News analysis with BESA
UK should follow its own F-Gas path
Some of the proposed revisions to the F-Gas Regulation would be unsafe and environmentally disastrous, says Graeme Fox, technical director of the Building Engineering Services Association (BESA)
T
he European Union deserves praise for its ambition to lead the world in the transition to low global warming potential (GWP)
refrigerants, but it is in danger of going about it in completely the wrong way. Despite concerted pressure from industry groups,
the European Parliament voted to speed up the timetable for eliminating the use of fl uorinated gases (f-gases) in stationary refrigeration, air conditioning and heat pump systems from the start of 2026. This could have potentially lethal consequences, particularly in the developing world, and if the UK decides to follow the same path, it will also undermine its programme for wider adoption of heat pumps and so compromise our net zero carbon targets. Many member states are already pushing back
hard because the proposed new timetable would require a dramatic acceleration in the adoption of alternative refrigerants. This will increase the amount of fl ammable gas in use which would create serious safety concerns because the global workforce is far from ready to work with them. Also, many installed systems still have a useful
operating life of at least 15 years, and it would be putting the industry and its clients in an extremely diffi cult and, potentially, impossible position if some of the proposed restrictions on the availability of refrigerants used for servicing these systems were adopted.
Ruinous
They could be forced to tear out highly energy effi cient and perfectly serviceable equipment which would make no sense from an embodied carbon perspective and would be fi nancially ruinous for many end users. The UK has continued to mirror the F-Gas
Regulation despite its departure from the European Union, but this is a time when we should make up our own mind about which rules to adopt. However, what happens in Europe is still important to us and the rest of the world. Manufacturers would have to adjust their global strategies to refl ect any major changes in one of its largest markets – so this will be signifi cant for worldwide product development.
Graeme Fox, technical director of the Building Engineering Services Association (BESA)
The debate continues to rage, but the European
Parliament is proposing a ban on single split systems using less than 3kg of HFCs with a GWP of 750 or more from 1 January 2025. Any stationary self-contained refrigeration equipment that contains F-gases with a GWP of 150 or more will also be banned from that date. From the start of 2027, it proposes a ban on plug-in
room and other self-contained air-conditioning and heat pumps (including monobloc systems) with capacities up to 50kW containing F-gases as well as a ban on air-to-water split systems with a rated capacity of up to and including 12 kW – if they are using HFCs with a GWP of 150 and above. It then envisages removing all plug-in AC and heat pump equipment operating on F-gas with a GWP greater than 150 from 1 January 2030. A ban on air-to-air split systems with a capacity of up to and including 12kW and operating on HFCs with GWP of 150 or more would come into force from 1 January 2029 along with the removal of split systems with capacities of more than 12kW, operating on HFCs with GWP over 750. Then from the start of 2033, there would be a
ban on split systems over 12kW operating on HFCs with a GWP over 150. There are some exceptions for installations with specifi c safety considerations, but the overall impact would be a major upsurge in the use of fl ammable alternatives – often referred to as ‘natural refrigerants’ even though they are manufactured and highly processed. There have already been deaths in Africa linked to mishandling of fl ammable gases and the African industry is not happy about being used as a ‘guinea pig’ for the introduction of alternative refrigerants. The U-3ARC, which represents companies in all 54 African states, has called for a halt to their introduction until technicians are properly trained – for their own safety and that of the public. “This preliminary training must be accompanied
by a vast awareness campaign among end users of these technologies which can cause disasters for humans, in terms of fi res, even if they are benefi cial for the environment,” the organisation said in an open letter. It said the risks were “enormous” and that “the protection of the environment only makes sense if the human being, who is at its centre benefi ts from it” and is not put in danger.
8
May 2023
DOWNLOAD THE HVR APP NOW
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36
