A-Gas completes new refrigerant separator
11th September 2017
UK: Refrigerant supplier A-Gas has completed the installation of a new £1m refrigerant separator, more than doubling the reclamation capacity at its Bristol site.
The separator, one of three operated by A-Gas at its Portbury, Bristol, site is a significant investment by A-Gas which views reclamation as a growth area for its business.
A-Gas manager director John Ormerod said: “As the F-gas regulations have a greater affect on supplies of high GWP virgin refrigerants, reclaimed gases will have a growing role to play in the market place. This investment by A-Gas in separation technology highlights our commitment to providing the industry with the capacity and infrastructure to support the F-gas phase down.
“A continued reduction in the use of HFCs will put significant pressure on the supply of high GWP refrigerants. There are shortages of some high GWP refrigerants already and prices have risen considerably. Reclaimed refrigerants are much needed to fill this gap in the market as the industry comes to terms with change.”
The new separator, made of steel and 40ft high, took a year to build and install. The type of waste handled by A-Gas has changed over the years as mixtures have become more complicated and greater quantities of mixed gases emerge. Several different refrigerants combined together in one mix further raises the bar and without the latest separation technology A-Gas says it is near impossible to return the gases to the same kind of quality as virgin material.
The separator uses distillation technology to separate refrigerants of different boiling points. Once a gas leaves the separator it is sampled, certified to the meet the AHRI 700 standard and re-supplied to the market.
Related stories:
A-Gas boosts refrigerant reclamation – 16 September 2016
UK: A-Gas is to more than double its refrigerant reclamation capacity with a further investment of more than £1m on a new separator at its Bristol site. Read more…
A-Gas buys Dutch recycler BTC – 2 August 2017
UK/NETHERLANDS: A-Gas has acquired the Dutch refrigerant, speciality gases and fire suppressants reclamation business BTC. Read more…
