With the ongoing EU Legislation requirements aimed at zero emissions of CFC, HCFC and HFC refrigerant gas from refrigeration and air conditioning systems, Geo Holistic can assist your business to comply with legislation and help achieve your environmental objectives by simplifying the process.
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Minimising the environmental impact of used refrigerants
Our refrigerant recovery services are designed to minimize the environmental impact of used refrigerants. Recovery services avoid the release of the used refrigerant into the atmosphere. Once recovered, Geo Holistic can ensure that the refrigerant is destroyed in an environmentally friendly manner.
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The Common refrigerant gases found in most Domestic and Commercial Appliances are; R22 – HCFC – HydroChloroFluoroCarbons – All types of Split Airconditioning Systems, R410a – HFC – HydroFluoroCarbons – Modern Air-Cooled Split Airconditioning Systems, R134a – HFC – All Domestic and Commercial Refrigerators, Freezers, Automotive A/C and R12 – CFC – ChloroFluoroCarbons – Older model Refrigerators and Freezers.
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The HVAC/R Industry have long been actively phasing out all CFC’s and HCFC’s and most Airconditioning Manufacturers have already switched to refrigerant HFC R410A and other HFC and more recently Hydrocarbon refrigerant blends. All Fluorinated Refrigerants are priced according to their Carbon Equivalent Content and the Industry has recently seen massive price increases to reflect these changes.
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There are many reasons why refrigerant gases should be recovered; environmentally being the main one, legally being the other, and everyone's role to ensure that we protect our environment.
HCFC’s and CFC’s are classified as Ozone Depleting Substances (ODS) have a high Ozone Depletion Potential (ODP) and Global Warming Potential (GWP). HFC’s are classified as Synthetic Greenhouse Gases (SGG’s) and have a high GWP. Chlorine molecules contained in the ODS refrigerants are naturally drawn up into the Stratospheric Ozone through heat transfer, particularly up around the Antarctic, where they are frozen in the clouds over Winter and released in Summer by exposure to UV Radiation from the Sun. The ensuing chemical reaction releases the Chlorine which sets out to attack and breakdown the Stratospheric Ozone Layer, creating a hole in this “blanket” which is protecting the Earth and all of its’ occupants from the damaging UV Radiation from the Sun.
All Fluorinated Refrigerants have an Estimated Atmospheric Life (EAL) which means they don’t just fade away, in fact they can remain in the Atmosphere for 100’s of years, continually damaging the Ozone Layer. The Equivalent Carbon Content (CO2) of these gases contributes to the many Global Warming gases trapped in our Atmosphere, preventing the rising heat from the surface of the Earth from dissipating and ultimately raising the Earth’s Temperature.
HFC refrigerants can expand up to 2000 times their Carbon Content when released to the atmosphere; in fact 1kg of R410a refrigerant has the Carbon Equivalent of 2 tonnes of Carbon Dioxide (CO2) when released, this would be the average refrigerant charge for a 3.5Kw airconditioning split system or box type room airconditioner.
R134a refrigerant contained within a domestic refrigerator/freezer could be anywhere from 60-200 grams so it stands to reason that if every household in Malta has a refrigerator which is replaced every 8 years on average, that’s a considerable amount of refrigerant that could potentially end up in our Atmosphere and the Stratosphere if it is not effectively recovered and disposed of at the end-of-life of these appliances.
All Fluorinated Refrigerants have an Estimated Atmospheric Life (EAL) which means they don’t just fade away, in fact they can remain in the Atmosphere for 100’s of years, continually damaging the Ozone Layer. The Equivalent Carbon Content (CO2) of these gases contributes to the many Global Warming gases trapped in our Atmosphere, preventing the rising heat from the surface of the Earth from dissipating and ultimately raising the Earth’s Temperature.
HFC refrigerants can expand up to 2000 times their Carbon Content when released to the atmosphere; in fact 1kg of R410a refrigerant has the Carbon Equivalent of 2 tonnes of Carbon Dioxide (CO2) when released, this would be the average refrigerant charge for a 3.5Kw airconditioning split system or box type room airconditioner.
R134a refrigerant contained within a domestic refrigerator/freezer could be anywhere from 60-200 grams so it stands to reason that if every household in Malta has a refrigerator which is replaced every 8 years on average, that’s a considerable amount of refrigerant that could potentially end up in our Atmosphere and the Stratosphere if it is not effectively recovered and disposed of at the end-of-life of these appliances.