A technician is servicing an older split system charged with R-22. What type of refrigerant is R-22?
Environmental impacts · EPA 608 Core. The correct answer, and the reasoning behind it.
How CFCs and HCFCs destroy stratospheric ozone, and what that does to health and the environment.
The question
A technician is servicing an older split system charged with R-22. What type of refrigerant is R-22?
- Hydrocarbon
- CFC
- HFC
- HCFCCorrect answer
Why “HCFC” is correct
R-22 is a hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFC). It still contains chlorine, so it depletes ozone, but its added hydrogen makes it break down more in the lower atmosphere, giving it a much lower ozone depletion potential than a CFC.
Source: EPA: Test Topics
Why the other answers are wrong
- Hydrocarbon — Hydrocarbons such as propane (R-290) contain only hydrogen and carbon.
- CFC — CFCs such as R-12 and R-11 have no hydrogen; R-22 does.
- HFC — HFCs such as R-410A and R-134a contain no chlorine; R-22 does.
Practice more of this
More EPA 608 Core practice questions, or see every EPA 608 practice test.
Unofficial, not affiliated with the EPA or any EPA-approved certifying organization. Questions are original practice written from public EPA material, not real exam questions.