World News
19th September 2013
Engineers need training in low GWP refrigerants
EUROPE: The European air conditioning and refrigeration contractors association AREA has repeated concerns over the lack of properly trained engineers to work with “natural” refrigerants.…
18th September 2013
Supermarkets continue move away from HFCs
UK: Supermarkets across Europe are on the cusp of a revolutionary move away from HFCs, according to the latest annual Chilling Facts report from the…
16th September 2013
Five face charges over ammonia leak
CHINA: Five people face possible criminal charges and 12 have been "disciplined" over the ammonia leak which killed five people and injured 25 at a…
13th September 2013
Proposed pre-charge ban under threat
EUROPE: The European air conditioning and refrigeration contractors’ group AREA has sent a letter to EU members warning of the consequences of dropping the proposed…
10th September 2013
Counterfeit R134a in the EU
POLAND: Cylinders being sold in Poland as containing R134a have been found to contain a cocktail of refrigerants including CFCs. Initial suspicions are said to…
9th September 2013
Seven die in ammonia leak in India
INDIA: Seven workers have died ofasphyxia and five hospitalised following a massive ammonia leak at a cold storage unit in Ranasar, Vijapur Taluka on Saturday.…
7th September 2013
G20 leaders back HFC phase down
RUSSIA: The world’s leading economic countries have agreed to place a phase down on HFC refrigerants within the framework of the Montreal Protocol. The agreement…
5th September 2013
Safeway USA to pay $600,000 for R22 leaks
USA: Safeway, America's second largest supermarket chain, has agreed to pay a $600,000 penalty for failures in repairing R22 refrigerant leaks and not…
4th September 2013
Arkema to start R1234yf production
FRANCE: Arkema is to move ahead with industrial-scale production of the controversial refrigerant R1234yf. The French chemical manufacturer has confirmed a two-phase implementation in…
3rd September 2013
Change of owners for AHT
AUSTRIA: AHT Cooling Systems, the Austrian manufacturer of commercial plug-in refrigeration equipment, has been bought by private equity group Bridgepoint for €585m. The deal reached…
3rd September 2013
Mitsi to launch R32 units in Japan
JAPAN: Mitsubishi Electric is to launch an air conditioning unit in Japan using the low GWP, "mildly flammable" refrigerant R32. While fellow Japanese manufacturer Daikin…
2nd September 2013
Detached pipe cap caused ammonia leak
CHINA: A detached pipe cap may have been the cause of the ammonia leak on Saturday which killed 15 people at a fish processing…
1st September 2013
Danfoss celebrates 80 years
[caption id="attachment_565" align="alignleft" width="200"] Danfoss founder Mads Clausen (1905 - 1966)[/caption] DENMARK: Today marks the 80th anniversary of the formation of Danfoss by Mads Clausen…
31st August 2013
Fifteen dead in Shanghai ammonia leak
CHINA: Fifteen people are reported to have died and as many as 30 injured in an ammonia leak at a refrigerated warehouse in…
28th August 2013
Low GWP R134a drop-ins show good results
USA: R1234ze and a new Daikin blend of R134a and 1234yf have shown good results in drop-in tests in an R134a air-cooled screw chiller. The…
26th August 2013
Legionella cases rise to 102 in German outbreak
GERMANY: The cases of legionnaires’ disease in the outbreak in Warstein had risen to 102 as of yesterday (Sunday). Two people have so…
26th August 2013
MHI to open office in Iraq
IRAQ: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd aims to capitalise on the reconstruction of Iraq by opening an office in Basra, the war-torn country’s second-largest city.…
26th August 2013
Danfoss offers online industrial training
DENMARK: A programme of industrial refrigeration courses are now available completely free of charge on Danfoss Learning, an online education platform created by the…
20th August 2013
Johnson Controls and Daikin are top innovators
USA: Johnson Controls and Daikin remain two of the most innovative companies according to Forbes, the influential US business magazine and website. The magazine’s latest…
19th August 2013
Russians intercept R22 ac units from China
RUSSIA: Customs officers at the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk are said to have intercepted a shipment of 130 air conditioning split systems…
16th August 2013
Refrigeration to the rescue?
JAPAN: Refrigeration could come to the rescue of the Tsunami-hit Fukushima nuclear plant which is still spewing contaminated water into the sea more…
14th August 2013
New adsorbent found by mistake
SWEDEN: A novel highly adsorbent material, which could have uses within the air conditioning and refrigeration industry, has been produced by accident at a Swedish…
12th August 2013
US must update refrigeration efficiency standards
USA: In a move that it is said will save an estimated $156m per month, a coalition of US States has forced the…
12th August 2013
Windows with an in-built cooling system
USA: Researchers at Harvard University claim to have developed a window with its own in-built cooling system. The new window-cooling system – or a bio-inspired…
8th August 2013
Cool revolution in refrigerated transport?
ITALY: A sorption heat pump (S-HP), based on the adsorption/desorption of a hydrogen gas stream, could provide significant savings over traditional transport refrigeration systems, a…
8th August 2013
No risk, but Germans call for further tests
GERMANY: The German Federal Transport Authority (KBA) has recommended further tests be carried out on the R1234yf after its own risk assessments carried out by…
6th August 2013
Look out below!
CHINA: Images, like this, of air conditioning units festooned on the outside of buildings are likely to both excite air conditioning engineers and horrify architects…