Blog

For   Release:                                                                                               
  Feb. 3, 2014      

Contact:   Jodi Scott
  Public   Relations
  678-539-1140
  [email protected]
   

ASHRAE Publishes 2013 Editions of Refrigerant Safety Standards

ATLANTA – The 2013 editions of ASHRAE’s major refrigerants-related   standards, incorporating  41 new addenda, have been published.

Requirements in ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 34-2013, Designation and Safety   Classification of Refrigerants, and ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 15-2013, Safety   Standard for Refrigeration Systems, complement each other in that   Standard 34 describes a shorthand way of naming refrigerants and assigns   safety classifications based on toxicity and flammability data. Standard 15   establishes rules for safe application in equipment and systems when the   refrigerant classification system.  ASHRAE sells the standards as a set.

Standard 34-2013 contains the 2010 standard and 36 published addenda.   Among the key changes incorporated into the standard are:

  
• assignment of        designations and safety classifications for one new single compound        refrigerant and 14 new refrigerant blends.
  
• changed the        refrigeration concentration limits (RCL) values of 19 refrigerants        listed in the 2010 standard to comply with more current methodology.
  
• changed the        flammability safety classifications of four refrigerants from Class 2 to        Subclass 2L, based on optional burning velocity measurement data.
  
• added Toxicity Code        Classification assignments for 18 refrigerants that had been unassigned        in the 2010 standard.
  
• clarified methodology        for conducting flammability tests and for determination of fractionated        compositions for flammability testing.
  
•  updated        methodology by which the heat of combustion is calculated for        refrigerant blends, and provided heat of combustion calculation examples        for refrigerant blends.
  
• defined requirements        that applicants shall provide evidence of the existence of an azeotropic        blend, if requesting an R-500 series designation.
  
• modified sections of        the standard to add bubble-point and dew-point definitions and test        conditions, clarified applicant documentation requirements related to        GLP compliance and added critical pressure data and specific volume        calculation methodology for applicant submissions.

Standard 15 contains the 2010 standard plus five published addenda. Key   changes to the standard include:

  
• clarification of the        location requirements for machinery room mechanical ventilation.
  
• clarification that        design pressure is expressed in terms of relative pressure or gauge        pressure (not absolute pressure).
  
• wording to ensure the        standard more closely harmonizes with the 2012 International Mechanical        Code (IMC) section 1101.10.

Standard 15-2013 and Standard 34-2013 are sold together. The cost is $107   ($89, ASHRAE members). To order, contact ASHRAE Customer Contact Center at   1-800-527-4723 (United States and Canada) or 404-636-8400 (worldwide), fax   678-539-2129, or visit www.ashrae.org/bookstore.

 ASHRAE, founded in 1894, is a building technology society with   more than 50,000 members worldwide. The Society and its members focus on   building systems, energy efficiency, indoor air quality, refrigeration and   sustainability. Through research, standards writing, publishing,   certification and continuing education, ASHRAE shapes tomorrow’s built   environment today.