REFRIGERANTS


Does AI generate accurate guidance?


Professor Dick Powell of RSL delves into the world of AI to see how far it’s come in the last couple of years and whether HVACR businesses should be concerned.


I


Although I have been less than impressed in this instance, I’m not anti-AI. I’ve recently found that Google Gemini is good for solving coding problems. But my message is that HVAC companies, and others, should check how AI might be using and perhaps mis- representing their


information.


n March 2023, ACR News published my article, entitled ‘ChatGPT: a new Oracle?’, about the possible impact of AI on refrigeration and air-conditioning, expressing concern that it would not provide trustworthy information. In the two and a half years that have lapsed since that publication, AI has been promoted widely, becoming an increasing feature of our professional and private digital lives. Even as I type this in Microsoft Word, I am conscious of an icon at the left of this line, which off ers to continue drafting the article. But I can assure you that I am resisting the temptation to accept this siren off er, so whatever is published will be all my own work. Where I have directly copied AI-generated output below to illustrate my argument, I have used italics to distinguish it from my own text. Large language AI models such as Microsoft Copilot and Google Gemini are based on harvesting enormous amounts of data from the Internet. The creative industries, in particular, are very concerned that this includes copyrighted material, which is being incorporated into purportedly new novels, songs, images, etc., without acknowledgement of and reward to the creators. Indeed, AI-generated images have been reported as being very similar to the originals, presumably because they were in the data trawl used to train the AI. The question I’m posing here is whether the HVAC industry needs to be worried about misuse of its published information. Although I could have included a range of products, I have chosen to focus on the Refrigerant Solutions (RSL) refrigerant RS-53, because I helped to develop it and I’m familiar with the promotional material.


Although perhaps less bothered over the ‘creative content’ of its RS-53 literature, RSL is very concerned that AI searches accurately report important facts. To check this, I have used ‘RS-53 refrigerant patent’ as a search term in Google Gemini to generate the following AI overviews. Links to sources for the information that were included in the searches have been omitted.


RS-53, also known as R470A, is a refrigerant blend developed


as a low-GWP (Global Warming Potential) drop-in replacement for R410A. It is a patented HFO (hydrofl uoroolefi n) blend designed to be non-fl ammable and compatible with existing R410A equipment. The key aspect of RS-53 is its ability to be used as a


26 September 2025 • www.acr-news.com


retrofi t solution for systems designed for R410A, off ering a more environmentally friendly alternative without requiring major equipment changes. Key features of RS-53 (R470A):


■Low GWP: RS-53 has a signifi cantly lower GWP compared to R410A, contributing to reduced environmental impact.


■Non-fl ammable: It is classifi ed as an A1 refrigerant, meaning it is non-fl ammable, making it a safer option for retrofi tting existing systems.


■ Drop-in replacement: RS-53 is designed to be compatible with materials and lubricants used in R410A systems, allowing for easy and cost-eff ective retrofi tting.


■Similar performance: It off ers comparable cooling capacity and energy effi ciency to R410A.


Benefi ts of using RS-53:


■Environmental responsibility: Using a lower GWP refrigerant helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions.


■Cost savings: Retrofi tting with RS-53 can be more economical than replacing entire HVAC systems.


■Safety: The non-fl ammability of RS-53 ensures a safer operating environment.


The bottom of the page is an invitation to ‘Dive deeper into AI mode’, followed by the salutary admonition that ‘AI responses may include mistakes. Learn more’.


Taking up the off er to dive deeper generated the following


script: ■RS-53, also known as R-470A, is a patented HFO blend refrig- erant marketed by ComStar and distributed by companies like Refrigerant Solutions Ltd. It is designed as a direct drop-in replacement for R-410A, particularly for use in existing R-410A units without requiring changes to oils or components.


■RS-53 is a blend of six components: R32, R125, R134a, HFO1234ze(E), R227ea, and CO2 (R-744). It has a signifi cantly lower Global Warming Potential (GWP) of 909 compared to R-410A’s GWP of 1924, making it a more environmentally friend- ly alternative.


■RS-53 was developed to address the impending phase-out of R-410A due to environmental regulations like the F-Gas Regula-


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