R-22 phase-out in the chiller market:

Retrofit or new installation – that is the question

In France alone, approx. 17,000 tons of R-22 are still used in existing refrigeration and a/c installations. The European bank of HCFCs is even estimated to be around 130,000 tons. And from next year on, the use of virgin R-22 will be forbidden…

 

Results of a report, which as recently been published in France show that the R-22 phase-out next year will be a real problem for the sector. Even if the following figures apply to the French market, tendencies are certainly valid for most of the European countries.

 

In France, 2,700 tons of R-22, which corresponds to 37.4% of all refrigerants, are still used per year for maintenance and service applications. However, quantities recovered from systems at the end of their lifetime only represent approx. 800 tons per year.

 

This disequilibrium will probably persist for quite a while, especially as many end-users prefer waiting for 2010 instead of taking action now. The financial crisis also plays a role, as R-22 phase-out also means investment, whatever solution is chosen by the customer.

 

Chillers

The chiller market is strongly concerned by the R-22 phase-out. In France alone, some 5,630 tons of R-22, i.e. 59% of all refrigerants contained in existing installations, are used in chillers. R-22 also represents 77%, i.e. 811 tons, of the approx. 1,000 tons of refrigerants used for the maintenance of chillers. This corresponds to nearly one third of R-22 used for all maintenance applications in France.

 

What are the possibilities for users, when, according to the EU regulation 2037/2000, virgin R-22 will be prohibited from the 1st January 2010?

 

Obviously, it is always possible to wait and see what happens, hoping that enough recycled R-22 will then be available in the market. However, this will not be the case as the a.m. figures clearly show. Furthermore, it is also prohibited to buy and stock virgin R-22 by the end of this year for future use.

 

Another possibility is the retrofit to a substitute.

For chillers, R-407C, R-422D and R-427A seem to be appropriate solutions. However, especially in the case of R-407C there is a risk of losing performance.

 

R-422D offers, according to the manufacturer DuPont, the advantage of a particularly easy retrofit as AB or MO (as with R-22) can be used, whilst R-407C requires polyolester oil. However, R-422D is not suitable for chillers with flooded evaporators.

 

The third possibility is the replacement of the chiller by a new unit. Especially when the existing installation is very old, this can turn out to be the most cost and energy efficient solution.

 

Conflict of interests

Whilst refrigerant manufacturers obviously advise to retrofit R-22 chillers to HFC solutions, the R-22 phase-out also represents a great potential for chiller manufacturers. This may lead to a conflict of interests which does not make the situation easier for the user.

Generally speaking, age and state of the chiller probably have the greatest influence on the decision whether it makes sense to buy a new system or to retrofit it to an HFC solution.

 

Especially in case of very old chillers (often these systems are more than 30 years old), interventions are risky and may lead to failures. In this case, buying a new unit probably makes more sense rather than retrofitting to an HFC.

 

Furthermore, for security reasons, old chillers are often over-dimensioned. As a result, when replacing such a chiller, a smaller unit can be chosen to cover the refrigeration requirements which will also have a positive impact on investment and operational cost.

 

Energy efficiency is probably one of the strongest arguments which speak in favor of a new installation. Modern control technology plays a role and the fact that new chillers are optimized for part load conditions – which is crucial for chillers who rarely run on full load.

 

Conclusion

Generally speaking, a retrofit to an HFC refrigerant such as R-422D or R-427A is the most cost efficient solution for the users. R-422D offers the additional advantage of the use of mineral oils. These solutions allow keeping existing chillers even after the 1st January 2010 and avoid the investment in a new installation. If, however, the chillers are already close to the end of their lifetime and/or consume high amounts of energy, they should be replaced by a new system. Investments will then be higher in the first place, however, due to the increased energy efficiency, pay back times of some 3 years are often feasible.

 

Andrea Voigt 04/2009

Source: 

Inventaires des fluides frigorigènes et de leurs émissions, France, Année 2006 : Marché ADEME / ARMINES 08 74 C 0122