sulfur hexafluoride climate change

Sure, global warming might (eventually) kill some people, but turning off the power grid kills a lot more people, and does it a lot more quickly. Sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) is an inorganic, colorless, odorless, non-flammable, extremely potent greenhouse gas which is an excellent electrical insulator. They include HFCs, PFCs, SF6 and NF3. This makes GIS more suitable for certain purposes such as indoor placement, as opposed to air-insulated electrical gear, which takes up considerably more room. SF6 is also commonly encountered as a high voltage dielectric in the high voltage supplies of particle accelerators, such as Van de Graaff generators and Pelletrons and high voltage transmission electron microscopes. Thanks for your expert perspective. (and that is all that is needed for it to have its substantial impact.). Save 10% on 2 select item (s) $9.99 delivery Oct 13 - 25. @article{osti_6819363, title = {Climate change: The IPCC scientific assessment}, author = {Houghton, J T and Jenkins, G J and Ephraums, J J}, abstractNote = {Book review of the intergovernmental panel on climate change report on global warming and the greenhouse effect. The years 2013-2021 all rank among the ten warmest years on record. At present, it is the most compact and cheapest method of safely stopping the flow of electricity," explains SINTEF researcher Atle Pedersen. In the atmosphere, we also have wind, which further aids the mixing process. Generally, it does not readily interact with other substances, which leads to its properties of being colorless, non-flammable and non-toxic. The electric power industry can reduce the nations SF6 emissions through cost-effective operational improvements and equipment upgrades. We then remove that breaker from service, the bottles will then be emptied completely into the recovery tank and new or refurbished bottles will be installed. Heating is the elephant in the room that no one wants to address. That quenched emperor banner art is superb! Due to the density of it , most of it will be close to the earths surface , and there must be a way to harvest it. The industry as a whole takes sf6 leakage very seriously, not because of the atmosphere but because of the destructive nature of a large current high voltage arc. Greenhouse gases absorb this infrared radiation and trap its heat in the atmosphere, creating a greenhouse effect that results in global warming and climate change. Sulfur Hexafluoride (SF6) Sulfur Hexafluoride (SF6) Recent efforts (supported by NOAA's Climate Program Office) have allowed development of techniques for simultaneously measuring dissolved Sulfur Hexafluoride (SF 6) along with CFCs in the same water sample. Chemical structure: This structure is also available as a 2d Mol file. part may be reproduced without the written permission. Norway has consistently adopted the EU regulations into Norwegian law because of its membership in the European Economic Area. Silicon etching using only Oxygen at high temperature: An alternative approach to Si micro-machining on 150 mm Si wafers. It is an incombustible gas that carries no color, odor, or toxin. Thank you for taking time to provide your feedback to the editors. PMC I know its harder to keep every other molecule out. But, lets for a moment assume that it needs to be in the upper layers of the atmosphere! Good article that sheds light on an important and underreported topic. 2022 Jun 4;22(1):217. doi: 10.1186/s12890-022-02012-z. The effect of gravity keeping heavier stuff towards the bottom of the atmosphere is a fairly weak force compared to the interactions within the gas itself. In the case of SF6, it would seem fair to ask just what the scope of the threat is. If you could somehow fill a bottle with SF6 at the bottom, and air at the top such that the gasses are completely stagnant. I checked and online, Im seeing that SF6 is 5 times heavier than air. Its a rate process. The Earth Observing System Data and Information System is a key core capability in NASA's Earth Science Data Systems Program. IUPAC Standard InChIKey: SFZCNBIFKDRMGX-UHFFFAOYSA-N. Released from the burning of fossil fuels and other carbon-intensive practices, it creates a . The purpose of the experiment, which had been announced earlier in March by the Secretary of State for Transport Douglas Alexander, was to investigate how toxic gas might spread throughout London Underground stations and buildings during a terrorist attack. If someone really wants to impress me, please explain how a renewable energy source is going to heat our buildings in major northern cities. 