R-513A refrigerant offers the most future-proof operating solution for refrigeration dryers. All KAESER refrigeration dryers will use this environmentally-friendly and safe alternative by the end of 2019.
Nearly every compressed air station uses refrigeration dryers, since most applications require these machines to deliver a dependable supply of quality dried compressed air. The European F-gas regulation EU 517/2014 has been in force since 2015. This is intended to minimise the emissions of partly-fluorinated greenhouse gases (F-gases) as well as phase-down the sale of HFCs (hydrofluorocarbons), as both significantly contribute to global warming.
This legislation has impacted European manufacturers and operators of compressed air stations because F-gases are used as refrigerants in refrigeration dryers and the refrigerants used up until now are being withdrawn from the market. All refrigerant dryers from Kaeser Compressors will therefore use the new R-513A refrigerant by the end of 2019. It is climate-friendly and provides users with peace of mind when it comes to future-proofing their operation.
This is also good news for New Zealand compressed air users wanting to future-proof their compressed air station, as New Zealand transitions to low-GWP refrigerants as part of the Ozone Layer Protection Amendment Regulation 2018. This domestically implements New Zealand’s obligations under the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol on substances that deplete the ozone layer. As part of this regulation, New Zealand has put into a place a permitting system to set annual limits on imports of bulk HFCs. Beginning in 2020, these annual limits will gradually reduce over a 17 year period.
Kaeser is supporting all customers to convert their systems to a more environmentally-friendly alternative. When planning the purchase of a new dryer, consideration should be given to make sure that the unit uses a refrigerant that will be easy and cost effective to source for future service work. Some manufacturers use materials that are legal today, but which will eventually become prohibited in some countries, or which will simply no longer be offered, due to their high global warming potential. This means that those operators who use these materials will soon be faced with the same problem. Kaeser is aware of this issue and is taking early preventative countermeasures accordingly.
It rarely makes sense to retrofit older but functional machines to use new refrigerants. Operators are well advised to take note of the currently-used refrigerants in their equipment and to obtain information regarding alternative strategies. Kaeser’s experienced and certified personnel are available to assist end users. Certified service is advisable for all refrigeration dryers in order to provide different solutions with regards to this subject; this is especially true for older systems where refrigerant conversion is uneconomical.
All Kaeser refrigeration dryers are designed to provide maximum efficiency and energy cost savings. Thanks to the new refrigerant, they are also future-proof for their entire service life when it comes to applicable refrigerant legislation. Moreover, they are exceptionally efficient, require minimal maintenance and are easy and quick to service.
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