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INTERNAL C RRE^gENCE Ci A1CALS AND PLASTICS CT 4 1974 P. O. BOX 8361, SOUTH CHARLESTON, WEST VIRGINIA 25303 E. Gould v.n. v, See Attached Distribution List I jivsior. `c D<* October 17, 1974 origin^,ng Depf. jnven^ory planning & Control Sub|e-! Packaged Goods Fluorocarbon ContainerLabeling Manual Attached is a copy of an article by D. D. Washburn, Customer Service Engineering Manager, outlining safe handling procedures of refrigerants. This article should be placed under section "A" of your Fluorocarbon Container-Labeling Manual which was transmitted to you on November 30 , 1 97-2. Periodically we will be sending you additional information to be included in your manual. If you have any questions, please contact me. Very truly yours , sgw Attachment: (1) H. C. ,U11 um bland/ucc 137 Safe handling of refrigerants Safety precautions for handling refrigerants to protect both personnel and expensive equipment By D. D. WASHBURN, Customer Service Engineering, Refrigerants and Solvents, Process Chemicals Div., Union Carbide Corp., New York, N.Y. One of the byproducts of today's boom in air conditioning and re frigeration, unfortunately, is an in crease in accidents. IT)esc acci dents rarely "happen" to expert air conditioning and refrigeration servicemen, however. They are more selective than that, preferring to trip up neophytes who have not yet learned that refrigerants vare not to be taken for granted. Experienced servicemen have learned to treat refrigerants with respect. One successful contractor, for example, keeps on his desk this list of safety tips for handling refrigerant cylinders: Blow out charge lines before filling, plugging ends wherever possible. Keep cylinder discharge valves clean. Replace the valve cap on a 145 psi cylinder when the ,cylinder is not in use. Always use a pressure, gauge to charge a system. Strap or chain cylinders to a wall. Don't let themrojl ground when in transit. , Refrigerant vapors art; dense and heavy; they can collect in low spots and cause asphyxiation. Refrigerants boil at low tem peratures, and boiling causes freeze bums to skin exposed to it; wear gloves and safety, goggles for pro tection. Never tamper with cylinder safety controls. Go easy on muscle power when tightening a cylinder valve; the threads are easily stripped. Don't try to repair a cylinder valve on the job; take it back to the shop. Don't heat a cylinder above 130 F, or permit it to stay in hot sun. Always store it in a cool, shaded area. If you must heat a cylinder, play it safe; use hot water. A contractor reminds his men to think and act as chemists, always with caution. Many of the "tools" of the refrigeration industry are identical to those used by chemists to effect chemical reactions. The difference is that the last thing a serviceman wants is a chemical reaction. His job, in fact, is to make certain that the refrigeration system remains chemically stable. Yet like the chemist, he works with gases, acids, heat, vacuum, cold, oil, solvents, water, air, elec tricity. Small wonder that a mo ment of carelessness can have ex- ? tremely unpleasant results. ' A competent serviceman has to be enough of a chemist to know that when water, and refrigerant i .mix*:/acid is formed; and. acid meaps instant corrosion. U must / be flushed out quickly and the sys tem returned immediately to a dry, acid-free condition if the owner is to get the long, troublefree per formance he expects. Any gas under heat and pres sure is potentially dangerous, and an experienced serviceman does not get careless with a refrigerant container and a blow torch. It may be tempting to use a torch on a cylinder to "get the last bit of gas out," but the results can be disastrous. The heating can soften or melt the steel, turning a harm less looking cylinder into an un controlled rocket. Heating with a torch bypasses the safety built into today's re frigerant cylinders. This is not only bad practice but bad chemistry as well. Two "reactions" can occur, both of them bad. First, heating a cylinder with a torch can cause Copyright 1972 by Rolnhold Publishing Company, Inc. All right! ratarvM). BLAND/UCC 138 chemical decomposition of the re air, the result can be phosgene gas, type of cylinder heating--blankets, frigerant. The higher temperature which is extremely poisonous. This strong lights, torches, etc.--is best that builds up inside the cylinder gas, which smells like fresh-mown avoided; but if it must be done, a can turn the refrigerant into an hay, also has a very acidic by positive control system is required < acidic and corrosive material that attacks compressors and other parts product, HC1, which is extremely irritating to the mucous membrane to hold metal temperatures below 130 F. Remember that refrigerants of a system. of the nose. boil at very low temperatures, and Second, when refrigerant vapors To stress one precaution in the boiling liquid can cause serious are exposed to a'torch outside the list above, never heat a cylinder burns. cylinder, where they can mix with above 130 F. Indeed, almost any . Service with safety! bland/ucc 139 2- - Distribution List of Fluorocarbon Container-Labeling Manual Name Paul Hizney - NYO 31 Copy No. 27 R. 0. Cavender - Bldg. 400, 512 (A. C. Hemme) (P. A. Hart) John Kantz - Bound Brook D. E. Gould - Bound Brook J. P. McCormick - Bound Brook Managers - District Sales Offices: 29 30 31 Atlanta, GA Boston, MA Chicago, IL Cincinnati , OH Hackensack, NJ Cleveland, OH Dallas, TX Detroit, MI Los Angeles, CA Moorestown, NJ D. J. Herlihy - Somerville, NJ H. L. Cox - Building 73, Bound Brook 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 bland/ucc 140 10-18-74 Distribution List of Fluorocarbon Container-Labeling Manual: Name Copy No. H C U11 urn - Bldg. 701-17B 1 E. L, Goff - Bldg. 701-17B 2 A. J. Capano - NYO 20 4 E, J. Eagen - Linde, Keasbey, NJ 5 W. E. O'Neil - Bldg. 701-247 6 W. G. Cornell - Whiting 7 R. C. McQueen - NYO 31 8 B. M. Fonville - 2000-3308, 511 9' W. H. Stolz - Bound Brook, B-73 10 Joy Lott - Kimbro Whse., Atlanta, GA 11 J. A. Cox - NYO 31 12 D. R. Hamric - St. Albans, Linde 13 Andy Rottner - South Hackensack Whse 14 R. C. Hawkins - Bldg. 109, 512 15 Q. E. Harmon - NYO 31 16 R. T. Henry - NYO 10 17 D. G. Sibert - Chicago (Summit) 18 W. G. Kahler - Bldg. 701-246, 511 19 C. A. Kennedy - Linde, Dallas 20 R. K. Kennedy - NYO 5 21 G. D. Roy - NYO 31 22 D. J. Napoli - NYO 31 23 M. M. Paton - Torrance Plant 24 A. W. Rhodes - NYO 20 25 W, H. Schneider - Bldg. 2, 512 26 BLAND/UCC 141