Alternative refrigerants for

Air- Conditioners

Satoshi Tomioka
Engineering Department 2
Air-Conditioner Division 1
FUJITSU GENERAL LIMITED
 CONTENTS

1. Background of the alternative refrigerant air-conditioner

development.
2. Why does HCFC deplete the Ozone Layer ?
3. What is CFC and HCFC.
4. Alternative refrigerant for R22. (not include chlorine)
5. Alternative refrigerant circumstances in Japan and U.S.
6. R407C and R410A advantage in air-conditioner.
7. Alternative refrigerant air-conditioner installation and servicing.
1. Background of the alternative refrigerant
Air-conditioners development
 1) History of the ozone layer protection

1974 : Pointed out that the ozone layer is depleting by CFC

and HCFC

1987 :Concluded the Montreal Protocol for controlling

production and consumption of CFC and HCFC

1996 : Total ban of CFC by the end of 1995

Started controlling volume of HCFC consumption.
 2) Phase-out schedule of HCFC according to
Montreal protocol
(%)
100% = (HCFC consumption of 1989) +
100 (CFC consumption of 1989) x 2.8%

80
65%
60
total abolition
40 35%
only service use
20 started control 10%
0.5%
0
1996 2000 2004 2010 2015 2020 2030 (Year)
 3) Control schedule of HCFC in equipment by
EU regulation
prohibit installation of cooling only equipment
prohibit installation of all equipment
prohibit using for service

virgin refrigerant all refrigerant

EU
regulation

Denmark
Finland
Germany
Sweden
Switzerland

1998 99 2000 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 2010

2. Why does HCFC deplete
the Ozone Layer ?
1) What is ozone layer depleting ?

sunbeams

Ozone layer
Harmful
ultraviolet rays
CFC and HCFC
 2) Ozone Layer depleting mechanism

ClO
sunbeam CFC

Cl

Cl Ozone (O3)
O2
CFCl2
 3. What is CFC and HCFC?

CFC : chloro-fluoro-carbon
High ODP( ozone depletion potential ) chemical compound,
because include chlorine. (ODP:0.6 - 1.0)
For example : R12 (for refrigerator and car air-conditioner)

HCFC : Hydro-Chloro-Fluoro-Carbon
Low ODP chemical compound, because include chlorine
and hydrogen.
For example : R22 (for air-conditioner)
 4. The alternative refrigerant of R22
(not include chlorine)
HFCs : Hydro-Fluoro-Carbons
R134a : practically used in refrigerators
R407C : practically used in air-conditioners
R410A : practically used in air-conditioners
R32 : difficult for practical use without revision of the standard
Others : (natural gas)
propane : flammable
ammonia : flammable less possibility for practical use
carbon-dioxide : high pressure
 Refrigerant characteristics
R407C R410A R22
Composition R32/R125/R134a R32/R125 R22
(wt%) (23/25/52) (50/50) (100)
Boiling Point -43.6 -51.4 -40.8

Behavior zeotrope near azeotrope ---

Pressure at 54.5℃
2,262 3,406 2,151
(kPa)
Temperature Glide
5.4 0.11 0
(deg)
ODP 0 0 0.055

System Performance 95% 105% 100%

 R407C characteristics

•Advantage
Working pressure is similar as R22. (about 1.1 times)
Designing against pressure is easy and safe.

•Disadvantage
Zeotropic refrigerant
Composition control is necessary for charging refrigerant.
Review of control system is required as there is temperature
glide.
 R410A characteristics

•Advantage
It is excellent at system performance
It improve air-conditioner’s EER.
It is possible to design smaller unit size than R407C
Lower pressure drop
It is possible to down size pipes.
•Disadvantage
Working pressure is 1.6 times higher than R22.
 R407C and R410A fitness for air-conditioners

R407C R410A
similar pressure as R22
higher system
Advantage (possible to design
performance
large equipment)
1.6 times higher
Zeotropic pressure than R22
Disadvantage
(handle with care) (difficult to pressure
resistance design)

Suitable for Large Air-Conditioners Small Air-Conditioners

5. Alternative refrigerant circumstances
in Japan and U.S.

in Japan Large air-conditioners uses R407C, and

all small air-conditioners uses R410A.
(up to 5.0 kW)

Planned to use R410A for air-conditioners

in U.S.
under 17kW.
 Fujitsu General plan for
alternative refrigerant Air-Conditioner

Over 12000BTU Models (package)

We adopt R407C because it is possible to design large

air-conditioners.
(It is difficult to re-designing against R410A pressure)

12000BTU and under Models (Wall mounted type)

We adopt R410A because it has good system
performance , and possible to re-design for R410A
pressure.
 6. R407C and R410A advantage
in Air-Conditioner

1) R407C advantage in air-conditioner

2) R410A advantage in air-conditioner

1) R407C advantage in Air-Conditioner

•Working pressure is similar as R22

It does not need special design for compressor, heat
exchanger and other parts.

•Easy convert the R22 air-conditioners to R407C.

