Solutions to reduce ODS and HFC banks
Climate-damaging emissions from ODS and HFC banks can be reduced through sustainable refrigerant management. This starts with the proper maintenance of cooling appliances in the first place to avoid leakages during operation. Refrigerants contained in end-of-life cooling appliances need to be properly recovered. Then they can either be recycled, reclaimed or destroyed, all three practices require skilled workforce and special machinery.
- Recovery
When refrigerant is removed from a RAC (Refrigeration and Air Conditioning) system into an external refillable container it can be reused directly in the same system if its condition is uncompromised. Otherwise, it must be recycled before reuse. - Recycling
Contaminants in recovered refrigerant are reduced by separating oil, removing non-condensable gases, and decreasing moisture, acidity, and particulate matter. This is achieved using devices like filter-driers to bring these contaminants to acceptable levels. - Reclamation
Using recovered refrigerant of low purity without proper recycling can result in system under-performance and equipment damage. Refrigerant reclamation represents the highest level of refrigerant management, involving the processing of recovered refrigerants to meet virgin product specifications (as per AHRI standards 700 and 740) and verifying compliance through refrigerant analysis. This process is necessary when refrigerants have been extracted from different systems. - Destruction
(H)CFCs are chemically inert, a property that made them suitable as refrigerants. At the same time, it leads to long residence times in the atmosphere and specific requirements for their destruction. Investments in destruction technologies are only recommended when relatively high amounts of ODS and HFCs are collected annually (GIZ, 2017a). Otherwise, export for destruction in another country will probably be preferable. It is therefore key to have well-functioning frame¬work conditions before considering investing in a destruction technology. As HFCs are still widely in use, they will only be collected for destruction if they cannot be re-used, recycled or reclaimed (GIZ, 2020). Destruction means the decomposition of CFC, HCFC and HFC refrigerants, typically through thermal processing. More information about different thermal destruction technologies can be found here.
While the international community has agreed to regulate the production and consumption of ODS by the Montreal Protocol (1987) and to phase-down HFCs with its Kigali Amendment (2016), no agreements have been made regarding the destruction of the ODS and HFCs already produced. For countries of the Global South in particular, the collection, reclamation and destruction of waste containing ODS and HFCs present challenges as they generally lack the appropriate political and regulatory framework and infrastructure.
The core processes of ODS and HFC bank management will establish: Generally, these processes are embedded in a larger framework or steering process such as the low emission development strategy (LEDS) or other national climate and energy plans. Important accompanying processes (support processes) include: Important accompanying processes (support processes) include: Our Resources This paper aims to assess the climate impact of the existing ODS bank based on a country-level estimate and illustrates the magnitude of potential emission savings achieved by suitable measures to collect and destroy ODS banks. The results of this analysis together with the lessons learned from the other project activities are used to develop international guidance on ODS bank management. This is the second version of this paper, published after the completion of an external peer review. 2018_Global_banks_of_ozone_depleting_substances.pdf (copalliance.org) This global roadmap provides information on key processes in this sector and gives guidance to policy-makers, e.g. national ozone officers and policy-makers from the waste sector, on developing strategies for successful management of ozone depleting substances (ODS) banks. Furhtermore, the paper presents a decision tree to assist in taking the right decisions concerning ODS bank management. This guideline is intended for inventory compilers involved in quantifying the amount of ozone depleting substances (ODS) banks in their country and, based on this, quantifying the mitigation potential. A sound understanding of ODS banks on the country level is the basis for any action and policy decisions in the field of ODS bank management This step-by-step guideline presents two pragmatic approaches for assessing current ODS banks as a basis for future forecasts, reduction targets and policy actions: - Equipment approach and - Chemical consumption approach. 2017_Guideline_to_conduct_an_ODS_bank_inventory.pdf New Guideline available! This guideline is an update of the first guideline to reflect all requirements stated by decision 91/66 of the Executive Committee to the Multilateral Fund (MLF) for the implementation of the Montreal Protocol on the provision of a funding window for an inventory of banks of used or unwanted controlled substances and a plan for their treatment. Creating a suitable, country-specific policy framework is essential for any ODS management scheme to be successful. This guideline presents a range of measures (regulatory, fiscal and non-regulatory measures) that can prevent the accumulation of and emissions from ODS banks. The guideline also shows a way to choose the appropriate option or a bundle of possible options tailored to conditions within the country and depending on the targeted sector or government objective. This guideline focuses on the collection of ODS containing equipment. It provides practical guidance for national ozone officers (NOO), policy makers from the waste sector and other stakeholders. As decommissioned ODS containing equipment is classified as Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE), this guideline’s recommendations are valid for the collection of WEEE in general. However, this guideline also includes specific aspects related to ODS. 2017_Guideline_to_establish_a_collection_system_for_equipment_containing_ODS.pdf As hazardous substances, ODS wastes fall under the Basel Convention on the control of transboundary movements of hazardous wastes and their disposal. This guideline was developed for National Ozone Units (NOUs) considering the export of ODS for destruction as part of their ODS management. The guideline links the topics of the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer with the Basel Convention and provides practical information on how to conduct transboundary movements (TBMs) of ODS waste. 2017_Guideline_for_the_transboundary_movement_of_ODS_waste.pdf The present paper focuses on one aspect of ODS Banks management: The destruction of ODS through thermal processes. This study investigates the currently applied assumptions of global CFC banks models and compares it with data collected in specific countries.
Publication series on ODS Banks management
COPA is dedicated to work on holistic solutions to accelerate the global shift to sustainable refrigerant management. In our publications you can find global roadmaps and country-level estimate for ODS banks, guidelines on ODS bank inventories, policy measures, reports on technology solutions and financing mechanism, such as Article 6 of the Paris Agreement.
