FORMIC ACID from Methyl Formate or Formaldehyde eats copper
Jun 14, 2021 13:49:00 GMT
ckfan and turbokinetic like this
Post by don on Jun 14, 2021 13:49:00 GMT
FORMIC ACID from Methyl Formate or Formaldehyde eats copper
This link describes how the exposure of oxygen to formaldehyde results in the creation of formic acid which Trane Inc. determined causes the pinhole leaks in the copper A coils used in today's modern A/C systems. Formaldehyde is used in house building materials such as particle board. Their solution was to manufacture aluminum coils. I have read that there are now tin plated coils available. A friend of mine showed me the pinhole leaks he was experiencing on his type M copper water lines. Since then he had his AC system replaced because the inside A coil was leaking.
www.watkinsheating.com/blog/the-cause-of-refrigerant-leaks/
When I cut open my stuck CA compressor years ago I was amazed at how bright and shiny the copper tubing and the windings were. After I determined that the reason the compressor was stuck was because of copper plating that had reduced the compressor end play clearance to zero I researched the issue and found that GE had later added lard oil to the system to try prevent copper plating. Lard oil is a metal soap. The methyl formate was breaking down which was creating formic acid which was eating the copper tubing and windings (bright and shiny) which was then being plated on the metal surfaces. This link documents the previous forum discussion.
monitortop.freeforums.net/thread/868/lard-oil-copper-plating
www.thefreelibrary.com/Determine+the+mechanism+for+copper+plating+and+methods+for+Its...-a0201378217