2018 Jan 16;52(2):369-380. doi: 10.1021/acs.est.7b03465. Total emissions. Sulphur hexafluoride reacts with a base like sodium hydroxide and forms sodium sulphate, sodium fluoride and water. Water vapour (HO) in the atmosphere is a key component of the Earth's hydrological cycle, critical in shaping the global environment and supporting life on Earth as we know it. seals that can keep SF6 in, instead of seals that keep every other molecule out. Yet while measures are being implemented to curb the release of CO2, for SF6 the same does not appear to be the case, despite the potentially much greater impact that SF6 has. Dont get me wrong these bottles do leak sometimes and there are incidents because of it. Although a small part of the gas may be broken down into the toxic S2F10 (disulfur decafluoride), most breakdown products will quickly reform into SF6, which makes it a low-maintenance choice for switchgear. Beer Lambert quantification (caution some calculus) The fluorinated gases have in common that they tend to be man-made, popular in industry and other applications, and have a high GWP. Sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) is a synthetic fluorinated compound with an extremely stable molecular structure. What does heavier than air mean? With vacuum switchgear, the bill is split between the people who benefit from the switch gear. An Annoying Apartment Entry System, Properly Pipe Laser Light Around With Homebrew Fiber Couplings. Disclaimer, National Library of Medicine They note five main source of SF6 leakage: As for the major SF6-emitting countries, these were deduced from measurements to be primarily China and South Korea in East-Asia, and Germany in Western Europe. But if you keep dismissing vacuum because its just harder to maintain, then it means youre dismissing a whole lot of research that could have been done, which would have benefitted the keeping a vacuum in. Why not? Their commercial names are Novec 4710 ((CF3)2CFCN) and Novec 5110 ((CF3)2CFC(O)CF3), both being fluoronitrile and fluoroketone mixes. During its working cycle, SF6 decomposes under electrical stress, forming toxic byproducts that are a health threat for working personnel in the event of exposure. But they operate under near ideal steady state conditions with only one gas! .mw-parser-output .ib-chembox{border-collapse:collapse;text-align:left}.mw-parser-output .ib-chembox td,.mw-parser-output .ib-chembox th{border:1px solid #a2a9b1;width:40%}.mw-parser-output .ib-chembox td+td{width:60%}. If we are killing the planet by releasing all these gases and there are in effect zero consequences for each individual release, the planet is going to die from cumulative effects. Just a large connector with a row of springy contacts that have a bit of a staircase shape to them so that one teeth at a time disengages. Yet while measures are being. Abundances are given as pollution free monthly mean mole fractions in parts-per-trillion. H2O does a fairly good job at much lower altitudes (1-6 km for the majority of clouds). What makes SF6 such an excellent, one-stop shop choice for quelling electrical arcs and insulating high-voltage electrical system is because of its stability. By using our site, you acknowledge that you have read and understand our Privacy Policy SF6 gas under pressure is used as an insulator in gas insulated switchgear (GIS) because it has a much higher dielectric strength than air or dry nitrogen. For general inquiries, please use our contact form. It will be a piece of switchgear that uses vacuum interrupters housed inside an SF6 filled enclosure. For when some arcing does occur, the purpose of the gas should also be to quench the arcing, which is where SF6 shines. Any SF6-based GIS or similar installed today will be adding to this total for the next decades, while contributing to global warming for a longer period than the industrial era so far. [9], Sulfur hexafluoride on Earth exists primarily as a man-made industrial gas, but has also been found to occur naturally.[10]. Or how some people call all electric cars a Tesla. We as a power industry all push for any owner of a bottle operated system to have these breakers and switches maintained on an annual basis if we cannot convince them to quarterly maintenance. Making poor people suffer more is the opposite of progress. Sulphur hexafluoride explained. Helium and hydrogen tend to float right to the top of the atmosphere and eventually lost into space. Think man (huls) ExxonMobil fully conceded AGW back in 1982, shortly thereafter affirmed by Shell & BP with ExxonMobils climate model, within good error bars, accurate to this day even after 39 years FFS ! The power delivery services negotiate or cheat the takedown edict and remove SF6-filled equipment as quickly as they can roll back to earlier, less reliable solutions. So, I guessed I missed the part about _how_ SF6 contributes to AGW. Add to that Sometimes This is a bad solution is overridden by but theres no better solution available. And to be fair, a real implementation might have all these switches as the same thing. While the Earths atmosphere changes, some peoples genetic strains will be able to adapt, while others wont. So, if youre advocating to keep SF6 and increase the monitoring and maintenance effort, youre making exactly the same case as for using a vacuum and increasing the monitoring