Polyol Ester Lubricant - The Cfc Report - True GDM Series Technical & Service Manual

POLYOL ESTER LUBRICANT
THE CFC REPORT - LEADING THE WAY INTO A NEW AGE
After exhaustive research and testing, Copeland has
determined that PolyolEster (POE) lubricants pro-
vide the best combination of characteristics for use
with the new generation of chlorine-free refrigerant.
In addition to providing superior lubrication. POE
has other advantages which increase its attractive-
ness for use in refrigeration.
Polyol Ester is a synthetic lubricant used primarily
for jet engine lubrication. It is manufactured by
numerous companies and there are various types and
grades available. Therefore, it is important to recog-
nize that all POE's are not the same.
Since POE is synthetic, it has better resistance to
high temperature degradation than refrigeration min-
eral oils. POE is also made from more expensive
base stocks making it significantly more expensive
than other refrigeration oils. Furthermore, POE is
compatible with common refrigerant and mineral oil.
Therefore, a compressor containing the oil can be
installed in a system containing HCFC's or HFC's. In
short, POE provides significant flexibility in the face
of changes brought on by the CFC issue.
HFC refrigerant require the use of POE for all
Copeland compressors. This is necessary for two
specific reasons. First, mineral oils are not readily
miscible in HFC's. When using HFC's conventional
oils will not return to the compressor. Secondly, the
chlorine contained in CFCs and HCFCs aids in the
lubricity of mineral oil.
One drawback from using POE is that they absorb
moisture from the air at a much greater rate than do
mineral oils. As a result, they must be handled and
Polyol Ester Lubricant
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packaged with much more care than conventional
oils. Copeland has not tested all types of compressors
or all combinations of refrigerant and con-Industry
knowledge of POE must rapidly increase in order to
maintain and improve expected reliability.
After conducting extensive tests for both compressor
durability and reliability on more than 40 refriger-
ant/oil combinations, Copeland identified Mobil Oil
Corporation as our preferred U.S. supplier of polyol
ester oil in terms of both the oil itself and Mobil's
ability to package and deliver the oil with acceptable
low moisture levels. Because of its technical superi-
ority. Copeland has approved Mobil's EAL Artic 22
CC polyol ester oil for use in our compressors.
To serve our customers, Copeland will distribute
E A L Artic 22 CC to the after market through
Copeland's network of 800 authorized wholesalers.
The lubricant will be charged into our new produc-
tion compressors whenever a polyol ester is specified.
C u r r e n t l y, certain approved compressor models sold
to OEMs are available with this oil installed during
manufacture. Refrigeration service compressors
charged with POE will be supplied in the near future.