Focus Needed on Leak Reduction, Reclamation and Retrofit
DuPont said that the U.S. air-conditioning and refrigeration service industry could face shortages of R-22 refrigerant as a result of the Final HCFC Allocation Rule announced by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency late last year. The rule removes over 150 million pounds of R-22 from the marketplace in 2010 and up to an additional 100 million pounds through 2014, resulting in an annual 27.5 million pound gap between supply and demand projected for the air conditioning and refrigeration service aftermarket. The reductions are aimed at moving the service industry to its 2015 goals to meet the next reduction required by the Montreal Protocol.
"The refrigeration service industry needs to act immediately to reduce dependence on R-22 because the prospect of product shortages is very real," said Diane Picho, global business manager, DuPont Refrigerants. "We urge our industry partners to sharpen their focus on leak reduction, use of recycled and reclaimed R-22 and to strongly consider retrofit of existing equipment to hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) replacement refrigerants. With such actions we can avoid shortages and keep equipment running efficiently and economically."
DuPont offers a nationwide Refrigerant Reclaim Program and provides a full-range of products suitable to replace R-22 in existing systems, including DuPont™ ISCEON® MO99™. DuPont™ ISCEON® MO99™ was introduced to the market in 2009 as a versatile R-22 replacement refrigerant with similar pressure-enthalpy characteristics and mineral oil compatibility over a wide range of evaporator temperatures. DuPont is a leading global supplier of refrigerants, using science and technology, market knowledge and global reach to provide more sustainable materials and solutions to enhance personal comfort, enable food preservation, improve industrial processing and reduce environmental greenhouse gas footprints. For more information, please visit http://refrigerants.dupont.com.
DuPont – one of the first companies to publicly establish environmental goals 20 years ago – has broadened its sustainability commitments beyond internal footprint reduction to include market-driven targets for both revenue and research and development investment. The goals are tied directly to business growth, specifically to the development of safer and environmentally improved new products for key global markets.
DuPont is a science-based products and services company. Founded in 1802, DuPont puts science to work by creating sustainable solutions essential to a better, safer, healthier life for people everywhere.
Operating in more than 70 countries, DuPont offers a wide range of innovative products and services for markets including agriculture and food; building and construction; communications; and transportation.
The DuPont Oval Logo, DuPont™, The miracles of science™, and ISCEON® MO99™ are registered trademarks or trademarks of DuPont or its affiliates.
