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GRANT LAIDLAW
Grant Laidlaw is currently the owner of the Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Academy ( ACRA ) in Edenvale . He holds a Bachelor of Business Administration and an associate degree in educational administration . He has a National Technical Diploma and completed an apprenticeship with Transnet . He has dualtrades status : refrigeration and electrical . He has been involved with SAIRAC for 17 years and has been a Johannesburg committee member for the past eight ( chairman in 2011 and 2012 ). Currently he is the treasurer ( Johannesburg council ) as well as president ( national council ).
PHASE-DOWN STATUS OF
REFRIGERANTS IN SA
By Grant Laidlaw
Understanding more around the Montreal Protocol and its amendments since its founding in the context of phase-down .
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Daniel asks : Hi Grant , what is the latest situation with regards to the phasing down of refrigerants in South Africa ? There is talk that R410a is to be phased down , but it has only recently replaced R22 . As an air conditioning technician this leaves me wondering . Your input will be much appreciated , thanks .
Hi Daniel , I suppose we will have to give this some context so a good place to start is with the Montreal protocol . Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer ( the Montreal Protocol ) is an international agreement made in 1987 . It was designed to stop the production and import of ozone depleting substances and reduce their concentration in the atmosphere to help protect the earth ' s ozone layer .
The Montreal Protocol sits under the Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer ( the Vienna Convention ). The Vienna Convention was adopted in 1985 following international discussion of scientific discoveries in the 1970s and 1980s highlighting the adverse effect of human activity on ozone levels in the stratosphere , and the discovery of the ‘ ozone hole ’. Its objectives are to promote cooperation on the adverse effects of human activities on the ozone layer .
16 September is the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer . It celebrates the anniversary of the day the Montreal Protocol came into effect .
The Montreal Protocol sets binding progressive phase out obligations for both developed and developing countries for all the major ozone depleting substances , including chlorofluorocarbons ( CFCs ), halons and less damaging transitional chemicals such as hydrochlorofluorocarbons ( HCFCs ). In 2016 the Montreal Protocol also became responsible for setting binding progressive phase down obligations for the 18 main hydrofluorocarbons ( HFCs ).
RACA Journal I September 2021
The Montreal Protocol has been strengthened through six amendments , which have brought forward phase out schedules and added new substances to the list of substances controlled under the Montreal Protocol . The amendments are :
• London 1990
• Copenhagen 1992
• Vienna 1995
• Montreal 1997
• Beijing 1999
• Kigali 2016
In addition to helping to protect and restore the ozone layer , the Montreal Protocol has also produced other significant environmental benefits . Most notably , the phase out of ozone depleting substances , which are often also high global warming gases , has benefitted the global climate by reducing the amount of greenhouse gas going into the atmosphere . Daniel , this brings us to the Kigali Amendment on HFC phase-down and to your question around R410a . The current generation of refrigerants , Hydrofluorocarbons ( HFCs ) including R410a , when released to the atmosphere , have significant global warming potential ( GWP ). Unlike CFCs , HFCs do not have an effect on the ozone , but their potency as greenhouse gases does not make them a suitable long-term alternative to CFCs .
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 CO₂ – 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
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