Wilhelmsen Ships Service has warned against the use of counterfeit refrigerant cylinders which it says pose significant risk to port workers.
Typically they consist of a dangerously unstable cocktail of gases, blended to roughly mimic the most common refrigerant, R-134a, according to Wilhelmsen’s technical product manager refrigeration, Svenn Jacobsen.
“These cylinders are often loaded with rogue gases such as R-40. Though similar to R-134a, R-40 reacts with aluminium to form trimethylaluminum, a highly volatile substance that, when exposed to air, can explode. At best, these fake refrigerants perform poorly, are energy-inefficient and are likely to damage hoses, seals and compressors. At worst, they are highly toxic, and in the case of the fatal accidents in Vietnam, China and Brazil in 2011, highly volatile.”
According to international insurer TT Club, R-40 contamination accounts for 0.2% of the world’s reefer container fleet, affecting about 2 500 reefers. However, other counterfeit refrigerant mixtures, such as those containing R-50, R-744, R-22 or R-170, are also considered unsafe, so the number of reefers affected could be far higher.
According to Jacobsen, some operators may be unaware of the potential risk of using counterfeit refrigerants, while others may be seeking to cut costs. However, the main reason these refrigerants continue to circulate is because of the continued existence of disposable cylinders. He says the absence of a worldwide ban has created a robust market for counterfeiters. “These cylinders are the container of choice for the counterfeiter,” he says. “Cheap and untraceable, no counterfeiter is ever going to get any complaints from their customers using this type of packaging.”
