Freon
Freon gas is a commercial name for organic chemical compounds, known scientifically as chlorofluorocarbons, and is abbreviated by the symbol CFCIt includes: chlorine, fluorine, and carbon compounds, which are non-flammable compounds, and they were discovered by the American scientist Thomas Midgley, and he used them as a substitute for other toxic gases that were used for the purposes of air conditioning and refrigeration, such as: ammonia gas, in Approximately the beginning of the twentieth century, and freon gas is cheap, and it is prepared in a direct way, which is chlorination and fluorination of methane gas, or in another indirect way.
Freon is a compound that has a long life, it may reach about a hundred years, and it has many types, and the most important of these types is what is known scientifically as dichlorodifluoromethane, and industrially as fluorocarbon-12, or Freon-12, and its chemical formula is CF2Cl2, and trichlorofluoromethane, known industrially as compound Freon 11, or fluorocarbon 11, and its chemical formula is CFCl3.
Benefits of freon gas
It is considered a safe gas in cases of leakage, which facilitates the process of using it in various industries. It is odorless, colorless, and non-toxic, in addition to being a stable and chemically inert gas. Therefore, it does not interact with other metals when in contact with it.
Read also:Where is the largest oil field in the world located?- It has a high ability to easily convert from the liquid state to the gaseous state, and from the gaseous state to the liquid state, and among the most prominent industries in which freon gas enters:
- Industries of air-conditioning and refrigeration devices: This use is one of its most popular uses, as it is used as a medium for refrigeration in it, and among the devices that are included in its work: refrigerators, home air conditioners, refrigeration systems in cars, and frozen food containers.
- Manufacture of plastic foam used in the manufacture of insulation materials.
- Aerosol industry, such as: air freshener and deodorant sprays.
- Sterilization of some medical equipment and sensitive electronic devices.
Freon damage
The increasing use of freon gas in human activities has led to an increase in its quantities in the atmosphere, and the danger of this gas lies in its decomposition in the upper layers of the atmosphere by means of ultraviolet rays, which leads to the liberation of chlorine atoms from it, and damage to the ozone layer, which is necessary to protect the earth from ultraviolet radiation harmful to all creatures. Living on the surface of the globe, and its danger to the ozone layer lies in the interaction of the chlorine atoms disassembled from it with it, and causing it to expand its hole; Therefore, many governments tended to limit the use of this gas, and to use compounds that do not contain chlorine atoms as a substitute for it, and to completely dispense with it during the next few years.
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