The Natural Refrigeration Review is a quarterly publication that contains technical articles, regulatory and code updates, industry news and information about IIAR activities and publications. It is distributed by email to all IIAR Members and IIAR Contact lists.
SUMMER 2026 THE NATURAL REFRIGERATION REVIEW
The Natural Refrigeration Review issues are available as PDF downloads for both lIAR members and non-members, or as individual article posts below. Click the button to view the full issue, or scroll through all the individual issue articles below.
The Ammonia Refrigeration Foundation Celebrates 10-Year Anniversary
The Ammonia Refrigeration Foundation, which celebrates its 10-year anniversary in October, is dedicated to funding research projects and creating educational opportunities, and those efforts will continue to expand under the guidance of executive director Lois Stirewalt O’Connor and the Ammonia Refrigeration Foundation Board of Directors.
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Reducing Ammonia Charge in a Field-Built System
As part of the push within the ammonia refrigeration industry to minimize ammonia system charges, some companies are turning to packaged systems to achieve lower charge, but it is also possible to reduce charge in field-built systems.
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Ventilating the Machine Room
Although proper design and installation of ventilation systems for machinery rooms to manage ammonia leaks is of critical importance to the industrial ammonia refrigeration industry, the design and safety standards set forth in the IIAR-2 standard remain a mystery to many designers and facility owners
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OSHA Convenes Small Business Panel on Potential Changes to PSM
In June 2016, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) convened a Small Business Advocacy Review (SBAR) Panel to get feedback from small businesses about potential changes to the Process Safety Management (PSM) regulation.
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IIAR Partners with ASTI on First 30 Minutes
The International Institute of Ammonia Refrigeration is partnering once again with the Ammonia Safety Training Institute, ASTI, in its continuing effort to clearly define how to address the first 30 minutes of a response to an emergency involving ammonia, IIAR said.
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Daily Inspection i n a r Webinar: Employee Participation & Training
Engaging employees and providing them quality training is critical when it comes to minimizing risks and protecting both on-site and off-site personnel, property and the environment, which is why employee participation and training are required parts of the process safety management and risk management plan programs, said IIAR in the latest member webinar to be released by the Institute.
Read MoreLow Recirculation Rate Eva
Forced-air, tube, and fin evaporators have been used to refrigerate air for more than 75 years. In the 1960s, several papers documented the performance advantages of pumping ammonia through tubes with an excess amount of liquid, and pumped overfeed evaporators have been the popular choice for industrial ammonia refrigeration systems ever since.
Read MoreChairman’s Message
Now that the IIAR conference has ended and we’re back at work, your IIAR Board of Directors, IIAR Staff and member volunteers are putting forth great effort to carry the momentum of our Orlando Conference forward into the rest of the year
Read MorePresident’s Message by Dave Rule
There’s a lot going on at IIAR headquarters these days. We’re growing and expanding with new initiatives, programs and goals for the new membership year. That growth just reflects the expansion of our industry in general.
Read MoreFrom Regulation to Operation. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Owners and operators of ammonia refrigeration equipment have a number of regulatorydriven documentation requirements, and the level of understanding regarding those requirements can vary from company to company.
Read MoreNew Programs, Initiatives Take the Foundation to the Next Level
The Ammonia Refrigeration Foundation, IIAR’s education and research foundation, is launching an effort to expand the outreach of the organization through a new legacy planned giving program. At the same time, leaders said the Foundation would build its visibility and impact this year by celebrating its 10-year anniversary with renewed attention to mission, scholarship, talent development and research.
Read MoreEPA Adds New Refrigerants to Phase-Out List
The Environmental Protection Agency has released its latest proposed rule that would make changes to the Significant New Alternatives Policy program, further restricting uses of what it terms higher global warming potential refrigerants, including HFCs.
Read MoreIIAR Standards Shaping RAGAGEP
Awareness of International Institute of Ammonia Refrigeration’s IIAR-2 standard is increasing among regulatory agencies, and is beginning to shape recognized and generally accepted good engineering practices, industry and government sources said.
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IIAR Recognized for Standards Development
With the completion of IIAR-2 – the first comprehensive standard for the safe design of ammonia refrigeration systems – along with a companion suite of IIAR standards addressing installation, commissioning, operations and decommissioning, IIAR has evolved to become internationally recognized as a standards development organization, or SDO, said Jeffrey Shapiro, P.E., IIAR’s code consultant and president of International Code Consultants.
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Applying Natural Refrigerants to New Applications
Is it feasible to apply lowcharge ammonia technology in an application that has traditionally been dominated by the use of HFCs and other synthetic refrigerants? That’s what a big-end user wanted to know when it approached Azane Inc., a package supplier based in California, to manufacture a lowcharge ammonia chiller that provides chilled water to a HVAC air conditioning system.
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Designing for DX Technology: Four Steps
The movement toward low-charge systems is growing in popularity in the ammonia refrigeration industry for several reasons, and one effective way to significantly reduce ammonia charge is to design and operate evaporators using DX [direct expansion] technology.
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EPA Issues Proposed Rule on RMP
On March 14, 2016, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published in the Federal Register a proposed rule to modernize the Risk Management Program. The rulemaking comes as a part of the Obama Administration’s efforts to implement Executive Order 13650 – Improving Chemical Facility Safety and Security. The Executive Order was issued in response to an incident at a fertilizer plant in West, Texas in April 2013.
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Evaluating Safety in CO2 Systems
The use of carbon-dioxide refrigeration systems has been gaining in popularity in recent years as an alternative to ammonia systems, as companies learn about their energy efficiency, safety benefits and resiliency. Although CO2 , like ammonia, is classified as a “natural refrigerant,” there are a number of differences between the two refrigerants, related to the significantly higher operating pressure of CO2 systems that are critical to understand from a safety perspective.
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Qualifying Ammonia Refrigeration Contractors
Business owners and operators must take steps to ensure that contractors working on or near ammonia refrigeration systems have the necessary qualifications and work experience to help employers understand their responsibilities related to ammonia refrigeration contractors, and demonstrate their proficiency in working with the system, Tony Lundell, IIAR director of standards and safety said. Lundell led an IIAR webinar in April entitled, “Qualifying Ammonia Refrigeration Contractors.”
Read MoreIIAR Submits Formal Questions on Eyewash, Safety Showers
The revision of IIAR-2 involved discussions of many philosophical and practical matters. Among the topics discussed was that of the need for eyewash/safety showers in areas other than machinery rooms, and specifically in cold environments such as a freezer or on the roof.
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