and maintenance effort. SF6 + 4H2O H2SO4 + 6HF. According to NCEI, The year culminated as the sixth warmest year on record for the globe with a temperature that was 0.84C (1.51F) above the 20th century average. These days I work for a manufacturer who designs and makes SF6 free switchgear using vacuum interrupters and solid dielectric insulation this technology has now largely superseded SF6 in lower voltage classes (up to 38kV) but at higher voltages SF6 still seems necessary for the time being. An official website of the United States government. To push an uneducated claim of physically impossible re CO2 is a Huge failure of education huls ! One seller of CFC-11 estimated that 70% of Chinas domestic sales used the illegal gas. 2045. Less reliable and more expensive. As long as it converts IR energy into molecular motion (heat) it prevents that IR energy from escaping into space. It is used for benchmark and calibration measurements in Associative and Dissociative Electron Attachment (DEA) experiments, This page was last edited on 6 December 2022, at 13:27. some hope can be gained from the way the world came together to banish CFCs, Banned CFCs traced to China say scientists 22 May 2019. I love how you act like our only option is to watch law making corporations hold people in poverty. of national emissions (Indian Network for Climate Change Assessment, 2007). 100C), as follows:[11]. In this configuration, Novec 5110 with air mixture looks pretty decent, with a (100-year) GWP of <1, but Novec 4710 with CO2 mixture has a GWP of 398, which is better, but not great. So I wonder how bad it mixes and if it gets into the upper atmosphere where it can act as an IR reflector. Seems to me Ren, the point of the article is to draw attention to SWOT in our overlapping technical fields for which hackaday is increasingly recognised, eg on subject of SF6 usage and consequences of leakage in its proven GHG property ie Infra Red light absorbance/emission (part of GHG definition) exceeding that of the well known gases most often under discussion. However I do not know or have a suggestion of one that would be sufficient. or contribute to climate change, including, but not limited to, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons and sulfur hexafluoride; (5) "Indirect emissions" means emissions associated with the consumption of purchased electricity, steam and heating or cooling by an entity or facility. Careers. Just saying that Im sure that our industrial efforts in that direction are very low, because we already have stuff that works for us. It is a potent greenhouse gas with a high global warming potential, and its concentration in the earth atmosphere is rapidly increasing. Singapore Branches Out Into Internet Of Trees, Review: Inkplate 2 Shrinks Down, Adds Color, Asbestos: The Miracle Mineral Of Our Worst Nightmares, Hackaday Podcast 196: Flexing Hard PCBs, Dangers Of White Filament, And The Jetsons Kitchen Computer, This Week In Security: Rackspace Falls Over, Poison Ping, And The WordPress Race. It doesnt really settle at the bottom, it will be an even solution throughout if left long enough. Aircraft cant fly because we cant produce fuels, electronics, plastics; we cant run computers, radio, radar, even illuminated beacons and runway lights. With SF6 still highly prevalent in this market, this seems like an excellent opportunity to look into how far SF6 usage has dropped, and whether we may be able to manage to avert a potential disaster. Sulfur hexafluoride was the tracer gas used in the first roadway air dispersion model calibration; this research program was sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and conducted in Sunnyvale, California on U.S. Highway 101. Gases mix at the drop of a hat, it is what they do really really really well. Since its a molecule that more easily converts IR energy (photons) into thermal energy (heat) it interferes with the radiation of heat from the ground and oceans back into space. Fixing (And Improving!) A substation for overhead power lines may require several tonnes, creating a substantially bigger environmental problem should a leak occur. Summer reminds us what hot is; we first suffer and eventually migrate en masse. It is a hypervalent molecule. So sure, find some middle ground, but releasing harmful chemicals into the atmosphere has been for decades part of acceptable business practices. Electric trains dont run. It will take time for a complete shift away from SF6," she adds. But for areas where room is less of a problem, then maybe less dense switchgear should be used. Please dont embarass yourself despite hiding behind anonymity, where the heck did you learn highschool physics ??? Someone also said that theres helium in air? Typical for a nonpolar gas, SF6 is poorly soluble in water but quite soluble in nonpolar organic solvents. Taking into account the much higher GWP (22800) of SF6, this makes its 2018 emissions equivalent to about 205,200 Gg, or 0.6% of annual CO2 emissions. Assessment