We will develop a comparison between TWO refrigerant gases with serious ecological issues. We’re talking about R404A and R22.
- R22 destroys the ozone layer and has a global warming potential (gwp) of 1760, while r404a does not deplete the ozone layer but has a gwp of 3922
- R22 is a pure refrigerant, meaning it is composed of a single gas. On the other hand, R404A is internally formed by a mixture of several gases.
- R22 is used in various fields, including air conditioning, refrigeration, and freezing, while R404A is mainly used for freezing and with less efficiency in refrigeration. It is not used in air conditioning.
- Both R22 and R404A are non-toxic and non-flammable.<break time=”2s”/>
- In the case of R22, it is possible to recharge it in both liquid and gaseous phases without any problem due to its nature as a pure refrigerant. However, R404A, being a gas mixture, must always be recharged in the liquid phase. This is an important consideration to take into account when performing maintenance on refrigeration systems.
- Furthermore, it’s interesting to know the internal composition of R404A. This refrigerant contains approximately 4% of R134a, 44% R125 gas, and 52% R32
- Another significant difference between the two gases is their compatibility with different types of oil. R22 is compatible with mineral oil and alkylbenzene but not with POE oil.
- On the other hand, the refrigerant gas R404A is only compatible with POE oil.
- Although R404A and R22 have a similar cooling performance, there are still many differences between them in real-world use.
- The saturation pressures of R404A and R22 are different at the same temperature, making them not interchangeable.
- If you replace R22 with R404A, problems may arise with the operation of the expansion valve, pressure control, lubrication, accumulators, separators, and refrigerant gas flow.
- Additionally, since the density of R404A gas is approximately 50% higher than that of R22, using R404A requires a larger pipe diameter for the same displacement.
- Let’s examine the differences in the measurements of the capillary tube for both refrigerant gases under the same operating condition.
- For the same compressor, the current required for R404A is higher than that for R22.
