R290

North American Sustainable Refrigeration Council Welcomes Lowe Corporation as Gold Level Member

 

MILL VALLEY, Calif.—The North American Sustainable Refrigeration Council (NASRC), a 501(c)(3) environmental nonprofit working to advance climate-friendly natural refrigerants in supermarkets, announces its newest Gold-level member, Lowe Corporation. A collective of 5 pioneering brands comprised of Lowe Rental, LoweConex, Abbey Design Associates (ADA), Portal Kitchens Limited (PKL) and Rental+ who together are committed to delivering sustainable rental services.

Lowe Rental's unique offering, RaaS (Refrigeration as a Service), provides self-contained propane (R290) refrigeration cases. These act as temporary solutions for retailers transitioning to natural refrigerants, minimizing store disruptions and maintaining customer experiences. 

“Our retail services enabled one of the world’s largest retailers to convert stores across the USA to CO2 refrigeration by 2040 without the closure of store locations or disruption to customer sales. Allowing their organization to meet legislated requirements while maintaining 97% of store revenue,” said Kyle Payne, Head of Retail Sales USA for Lowe Rental.

This is an important solution amidst the phase-out of commonly used hydrofluorocarbon refrigerants (HFCs), which are extremely potent greenhouse gases and one of the leading drivers of climate change. Natural refrigerants like CO2, ammonia, and propane have near-zero global warming potential, making them climate-friendly and future-proof natural alternatives to HFCs.

Transitioning to these alternatives, however, requires a costly full system replacement. Stand-alone R290 cases like those available through Lowe Rental offer a flexible solution that enables a gradual transition and reduces store down time. Lowe Rental’s retail services offering is also supported by refrigeration design consultants, Abbey Design Associates, and LoweConex, an asset control technology to monitor refrigerants and detect leaks. This combination provides a holistic solution to support refrigeration infrastructure upgrades.

“As a trusted partner to multi-national retailers across the USA and around the world, we have seen a dynamic shift towards natural refrigerants and energy efficient refrigeration that enables retailers to minimize their environmental impact,” said Richard Epton, Chief Operating Officer USA for Lowe Rental. “It was imperative we partnered with NASRC to play a vital role in addressing barriers to adoption head on, participating in collective discussion to accelerate meaningful action within the retail industry.

By working with stakeholders from virtually every sector of the grocery refrigeration industry, NASRC is leading efforts to accelerate the transition to natural refrigerants. Its membership network represents over 51,000 US food retail locations as well as service contractors, manufacturers and suppliers, consultants, engineering firms, utilities, trade associations, nonprofits, and schools.

“Lowe Corporation’s investment in an NASRC membership demonstrates a strong commitment to advancing natural refrigerants,” said Danielle Wright, NASRC Executive Director. “We’re thrilled to welcome them to our network and look forward to collaborating with them to drive solutions for the industry and the climate.”


About the North American Sustainable Refrigeration Council

The North American Sustainable Refrigeration Council (NASRC) is a 501(c)(3) environmental nonprofit working to advance climate-friendly natural refrigerants and reduce greenhouse gas emissions caused by traditional HFC refrigerants. We collaborate with stakeholders from across the industry, including over 51,000 food retail locations, to eliminate the barriers to natural refrigerants in supermarkets. For more information, visit nasrc.org, LinkedIn, Twitter and YouTube.

 

About Lowe Corporation 

Established 1977 in Northern Ireland, Lowe Corporation has continued to lead and innovate rental solutions for refrigeration and foodservice equipment around the world. Today under five owned brands and operating from eighteen locations throughout UK, USA, Asia and Europe, Lowe brings together an award-winning suite of equipment rental solutions, industry redefining IoT technology and recognised global refrigeration expertise that empowers its customers to achieve their financial and environmental goals.  For more information visit www.lowerental.com, www.abbeydesignassociates.com, www.loweconex.com.

R290 Charge Limit – Progress & Next Steps

Amidst increasing regulatory pressures at the state and federal levels, a growing number of US food retailers are looking to natural refrigerants – including carbon dioxide, ammonia, and propane – as future-proof options. Propane solutions offer opportunities for new and existing stores, but innovation has been limited due to the current allowable charge size of 150g per circuit in self-contained cases. Much of the industry is anxiously awaiting the approval of higher charge sizes for propane through codes and standards due to potential energy, capacity, and cost benefits.

2019 marked a turning point when the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) 60336-2-89 standard was updated to increase the charge limit for A3 refrigerants - including R-290 (Propane) and R-600a (Isobutane) - to 500g at the international level. After the publication of the updated IEC standard, a CANENA technical harmonization committee led a harmonization effort that resulted in an updated UL-60335-2-89 (UL 2-89) standard allowing up to 300g per circuit in cases with doors and 500g per circuit in open cases. The updated standard has been finalized and was published last Wednesday, October 27th.

But as new regulations begin to take effect in the US, there is a need to accelerate the approval of the higher charge sizes through other codes and standards updates. We’ve put together a brief summary of the status and next steps for each of the remaining updates needed for the widespread approval of higher propane charge limits in the US:

ASHRAE 15

  • Status: In Progress

  • Summary: The ASHRAE 15 committee has drafted an addendum to approve the higher charge sizes in alignment with UL 2-89 for listed equipment. The addendum is expected to be released for a public comment period in the near future.

  • Next Steps: NASRC will continue to monitor the standard update.

EPA SNAP

  • Status: In Progress

  • Summary: Multiple applications have been submitted to the EPA to approve the higher charge sizes in alignment with UL 2-89. The EPA has been unable to process those applications without a published standard that incorporates the higher charge sizes. Now that the updated UL 2-89 standard has been published, the EPA can begin to process applications to approve the higher charge sizes.