of Eco-friendly Gases for Electrical Insulation to Replace the Most Potent Industrial Greenhouse Gas SF. A more reasonable approach would be monitoring and fixing leaks, combined with active recovery during maintenance (much like refrigerants) assuming thats not already standard practice. How much of the overall impact does it make up? I doubt enough to justify the fear mongering. Just because the proportion rises doesnt mean more damage is being done. 1. Like some electricians calls all multimeters a Fluke. Where the fark did such a stupid claim arise from And why didnt you check it ??? So there is always a good chance that your offspring will be able to adapt before your genetic line goes extinct. The gas doesnt have to be in the upper layers in order to trap heat. Leaks and uses that allow rapid expansion may cause a frostbite hazard. Sulfur hexafluoride is used to allow certain segments of the heart, liver, or urinary tract to be seen more clearly on an ultrasound examination. Minor uses of SF6 (about 5% of the production): insulation of nuclear particle accelerators and X-ray equipment, microwave and radar equipment, thermoacoustic . Gas can be released at the time of equipment manufacturing, installation, maintenance and servicing, and de-commissioning. If were saving the world, we have to save it for everybody. SF6 has an octahedral geometry, consisting of six fluorine atoms attached to a central sulfur atom. Honestly, if we arent banning its use then we should at least make a crazy high tax for items that use it in order to dissuade its use. 2035. SF6 is certainly no secret in the Norwegian energy industry. They rather tend to mix even if there is no air movements to speak off. The present pulsed power machine thats being worked on will have very high voltage and vacuum around the load section. However, comparing wind turbines with other power applications of SF6 must be set in context. IGBTs are slowly gaining ground in the DC space as well. Since 2003, the user group has collected data on emissions and reported them to the Norwegian Environment Agency. Electric cars, putative saviors of the world, cant charge. These gases contribute to atmospheric warming when they absorb infrared radiation emitted by the solar . These GIS tend to have a lifespan of 30-40 years, with new SF6-based GIS being installed even today, each of which will suffer some level of leakage during normal operation due to the imperfect nature of seals. According to the generalized nucleation processes (Schmelzer et al., 2000 . SF6 is the energy industry's "dirty little secret": FALSE. They found that the illegal chemical was used in the majority of the polyurethane insulation produced by firms they contacted. [47], Sulfur hexafluoride is a nontoxic gas, but by displacing oxygen in the lungs, it also carries the risk of asphyxia if too much is inhaled. The idea on the end about having a smaller bank of switches where we progressively step up the resistance is mainly to provide the current and all the inductive kickback a place to go. And I dont think it needs to reach the upper atmosphere (50-80 km) for it to have a substantial greenhouse effect. For entertainment purposes, when breathed. "The concentration of the gas in the atmosphere is increasing so it's good to have some attention on this. type of model used or methodology development is a . But leaks of the little-known gas in the UK and the rest of the EU in 2017 were. It gets crowded and violent in the remaining livable regions, a war for being, survival of the fittest. Epub 2021 May 14. Several classes of compounds containing fluorineincluding the chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), hydro-fluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs), and SF 6 are potent greenhouse gases. official website and that any information you provide is encrypted Especially for gear that ends up being installed somewhere remote and relatively inaccessible, this is a very helpful property. To be honest, the second option seems a whole lot more fair towards those 7.1 billion people. Every SF6 molecule that is produced , will eventually end up in the atmosphere ,and stay there forever well, 3200 years so knowing this ,its just plain stupid producing ever more of this substance ,while there is plenty of it just floating around ,and doing bad things for our climate. It may not be feasible at all for switchgear. The planet wont die. All people fart. This work provides information concerning possible global environmental implications and personnel safety aspects that should be considered during the commercial uses of sulfur hexafluoride (SF6). Even the EPAs website only has a very short blurb about its ability to trap infrared radiation. Isotopic signature. About this document The Australian HFC, PFC, Sulfur Hexaflouride and Sulfuryl Flouride Emissions report was produced by CSIRO on behalf of the Department of the Environment. A hypothetical resistor arangement might just be to start with 0.1 