To: Danny Halel, TC3

To: TC3.3

Date: 1/23/2013

From: John Senediak, Glen Steinkoenig

Subject: Title, Purpose and Scope for a proposed MOT Standard based on an Unpublished Draft of ASHRAE 63.3P and ASHRAE Project: #1028-TRP

TITLE: Method of Testing the Ability of Liquid Line Filter Driers or Adsorbents to Remove Organic Acid

PURPOSE: This standard establishes a suitable laboratory apparatus and test method for determining the ability of various adsorbents and refrigerant liquid line filter driers to remove a specific organic acid.

SCOPE: This standard is intended to specify a test procedure for measuring the mass of a specific organic acid removed from a refrigerant-lubricant mixture by a liquid line filter drier containing an adsorbent desiccant material or just a specific adsorbent material which can remove acid by adsorption and/or chemical reaction. The method will apply to the extraction of both short and long chain carboxylic acids.

BACKGROUND: Organic acids have been determined to be harmful to the materials and components used in refrigeration and air-conditioning systems as evidenced by multiple studies throughout the last 70 years. The life expectancy and performance, including cooling/ heating capacity and energy efficiency, is reduced when this occurs. Liquid line filter driers have been designed to remove these harmful acids before these effects can occur. The most common method to scavenge the acids is to use an adsorbent material inside the liquid line filter drier that removes the acid from the rest of the refrigerating system. It is important to standardize the method of testing used to determine the acid – removal capability of liquid line filter driers or of the adsorbents contained therein so end-users can be assured that published data is developed in a consistent manner.

ASHRAE proposed a Method of Testing Filter-Driers and Adsorbents for Organic Acid Removal Ability in February of 1989. This proposed standard was named ASHRAE Standard 63.3. However, this standard never made it to publication and remained as a draft. No indication could be found as to why this standard was never published. Several years later, ASHRAE commissioned a research project entitled Test Method for Organic Acid Removal by Adsorbents Used in Liquid Line Filter Driers Project #1028- TRP. A final report was prepared by The University of Dayton Research Institute in November, 2002. Again, this research did not develop into a published ASHRAE standard. Therefore, currently, there is no published ASHRAE standard addressing the MOT issue of organic acid removal in liquid line driers.

REFERENCES: ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 63.3 P Method of Testing Filter-Driers And Adsorbents for Organic Acid Removal Ability 3rd Draft; February 8, 1989

Final Report for ASHRAE Project# 1028-TRP Test Method for Organic Removal by Adsorbents Used in Liquid Line Filter Driers University of Dayton Research Institute November 2002