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Permalink Reply by Al (olddogg) Westbrook on April 24, 2009 at 12:51am

Just a note:isobutane ( a hydrocarbon gas) is not harmful to the Mother Earth's protective Ozone layer ,and unlike hydrofluorocarbons (HFC's) it doesn't contribute to global warming. GE is now seeking to use the HC refridgerant in a line of "green" monogram refrigerators in parts of Europe and Asia, but flammability issues concerning its use in larger capacity equipment have kept it from being approved for use in the US .
(Duh!)
However , GE engineers report that through GE's "Ecomagination program", they have found a way to "almost" completely negate the flammability potential of isobutane, thus making it safe for home use under US standards .
SNAP approval of isobutane could trigger yet another change in the main refrigerant used in US cooling appliances . CFC-12 was the chief refrigerant used from 1940 to 1996 . In 1989 , chloroflourocarbon (CFC) compounds were found to be destroying the Ozone layer that screens out crop-destroying and Cancer-causing ultrviolet radiation. Thus , since 1996, the maiin refrigerant has been HFC-134a ,which although kinder to the Ozone layer , has been attacked by some enviromentalists as a greenhouse gas causing global warming .
GE's proposed "Green"refrigerators also would use cyclopentane (another hydrocarbon) as part of the blowing agent to create the product's insulating foam. The switch to isobutane would likely require technicians to learn new refrigerant recapture skills,aquire new recapture equipment, and possibly recertify in refrigerant handling skills through industry certifaication programs .

OLDDOGG@firehousemail.com

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