ohm, then 0.1 ohm for the next resistor followed by 0.2, 0.4, 1.2, 3, 5, 10, 30, 50, etc (with this pattern we reach a total of 100 ohm by the 10th teeth, and increase one order of magnitude for every 3 additional teeth. Mainly that it would open a bit slower, and likewise take a bit longer to close. Crazy high taxes just get passed on to the end user, meaning that well still use about the same quantity of bad stuff in power delivery systems and even more over time in response to population growth but the poorest among us wont be able to afford to buy power. Alternatives to SF6 as a dielectric gas include several fluoroketones. Copy Sheet of paper on top of another sheet. I think you really need to look at the magnitude and whether this is the best problem to be working on. Itll spread out and sink initially, but itll get there eventually. [17][18] Compact GIS technology that combines vacuum switching with clean air insulation has been introduced for a subset of applications up to 420kV. Copy Sheet of paper on top of another sheet. However the amounts are likely miniscule in comparison to its industrial use. Taking into account the much higher GWP (22800) of SF6, this makes its 2018 emissions equivalent to about 205,200 Gg, or 0.6% of annual CO2 emissions. These devices are used to isolate portions of the transmission system where current flow has been interrupted (using a circuit breaker). With the rapid growth of highly distributed energy production in the form of mostly (offshore) wind turbines and PV solar parks, this also means that each of these is equipped with its own (gas-filled) switchgear. In the past I worked for a manufacturer who specialized in making exactly this type of equipment. [23] It remains visible in the blood for 3 to 8 minutes, and is exhaled by the lungs.[24]. specification of health effect or disease related to climate change exposure. Any presens of of an IR opaque gas at any level in the atmosphere will prevent heat from being radiated back into space. The main reason SF6 is used in the first place is not so much for its dielectric capabilities but more for its quench. Excerpt from NIOSH Pocket Guide for Sulfur hexafluoride: Skin: FROSTBITE - Compressed gases may create low temperatures when they expand rapidly. We still have power, but reliability falls off sharply. 2051 . This was accomplished via the Montreal Protocol, which saw a rapid cessation of most uses of CFCs. Anyone living in a city can tell you about that. The pressure is just 0. A lot of things in the atmosphere (air) are heavier than air. An inert gas used mainly as a test gas in respiratory physiology. The high dielectric strength is a result of the gas's high electronegativity and density. the Earths atmosphere for a very long time. But I can however see downsides with the concept of having multiple switches used for progressively changing the effective resistance over the switch. Densly populated regions, hospitals, factories, businesses of all kinds install comparatively high-pollution diesel generators because solar+battery solutions arent reliable enough, available enough, or affordable enough, and local wind power is too dependant on, well, the good fortune of wind. These include the fluorinated gases: chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), hydrofluorocarbons (HCFCs), bromofluorocarbons (halons), perfluorcarbons, PFCs, nitrogen trifluoride, NF 3, and sulfur hexafluoride, SF 6. Radiative transfer Winter reminds us what cold is; we build fires of natural gas or oil or wood or coal everywhere to survive, vastly increasing all combustion pollutants in the atmosphere and sharply increasing land damage from renewed fossil- and living-fuel extraction. Likewise one could perhaps make a more staggered switch, where in parallel to the main current carrying one, one can have a set of smaller switches with series resistors of increasing value. Epub 2013 Apr 2. Fortunately such devices are becoming more and more feasible and more cost effective year on year. More about this program Notice to Distributors Like some circuit breakers/fuses have a set of copper plates that the arc is encouraged to jump between, but the distance of taking that route is significantly longer than jumping to the other contact, and the thermal mass of the copper also helps in quenching the arc. Looking at the popularity of these gases, the difficulty in finding replacements, and the push to produce more and ever cheaper refrigerators, wind turbines, and distributed power systems, it seems unlikely that well be seeing a major change here. For the video game, see, Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their, Simmonds, P. G., Rigby, M., Manning, A. J., Park, S., Stanley, K. M., McCulloch, A., Henne, S., Graziosi, F., Maione, M., and 19 others (2020) "The increasing atmospheric burden of the greenhouse gas sulfur hexafluoride (SF, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, "Sulfur Hexafluoride - PubChem Public Chemical Database", National