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UNIT 4: ENVIRONMENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS
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• When ‘recycling’, a refrigerant may be removed from one system to
another at the end of the service life of the first;
• Retrofitting involves replacing the refrigerant but not the equipment;
• Low- or zero-ODS refrigerants should be used to replace older
equipment. Low- or zero-ODS models offer the added benefit of higher
energy efficiency.
There are various specifications to consider in recycling and retrofitting refrigerants.
They concern the refrigerant, the type of equipment, and the low- or zero-ODS
substitute chemicals available. The advice of refrigerant specialists should be
obtained.
ODS Management in Air-Conditioning
Feasible options are containment, retrofitting and replacement.
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• Containment means regular equipment maintenance to prevent
refrigerant leaks and optimise efficiency;
• Retrofitting involves replacing the original CFC-11 or CFC-12
refrigerants with more environmentally-suitable alternatives such as
HCFC-123 or HFC-134a;
• Older equipment can be replaced with new equipment using low- or
zero-ODS refrigerants.
ODS Management in Dry Cleaning
The best option in the case of ODS-containing dry-cleaning equipment is regular
maintenance to avoid leaks, and working with suppliers to facilitate solvent
recycling and recovery. When replacing equipment, suppliers should be consulted
on zero-ODS alternatives.
Good Practice Tip
If dry-cleaning quantities are small, an economically and environmentally
feasible solution could be to sub-contract to a dry-cleaning specialist working
with zero-ODS solvents.
ODS Management in Fire-Extinguishers
As long as the halons in a fire extinguisher remain contained in the extinguisher
and are not discharged, they do not contribute to the depletion of the ozone
layer. Equipment should therefore be checked for leaks. Once the contents have
been discharged or the extinguishers become redundant, they should be replaced
with zero-ODS alternatives, which include dry carbon dioxide powder and foam
appliances.
Halons in redundant equipment can be recycled at halon banks. National ozone
units can provide information on halon recycling in each country. When replacing
extinguishers it is important to consider optimising fire-extinguishing capacity.
Employee and guest safety should never be compromised.