquid. A term you will need to know is "temperature glide". Temperature glide refers to a refrigerant blend that has a range of boiling points or condensing points throughout the evaporator and condenser respectively Other blends may be azeotropic. An azeotropic mixture that acts like a single component refrigerant over its entire temperature / pressure range. An azeotrope does not have a temperature glide. RECOVERY TECHNIQUES Now that recovery is the law, many contractors have increased their service rates to help offset the cost of recovery equipment and recovery time. Some customers have complained about the increased cost of service. To justify the increase, simply explain that you are duty bound and required by law to recover refrigerants in order to protect the environment and human health. EPA regulations require a servicc aperture or process stub on all appliances that use a Class I or Class II refrigerant in order to make it easier to recover refrigerant. When servicing a system, if you discover that two or more refrigerants have been mixed in a system, you must recover the mixture into a separate tank. ' It is important NOT to mix different refrigerants in the same recovery tank because the mixture may be impossible to reclaim. Recover only one type of refrigerant into a recovery cylinder. If a strong odor is'ddtected during he recovery process, a compressor bum -out has likely occurred. When recovering refrigerant from a system that experienced a compressor burn -out, watch for signs of contamination in the oil. After recovering refrigerant, if nitrogen is used to flush debris out of the system, the nitrogen may be vented. A suction line filter drier should be installed to trap any debris that may damage the new compressor. The length of the hose between the unit being recovered from and the recovery machine will greatly effect the efficiency of the recovery process. Long hoses will cause excessive pressure drop, increased recovery time, and have a potential for increased emissions. Since all refrigerants have a pressure temperature relationship, the lower the ambient temperature, the slower the recovery rate. After completing the transfer of liquid refrigerant between a recovery unit and a refrigeration system, you should guard against trapping liquid refrigerant between the service valves. qECE1VEU' MAY 18 2015 ENVIRONMENTAL