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7 Service Manual for Air Conditioners with Refrigerant Piping Mounted/Using R410A
Refrigerant
(The following is selected from the document published by The Japanese Refrigeration and
Air Conditioning Industry Association)
7.1 Overview
7.1.1 R410A Refrigerant
(1) Using R410A in air conditioners
In 1974, scientists found that the ozone in the upper stratosphere (about 20-40 km away from the
ground) may be damaged by ozone depleting substances such as CFC (chlorofluorocarbon) and
HCFC (hydrochlorofluorocarbon), etc. From then on, many countries have taken various measures
to protect the ozone layer.
As a kind of HCFC, the conventional refrigerant (R22) used in air conditioners will damage the
ozone layer. Therefore, in accordance with the international protocols (i.e. Protocols of Montreal
(Ozone Depleting Substances)) and the relevant laws and regulations of the various countries, other
refrigerants that will not damage the ozone layer must be used to substitute R22.
Refrigerants composed of hydrogen (H), fluorine (F) and carbon (C) are called HFC which will not
damage the ozone layer. R410A is a kind of HFC, with a pressure higher than R22 by about 1.6
times and a performance about the same as R22 at the same temperature of refrigerant.
(2) Chemical properties of R410A
a) Chemical stability
Like R22, R410A is a harmfulless, inflammable refrigerant with stable chemical properties.
However, just like R22, with a specific gravity of vapor heavier than that of air, if R410A is
leaked to a closed room, it will be distributed at a low level and cause oxygen starvation. If
R410A is directly exposed to fire, it may produce poisonous gas, so be sure to dispose of it in a
place with good ventilation.
b) Compositional variation (property of false azeotropic point)
R410A is a kind of false azeotropic mixture refrigerant composed of R32 and R125. The “false
azeotropic” condition refers to the dew point curve and the boiling point curve-gas-liquid balanced
curve (constant pressure) are located at each other’s peak respectively. Multi-component
refrigerant with this chemical property will not change in ingredients basically even when its state
is changed, such as becoming vapor (or condensation). Therefore, even in case of gas refrigerant
leakage at a position during pipe mounting, the ingredients of the circulating refrigerant will keep
unchanged basically.
Therefore, R410A can basically be disposed of as a single component refrigerant similar to R22.
However, with respect to the charging of R410A, in consideration of the little changes in
ingredients during the conversion from gaseous to liquid state when it is put into the cylinder, it
should be charged in liquid state.
c) Property of pressure
As shown in Table 2, the vapor pressure of R410A is higher than that of R22 by 1.6 times at the
same temperature, so be sure to use the tools and materials designed specifically for R410A that
can bear high pressure for installation and servicing.