Refrigerants can be conserved in several ways including recovery, recycling, and reclaiming. Each process requires specialized equipment certified by the EPA. As CFCs are phased out of production, recovery, recycling, and reclaiming will become the primary source of CFCs for use in existing systems.

Stationary Equipment

Refrigerant recovery/recycling equipment for use on stationary refrigeration equipment (non-motor vehicle equipment) must be certified to meet EPA standards as specified in 40 CFR 82F. Under the certification program, EPA requires that equipment manufactured on or after November 15, 1993, be tested by an EPA-approved testing organization to ensure that it meets EPA requirements. Recycling and recovery equipment intended for use with air-conditioning and refrigeration equipment besides small appliances must be tested under the ARI 740-1993 test protocol, which is included in 40 CFR 82F as Appendix B. Recovery equipment intended for use with small appliances must be tested under either the ARI 740-1993 protocol or Appendix C of 40 CFR 82F.

EPA has approved both the Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute (ARI) and Underwriters Laboratories (UL) to certify recycling and recovery equipment. Certified equipment can be identified by a label reading: "This equipment has been certified by ARI/UL to meet EPA's minimum requirements for recycling and/ or recovery equipment intended for use with [appropriate category of appliance--e.g., small appliances, HCFC appliances containing less than 200 pounds of refrigerant, all high-pressure appliances, etc.]." Lists of certified equipment may be obtained by contacting ARI at 703-524-8800 and UL at 708-272-8800 ext. 42371.

Motor Vehicle A/C

Technicians repairing or servicing motor vehicle air conditioners must use either refrigerant recover/recycle or recover-only equipment approved by EPA. Recovery/recycling equipment both recovers the refrigerant from the motor vehicle and processes it through an oil separator, a filter, and a dryer. Approved recover/recycle machines meet the technical specifications of SAE Standard J-1990 and must have the capacity to purify used refrigerant to SAE Standard J-1991 for safe and direct return to the air conditioner following repairs.

Recovery-only equipment removes the refrigerant from the A/C unit as specified by SAE Standard J-2209 and transfers it into a holding tank. Technicians are then required by law either to recycle the used refrigerant on site or send it to an off-site reclamation facility to be purified to ARI Standard 700 before it can be used to recharge A/C equipment.

A list of approved equipment is available from the EPA Stratospheric Ozone Hotline at (800) 296-1996. A WordPerfect 6.1 version of the list is also available online by pointing your web browser to http://www.epa.gov/ozone/title6/609/. Most certified equipment will be labeled as "design-certified to SAE standards."

Recovery and Reuse: Recovery is the process of removing a refrigerant from the system, storing it in a cylinder, and returning it to the system after all repairs have been made. While cleaning the refrigerant may be a good idea, the refrigerant can often be returned to the system without being tested or processed in any way. If the refrigerant is removed from the job site, it must meet the criteria of the Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute (ARI) Standard 700-93, a system of monitoring the maximum contaminant levels and physical properties of the refrigerant.

Refrigerant should always be placed in a properly-marked cylinder that has been evacuated to reduce contamination (primarily air and moisture). The quality of the refrigerant can be tested using any number of refrigerant test kits on the market. By using recovered refrigerant, several assumptions are made: 1) The refrigerant is in good condition, 2) The refrigerant meets all EPA standards, 3) Minimal refrigerant has been lost, and 4) The recovered refrigerant will meet the requirements of the original equipment manufacturer.

Recycling: Recycling is the process of cleaning the refrigerant by oil separation and filtration before it is returned to the system. Recycling is best suited for small amounts of refrigerants like those contained in most motor vehicle air-conditioning and home air-conditioning systems. The refrigerant is returned to the system in better condition than a simple recovery or re-use operation.

Off-Site Reclaiming: Used in case of extreme contamination, off-site reclamation is the process of refining a refrigerant so that it meets or exceeds specifications. The refrigerant must meet ARI 700-93 standards. Many reclaiming facilities will provide clients with the equipment necessary for recovering and transporting the refrigerant. Advantages are many: the facility takes full responsibility for the refrigerant quality, no taxes apply to reclaimed refrigerants, and the refrigerant is available for use in the future in a "like new" condition.

Recovery/Reclamation Specifications

The EPA has approved equipment to capture and recycle refrigerants from air conditioning systems during repair or decommissioning. Section 609 of the Clean Air Act Amendments, "Approved Refrigerant Recycling Equipment," 23Aug94, lists approved systems and manufacturers of refrigerant recycling equipment. Also, the Underwriters Laboratories has a directory of certified equipment, "Certified Commercial Refrigerant Recovery/Recycling Equipment Directory," 21Mar93.

Recovery Methods: To expedite the process, recover the refrigerant liquid first, then recover the vapor. Some equipment is vulnerable to compressor damage as a result of improper removal of the refrigerant. Check with the original equipment manufacturer for proper evacuation procedures. For large systems such as chillers and industrial units, a liquid refrigeration pump is used for removing the refrigerant. All recovery and recycling equipment must meet ARI Standard 740.

Most refrigerant recovery equipment has epoxy-lined steel ASME-rated tanks and electrically-powered vacuum pumps, compressors, and fan-cooled condensers. Many recovery units are capable of processing a number of the most commonly used refrigerants without changes in equipment settings or operational procedures between batches (Note: refrigerants cannot be mixed). The machine should be cleaned between batches if dirty, but no other special changes are necessary. The units achieve recovery by high vacuum (~27 in. Hg vacuum), recycling by filtration, and reclamation by distillation at processing capacities of 4 to 7 lb/min. Trailers are available for transporting the machines.

Recycling Methods: If the quality of the refrigerant is in question, recycle the recovered refrigerant so that it meets ARI Standard 700-93 with respect to moisture, acids, boiling-point residues, and other contaminants. Follow the listed steps to recharge the system after recycling the refrigerant:

1. Install new liquid line filter-dryers and required suction line filter-dryers.

2. Leak test the system using a gas such as dry nitrogen by pressurizing the system with the gas and measuring the pressure and time required for the test pressure to decrease (without makeup).

3. Recharge the system with the necessary amount of refrigerant.

• Recovering, recycling, and reclamation of CFC refrigerants can extend the useful life of existing CFC-containing equipment by avoiding retrofits and by delaying the purchase of new ODS-free equipment due to a CFC refrigerant scarcity. A secondary benefit results from minimizing costs and maximizing efficiencies compared to retrofitting. Finally, re-use of existing refrigerant will prolong the time period over which the existing ozone-depleting and/or global-warming gases are emitted into the atmosphere, and so should therefore reduce the environmental impact of these refrigerants.

• It is important to have properly trained technicians, to insure that the process is performed in accordance with the proper guidelines. This will require initial and follow-up training.

The cost of a typical recovery/recycle system is approximately $4,000. High pressure recovery reclamation systems are approximately $17,000, and the low pressure recovery/reclamation systems range in price from about $28,000 to $32,000.

Recovery charge for refrigerant sent to a manufacturer’s facility is on the order of $0.35/lb. Reclamation charges range from $1.25 to $1.75/lb, depending on the type of refrigerant. Combining recovery and reclamation adds approximately $0.25/lb of refrigerant in addition to the reclamation charge. For small quantities (of less than 1,000 lb) there is often a $50/hr charge with a 6-hour minimum. The following refrigerants can be usually be processed: CFC-11, CFC-12, HCFC-22, CFC-113, CFC-114, HCFC-123, HFC-134a, HCFC-141, HCFC-141b, R-500, and R-502.