Safety Regulations for Air Conditioning Systems: General

WARNING: This page is about a different car, the 2017 Chevrolet Spark. However, it is still accessible from the selected car via links, so may be relevant.

Air conditioning systems reduce the stress on the vehicle occupants during summery ambient temperature and prevent the steaming up of the panes by desiccation of the air in the passenger compartment.

For the maintenance of a proper air conditioning the following operations may need to be carried out:

Emptying (Evacuating) the air conditioning system
Filling the air conditioning system
Leakages in refrigerant circuit
Fault diagnostics on the air conditioning system
Miscellaneous maintenance or repair work

The air conditioning system contains a mixture of refrigerant and air conditioning compressor oil. The refrigerant used up to now in vehicle air conditioning systems, R134a, has a high Global Warming Potential (GWP) of 1, 430. EC Directive 2006/40/EG mandated that only refrigerant with a GWP lower than 150 may be used. To meet this requirement, R1234yf was developed as new refrigerant, having a GWP of 1.

The new EC Directive refers to vehicles of category M1 (Vehicles for passenger transportation with a maximum of 8 seats excluding driver seat) and Class 1. It affects all vehicles registered as of 01.01.2017 which are operated in the European Union. All other vehicles are permitted to be filled with the previous refrigerant R134a.

Essential part of guaranteeing work safety while handling either R134a or R1234yf is on the one hand wearing suitable personal protective equipment according to risk assignment as, for example, long-sleeved workwear, leather gloves and safety goggles (facial protection when opening the condenser), on the other hand a technically leakproof connection between the air conditioning system and the service device.

At normal atmospheric pressure and ambient temperature, liquid refrigerant (R134a/R1234yf) evaporates so fast that it can cause frostbites on contact with the skin or the eyes. Appropriate personal protective equipment must be worn.

After contact with evaporating refrigerant the eyes must not be rubbed. Eyes and other affected areas need to be rinsed with a lot of cold water for some minutes, medical treatment needs to be carried out immediately afterwards.

R134a and R1234yf are liquefiable gases in air conditioning systems. Their vapors are heavier than air and sink downwards at atmospheric pressure. They can cause suffocation due to displacing the oxygen in the air being breathed. The thermodynamic characteristics of R134a and R1234yf are similar.

To avoid an ignitable mixture, a sufficient ventilation must be provided. Open fire and light as well as ignition sources, e.g electrical arc while welding, are not allowed at workplaces where the refrigerant is handled and therefor must be kept away.

The following measures provide a secure handling of R1234yf in particular:

One-fold air change for the whole shop-floor level
Three-fold air change for the workshop pits
Exclusive usage of certified service devices

For air conditioning service on vehicles with R134a or R1234yf, special air conditioning service devices must be used. The devices must be labeled appropriately so they cannot be interchanged. The filling valves on the vehicle side are geometrically different between R134a and R1234yf air conditioning systems. Therefor the R1234yf service device has different service connectors than a R134a service device. Only service devices certified by OPEL are to be used. (see TIS/News)

A mixture of the refrigerants is prohibited by law. Furthermore the components of the R1234yf air conditioning system are especially developed and approved for this new refrigerant only. In case of an intermixture of R134a and R1234yf, the resulting mixture must be professionally evacuated from the air conditioning system and disposed of. See the procedure for contaminated refrigerant for this. (see TIS/News)

Works on air conditioning systems are only to be performed by trained professionals. Workshop staff carrying out operations relating to air conditioning systems in vehicles need a certificate of training in terms of a certificate of competence according to EG regulation (EG) Nr. 307/2008 issued by the European Comission on 02.April 2008. There is no additional certificate of competence needed for working with refrigerant R1234yf.