•Possible to design large air-conditioners.
2) R410A advantage in air-conditioner

Heat Exchanger Performance

120 115

105
R410A
100 99.4 100
100 97.2 R407C
R22

80

Considering
60
Evaporator Condenser R22 as 100
R410A Air-Conditioner’s performance (Cooling only models)

Fujitsu General Company D

(Using R410A) ( Using R407C)
Cooling Capacity
(kW)
2.90 2.40

Cooling EER 2.86 2.76

Indoor volume (cm 3 ) 35599.2 46597.7

(Indoor dimension) (260 x 815 x 168) (360 x 799 x 162)
Outdoor volume (cm 3 ) 92956.3 109350.0
(Outdoor dimension) (535 x 695 x 250) (540 x 750 x 270)

10000BTU models
R410A Air-Conditioner’s performance (Heat pump models)

Fujitsu General Company S

(Using R410A) ( Using R407C)
Cooling Capacity (kW) 3.45 3.35
mode EER 2.83 2.52
Heating Capacity (kW) 4.15 3.90
mode EER 3.27 2.89
Indoor volume (cm 3 ) 35599.2 38470.95
(Indoor dimension) (260 x 815 x 168) (270 x 805 x 177)
Outdoor volume (cm 3 ) 92956.3 107325.0
(Outdoor dimension) (535 x 695 x 250) (530 x 750 x 270)

12000BTU Models
 Down sizing of connection pipes

R410A R407C
(other make)

Piping size
3/8”(9.52mm) 1/2”(12.7mm)
of gas side

12000BTU Models
As result , this prevents from pipe breaking
and reduces refrigerant leak
 Summary

We positively adopt R410A for small air-conditioners which

are easy of designing against higher pressure.

But we adopt R407C, whose pressure is similar to R22, for

large air-conditioners which are difficult to designing against
higher pressure.
7. Alternative refrigerant Air-Conditioner
installation and servicing
Exclusive tools for alternative refrigerant
Flaring tools

It is recommended to use exclusive tool.

This exclusive tool can also be used for
R22 and R407C.

Adjust projection length when using

conventional tool.
Conventional
Projection length For R410A
tool
Projection
0 – 0.5 mm 0.7 – 1.3mm
length
Flaring tool die
Pipe
 Gauge Manifold
Specifications differences
High pressure gauge
Compound gauge For R410A For R407C

High pressure -0.1 – 5.3 -0.1 – 3.5

gauge MPa MPa
Compound -0.1 – 3.8 -0.1 – 1.7
gauge MPa MPa

Port size 1/2 UNF 7/16 UNF

Be sure to use exclusive Gauge Manifold.

There is danger of damage to gauge when you

use conventional gauge.
Connecting port
Do not use this gauge for other refrigerants.
Charge Hose 
Specifications differences
For R410A For R407C

Normal
pressure 5.1 MPa 3.4 MPa

Breaking
pressure
27.4 MPa 17.2 MPa

Cap size 1/2 UNF 7/16 UNF

Be sure to use exclusive charge hose.

There is danger of damage to hose when you
use conventional hose.
Do not use this hose for other refrigerants
 Vacuum pump
Adapter for preventing
from backward flow Be sure to use an adapter for
preventing oil from backward flow
Additional adapter is required
when using conventional pump

additional adapter
Gas Leakage Detector

A high sensitivity gas leakage

detector exclusive for HFC
(R410A,R407C and other HFC)

Do not use conventional detector

Refrigerant recovering equipment
and
recovery cylinder

Use suitable recovering

equipment and cylinder
for R410A and R407C
 Torque wrench
Opposite side size differences
nominal
For R410A Conventional
diameters
1/4”
17mm 17mm
(6.35mm)
3/8”
22mm 22mm
(9.53mm)
1/2” 26mm
24mm
(12.7mm) (New)
5/8” 29mm
27mm
(15.88mm) (New)

It is recommended to use Torque wrench

 Precaution for installation
Processing the Piping
Never allow dirt, water or the like to get inside the pipes.
Air Purging
Use a vacuum pump
Do not purge air with refrigerant inside the unit
Additional Charge
Always charge from the liquid phase side    
 Pipe

Pipe thickness
Outer diameter Thickness
1/4” (6.35mm) 0.8 mm
3/8” (9.52mm) 0.8 mm
1/2” (12.7mm) 0.8 mm
5/8” (15.88mm) 1.0 mm

Be sure to use this pipe thickness and over for

countermeasure against higher pressure.
 Flare and flare nuts
Diameter 1/4”(6.35mm) 3/8”(9.52mm) 1/2”(12.7mm)
Refrigerant R410A R22 R410A R22 R410A R22
A 9.1 9.0 13.2 13.0 16.6 16.2
B 13 12 20 15 13 20
C 12 11 16 12.5 19 16
Nut width 17 22 26 24
 Precaution for servicing

• Countermeasure when the refrigerant leaks

Do it always from the liquid phase side when re-charging.
In case of R407C, you have to collect all the remaining
refrigerant and add the new refrigerant again.

• Refrigeration cycle parts replacement

Be sure to use refrigeration cycle parts suitable for R410A,
which are tested against pressure resistance and materials
 The future
The subject of manufactures, including us, is development of
more efficient air-conditioners by using R410A.
In future there is a possibility that R410A will be adopted for
large air-conditioners, 5-10 HP, as compressors for R410A
will be developed.
Most small air-conditioners will probably change to R410A
from R407C in a few years.