Center for Biotechnology Information, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, "Reference Values and Reference Correlations for the Thermal Conductivity and Viscosity of Fluids", Journal of Physical and Chemical Reference Data, Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, "Trends in Atmospheric Sulpher Hexaflouride", US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, "Dating young groundwater with sulfur hexafluoride: Natural and anthropogenic sources of sulfur hexafluoride", "US consumption and supplies of sulphur hexafluoride reported under the greenhouse gas reporting program", "Sulfur Hexafluoride, A Unique Dielectric", "Sustainable switchgear technology for a CO, "SonoVue, INN-sulphur hexafluoride - Annex I - Summary of Product Characteristics", "Observations of CFCs and SF6 as Ocean Tracers", "Update on EPA's manesium industry partnership for climate protection", "Final report on the costs and the impact on emissions of potential regulatory framework for reducing emissions of hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons and sulphur hexafluoride", "Advances in loudspeaker technology - A 50 year prospective", "Anesthetic Potencies of Sulfur Hexafluoride, Carbon Tetrafluoride, Chloroform and Ethrane in Dogs: Correlation with the Hydrate and Lipid Theories of Anesthetic Action", "High-resolution electron attachment to the molecules CCl4and SF6over extended energy ranges with the (EX)LPA method", "Associative and dissociative electron attachment by SF6 and SF5Cl", "2.10.2 Direct Global Warming Potentials", "Atmospheric Lifetimes of Long-Lived Halogenated Species", "The NOAA Annual Greenhouse Gas Index (AGGI)", "g3, the SF6-free solution in practice | Think Grid", "Sulfur hexafluoride: The truths and myths of this greenhouse gas", "Climate: MEPs give F-gas bill a 'green boost', "Department of Energy's Crusade Against Leaks of a Potent Greenhouse Gas Yields Results", "The mild anesthetic properties of sulfur hexafluoride", "Climate change: Electrical industry's 'dirty secret' boosts warming", CDC - NIOSH Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sulfur_hexafluoride&oldid=1125900114, slightly soluble in water, very soluble in ethanol, hexane, benzene, Tires filled with it take longer to deflate from. Some fluids will separate even if forcibly mixed, e.g. And in the long run is also more fair to those few million that benefit from the SF6-filled switchgear, because they and all their future generations have to live on this Earth as well. Its use is highly regulated, and many of its users are working together to share experience and come up with viable alternatives: "There are no secrets surrounding the use of SF6 in Norway's energy industry. The gas is used in switchgear in many other power applications. Secure .gov websites use HTTPS Bottom line is that you want to increase the monitoring and maintenance effort with a minimum, still trying to minimise cost and pushing the problem forward towards next generations so that you dont have to deal with it. And, at current Western population-per-area densities, it doesnt take much reduction in power delivery before people start dying. Is Sulphur hexafluoride toxic? It is a hypervalent molecule . Sulfur hexafluoride absorbs thermal infrared radiation and could increase global warming as its concentration in the atmosphere increases; therefore it is a greenhouse gas. Vacuum switchgear that is much more expensive and less reliable? Disconnectors and ground switches use SF6 primarily for insulation, and individually, they contain only slightly less SF6 than a circuit breaker. Water Vapor's Role in Climate Change. There has recently been an acceleration of sustainable innovation in this space, and will continue to be as regulators in the US and EU scrutinize SF6s use in switchgear more and more. Maybe the odds are good enough to safely bet your future offspring on? A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States. so never opening a high-energy contactor without a resistive bypass already closed? In this spirit of transparency, we asked several experts from NTNU and SINTEF to separate the truths from the myths. Sulfur hexafluoride, commonly known as SF 6, has made a splash in the mainstream media of late. This article is more than 7 years old. Through improvements in the leak rate of new equipment, refurbishing older equipment, and the use of more efficient operation and maintenance techniques, utilities often find economical solutions to reduce SF6 emissions. 5. 8600 Rockville Pike Accessibility SF6 is used not in the turbine itself, but in the switchgear that controls the current generated by the turbine. Id be extremely disappointed to find out that our scientists are only measuring physical properties and not truly studying its affects on the climate. The global distribution of temperature increase is varied, and in some locations average 16 temperatures have actually decreased. It is a colourless, odourless, inert gas that is slightly soluble in water and readily soluble in ethanol and bases. Given the small amounts of SF6 released compared to carbon dioxide, its overall individual contribution to global warming is estimated to be less than 0.2 percent,[41] however the collective contribution of it and similar man-made halogenated gases has reached about 10 percent as of 2020. When being installed, repaired or decommissioned, switchgear can also be damaged, with SF6 gas escaping into the atmosphere. 