Fast read
Due in large part to the refrigerants they utilise, air conditioners negatively influence the environment.
The ozone layer and global warming are harmed by chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) in older air conditioners. So hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), which also contribute to global warming but do not affect the ozone layer, took their place.
HFC usage is currently being phased out internationally to lessen its environmental impact. Because they have fewer adverse effects on the environment than HFCs, other refrigerants, including ammonia and butane, are being explored as HFC substitutes.
When investing in a new air conditioner, it's crucial to consider how it will affect the environment. Additionally, it's crucial to decommission older systems so refrigerants may be appropriately recycled.
Do air conditioners harm the environment around them?
Air conditioning systems are great for homes in Australia and New Zealand, but they can harm the environment and be expensive, with both Australia and New Zealand facing recurring heat waves and frequent cold snaps, air conditioners are a vital home appliance.
Refrigerants can cause Ozone layer damage
Older air conditioners used chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) as refrigerant gas. CFCs were popular as they were not toxic or flammable and did not cause any corrosion in the inner workings of a fridge or air conditioning unit.
Unfortunately, CFCs have been identified as Ozone-depleting gases and are very bad for our environment. CFCs leaked out of older units that lacked maintenance via cracked seals. Similarly, in the 1980s and 1990s, many outdated air-conditioning units ended up in landfills. Allowing CFCs to escape into the atmosphere through this disposal method.
Scientists spent time researching the damage to the Ozone layer. They discovered that the gas remained in the upper atmosphere for an extended period. The sun’s UV radiation would destroy them when they finally reached the stratosphere.
Unfortunately, the issue didn’t end there; chlorine emerged as a byproduct during the breakdown into different elements. The chlorine then attacked the protective Ozone layer letting in additional radiation to the Earth’s surface and increasing the risk of skin cancer for humans and animals.
For this reason, CFCs were banned in air-conditioning units in the 1990s. Since this ban came into place, the annual hole in the Ozone layer has shrunk, meaning this initiative had a positive effect on the environment.
HFCs replaced CFCs, but now they pose a problem too
CFCs were replaced by hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs). However, recently, the US joined nearly 150 other countries in an international agreement to ban HFCs.
HFCs do not cause an Ozone hole like their predecessor, but what we thought would fix one issue has started another.
HFCs are a significant climate-warming gas and can contribute as much as 4% to the current global warming trend. This is extremely significant if we consider that all flights of all aircraft across the globe contribute about 2% to global warming annually.
With an estimated 300 million air conditioners being put in landfill each year, you can imagine how bad this may be for our environment. Replacing them quickly is now a top priority for cooling systems such as heat pumps, air conditioners, and fridges. This is because they are now the top choice for cooling systems. Replacing them quickly is important.
For this reason, it is also important to have a professional do it when decommissioning air-conditioning units.
How does it work?
What we need now is a heat exchanger fluid with specific characteristics. This fluid must circulate in a refrigerator or air conditioner coil pipes to absorb the surrounding heat or cold. In the case of a fridge, when the liquid with unique characteristics absorbs the heat, it turns into a gas.
The resulting gas moves to the coils on the back of the refrigerator, where a compressor turns it back into a fluid form, cooling down in the process. The fridge uses this coldness for cooling. As it does, the fridge releases absorbed heat into the room from behind it.
That’s why when someone checks behind a fridge, the air usually feels a little hotter. Standing in front of an outdoor air conditioner unit allows you to feel the temperature of the air it is emitting.
If the air conditioner is heating, you will feel warm air, if the air conditioner is cooling, you will feel cold air. Heat pumps that generate, for example, hot water also use this principle.
So we are now again looking for a gas that can turn into a liquid and a liquid that can become a gas at the right temperature and pressure. Both ammonia and butane look promising, but unfortunately, they both have higher corrosive properties. This means the protection of metals and seals must be more advanced. Still, we need to move away from HFCs at the earliest opportunity.
Air conditioners often rely on coal-fired electricity for operation
The other major drawback is that unless your home is utilising renewable energy, air conditioners consume a lot of electricity, which affects our environment and your electricity bills.
For example, an extremely large air conditioner unit can use 5000 Watts of electricity per hour. While small-to-medium-sized air conditioners use roughly 3,000 to 4000 Watts per hour. For 35 cents per kWh, if one would run the exceedingly large unit for 4 hours, this equates to $7 dollars in electricity just for one afternoon.
Because of these high energy needs, air conditioners emit high amounts of greenhouse gas emissions into the environment. Accounting for up to 2% of all greenhouse gas emissions worldwide.
More energy demand may prompt more burning of fossil fuels, resulting in increased CO2 emissions harmful to the environment. Therefore if one is considering running the air conditioner for prolonged periods in your home. You should consider getting a solar system to keep the running costs manageable.