  • Next Steps: NASRC will push for accelerated approval of higher charge sizes.

Building Codes

  • Status: In Progress

  • Summary: Building codes are typically updated in accordance with international building code updates. Currently, the international building codes do not align with the higher charge sizes listed in UL 2-89, but there will be an opportunity to update the international codes to reflect the new UL 2-89 in early 2022. Once the international codes have been updated, a state-by-state effort to update building codes will be necessary. This will be the biggest and most time-consuming challenge to get the higher charge sizes approved.

  • Next Steps: NASRC will collaborate with AHRI and a coalition of other NGOs to ensure the international codes are updated and accelerate building code updates at the state level. Contact us to get involved.

R290 Charge Limit Increase - What's Next?

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Last year, the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) 60336-2-89 standard was updated to increase the charge limit for A3 refrigerants - including R-290 (Propane) and R-600a (Isobutane) - to 500g at the international level. Since then, a CANENA technical harmonization committee has been working to adapt the IEC standard in the US, where the charge limit is still 150g.

NASRC recently co-hosted a member Q&A session on the pending charge limit increase in the US with Charlie Hon, who currently serves as the chairman for the CANENA committee. Here’s a few updates on the status and next steps to increase the R290 charge limit in the US:

  • CANENA - The CANENA committee has drafted an update to the UL 60335-2-89 standard, which would increase the charge limit for A3 refrigerants to 300g for self-contained systems with doors or drawers and 500g for other self-contained systems (e.g., open cases) in the US.

  • UL - The draft update has been submitted to UL, and in the next few months it will be sent out for a public comment period and the UL committee will vote to approve it. The standard is expected to be approved by Q1 2021. 

In addition to the UL standard update, the following steps must be completed before the larger A3 charge sizes are allowable:

  • EPA SNAP - EPA SNAP must accept the larger charge sizes before they can be sold. The CANENA committee will submit an application to EPA SNAP as soon as the updated UL standard is approved.

  • ASHRAE 15 - The ASHRAE 15 standard must be revised to include the larger charge sizes. This effort is being done in coordination with the CANENA committee.

  • Building Codes - National Building and Fire Codes will need to be modified. The next code cycle takes place in 2022.

All of these steps are expected to be completed by 2022 at the earliest, at which point the higher A3 charge sizes would be approved for use.

So what does all of this mean? Basically, a future with higher R290 charge sizes in self-contained equipment is on the horizon, but there is still work to be done.

IEC Releases Draft Proposal for Increased Charge Limit for Flammable Refrigerants

Last month, the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) released their draft proposal to raise the maximum charge size for flammable refrigerants in commercial self-contained cases from 150 grams to 500 grams. This marks another significant step forward for the NASRC's work to change standards to increase the maximum charge limit for R290 use in self-contained equipment, one of the goals of the Codes & Standards progress group.

Why Does a Higher Charge Limit Matter?

According to Marek Zgliczynski, Chair of the IEC subcommittee responsible for developing the proposal, this standard, known as IEC60335-2-89, "is the basis for all regional and national product standards for household or similar commercial-type applications.” The proposed change will "increase the maximum allowable charge of flammable refrigerants in [commercial self-contained display cases], while maintaining the same safety level of the present standard with 150 grams," explains Zgliczynski.

The current charge limit of 150 grams is severely limiting the use of propane self-contained systems in the US. While 150 grams of propane is adequate for small-to-medium-sized display cases, the larger display cases that are prevalent in this country need more propane for cost-effective operation

The main concerns about higher propane charge sizes relate to safety, as is to be expected with an A3 refrigerant. The specific requirements in the IEC’s proposal ensure that cases with 500 grams of propane are as safe as those with 150 grams. These requirements include the following:

  • The refrigerant circuit must be hermetically sealed and mechanically protected;

  • Construction cannot cause excessive vibrations of circuit piping;

  • Airflow is required to avoid flammable concentration beyond the boundary of appliance, certified with a special leak test; and

  • Appliance must be installed in a room with a floor area not less than the marked minimum room area.

 What’s Next? 

The proposal has to pass two stages of voting, the first of which will close mid-July. The IEC is accepting comments from stakeholders at http://www.iec.ch/comment/ until that time. The NASRC will provide instructions to members on how to submit comments and template language that members may use to express support for the IEC proposal.

If the draft proposal receives a two-thirds majority in the first vote, it will move to the second and final stage of voting. If the proposal passes the final stage, a new edition of IEC60335-2-89 will be published in early 2019.

Zgliczynski noted that, "this new standard will allow for systems manufacturers to comply with present and future regulations phasing out high-GWP refrigerants globally in this specific market segment."

As state and federal governments ban or phase down high-GWP HFC and HFO-blend refrigerants, commercial refrigerant end-users will need access to technologies that use refrigerants with GWPs below 150. Propane self-contained systems show great potential to meet much of that need. The main hurdle preventing the widespread use of this technology in the US is the slow pace of ASHRAE and UL in revising their standards. The IEC proposal, if passed, is the stimulus that the US standards organizations need to get them moving in the right direction. To encourage ASHRAE and UL to work with the NASRC to speed up their timelines, sign the NASRC petition for faster revision of codes and standards.

NASRC Call to Action 

The NASRC is calling on industry stakeholders to contribute to this initiative with the following activities:

  • Submit comments in support of the draft IEC proposal.

  • Sign the NASRC petition for the expedited revision of existing codes and standards for low-GWP refrigerants in commercial refrigeration.