RACA Journal July 2024 RACA_July_2024_digital | Page 40

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Support e .
f .
Some countries with economies in transition have a slightly delayed start to the HFC phase-down but catch up to other developed party commitments by 2029 . Some developing countries have a delayed start to the HFC phase-down , starting their freeze in 2028 instead of 2024 and finishing at 85 % reduction by 2047 .
MORE NOTES :
1 . The timetable set by the Montreal Protocol applies to bulk consumption of ozone depleting substances . Consumption is defined as the quantities manufactured plus imported , less those quantities exported in any given year . Percentage reductions relate to the designated ' base year ' for the substance . The Montreal Protocol does not forbid the use of existing or recycled controlled substances beyond the phase out dates .
2 . Further information on these ozone depleting substances can be seen in the United Nations Environment Programme Ozone Secretariat ' s Handbook for the International Treaties for the Protection of the Ozone Layer .
KIGALI AMENDMENT ON HFC PHASE-DOWN While the global HCFC phase-out process is progressing , the most common alternatives to HCFCs that have zero ODP values – hydrofluorocarbons ( HFCs ), unsaturated HFCs ( HFOs ), hydrocarbons ( HCs ), ammonia or CO 2
– are gradually being phased in . Due to their specific features like non-flammability , chemical inertness , relatively low cost and excellent performance as refrigerants , foam blowing agents , aerosol propellants or solvents , HFCs have become the major replacements for HCFCs over the last decade . In 2015 , an estimated 525 000 metric tons of HFCs were produced and consumed globally . These refrigerants are used in a wide variety of heating , ventilation , air conditioning and refrigeration ( HVAC & R ) equipment .
At talks in Kigali , Rwanda , in October 2016 , 196 countries that are parties to the Protocol reached an agreement that will see 85 % of the world ’ s HFCs phased out . Aiming at protecting the climate and the ozone layer , the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol will be an even more powerful instrument against global warming . The amendment entered into force on 1 January 2019 . The impact of the amendment will avoid up to 0.5 ° C increase in global temperature . In August 2019 , South Africa ratified the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol .
The current generation of HFC refrigerants , when released to the atmosphere , have significant GWP . Unlike CFCs , HFCs do not have an effect on the ozone , but their potency as greenhouse gases does not make them suitable long-term alternatives to CFCs .
The phase-down schedule is detailed below ( for developing countries such as South Africa the schedule to follow is as group 1 ):
Historically we have seen that the international market drives the phase down through reducing and ceasing to supply systems utilising the refrigerant being phased down and out . This implies that

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RACA Journal I July 2024 www . refrigerationandaircon . co . za