2031. One of our customers wanted to use vaccum sf6 breakers This joke still goes in our office. Your email address is used only to let the recipient know who sent the email. The main purpose of a dielectric gas here is to increase the breakdown voltage so that higher voltages can be used in less space, generally relative to air. Not sure how it gets into the upper atmosphere to trap heat. [14] Other main uses as of 2015 included a silicon etchant for semiconductor manufacturing, and an inert gas for the casting of magnesium.[15]. 2039. Yes of current emissions, but if we are really doing to head towards net zero, hopefully the emissions will go down by a factor of 10? The equipment is very reliable but any failure makes a big impact, so everyone is keen to share knowledge and experience. It has a density of 6.12g/L at sea level conditions, considerably higher than the density of air (1.225g/L). I think Ive seen an SF6 leak detector in my travels, cant recall. When a trend of lowering SF 6 gas pressure is observed, the cause of the leak is subsequently investigated and (hopefully) rectified per the equipment manufacturer's instructions. Maybe CO2 has enough merit to be worth using, but its still a green house gas, and all the extra materials needed in the switch gear to make it larger so CO2 is possible have environmental costs too. 3. Gasses mix and mix really really really well. You can unsubscribe at any time and we'll never share your details to third parties. Sulfur Hexafluoride (SF6) is a very potent greenhouse gas, with an extremely high impact on global warming. Alternatively, you can check our Data by research program page for specific areas of data that can be downloaded. This highlights the complexity in replacing SF6 in GIS applications, as each part of an electrical grid has different temperature ranges and other factors that would be a particular SF6 alternative more attractive. When CFCs were found to be rapidly eroding the Earths ozone layer, this made it crucial to immediately eliminate any significant release of this gas. The MarketWatch News Department was not involved in the creation of this content. Gases however mix even more easily. If this was stopped and business would go out of business and the board members should go to prison, rapidly we would have saved the planet. When we touched upon sulfur hexafluoride back in 2019 in the context of greenhouse gases, it was noted that most SF6 is used for and leaks from high-voltage switchgear (mechanical switches), transformers and related, where the gas inert and stable nature makes it ideal for preventing and quenching electrical arcing. 2037. Farts contain methane. Photo by JuergenPM /Pixabay March 20 (UPI). This property makes it possible to significantly reduce the size of electrical gear. Gravity only starts to matter when one reaches rather excessive altitudes. Sulfur hexafluoride microbubbles are administered in solution through injection into a peripheral vein. Im not seeing much in terms of fear-mongering here. Without SF6, you see a dramatic reduction in viable power delivery. It is similar to throwing in a lump of metal into an acid, it wont just all instantly go into solution. Over a 100-year period, SF 6 is estimated to cause around 23,500 times the warming of CO 2, according to the most recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report. Due to diffusion, the gasses will still mix and form a homogeneous mixture. Increases in contractor speed can mitigate this somewhat, but in the end an inert gas that can sink some of the arc heat, displace oxygen and provide a stronger dielectric significantly increase the service life of these devices. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. SF 6 is the most potent greenhouse gas that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has evaluated. Take it one step at a time just What is Physically impossible ??? Being so much more dense, it should stay at very low altitude and, thus, not have so much effect Or am I missing something? Bethesda, MD 20894, Web Policies The European Union leads the world in the regulation, monitoring and management of SF6 emissions. Gases dont tend to separate into well defined layers. contain sulfur hexafluoride (SF 6), a greenhouse gas commonly used in electric utility equipment. Its something to take note of, and its a good thing the early insights (the general drift of this article is also found in publications of the 90s already) are being taken seriously. Its global warming potential of 23,900 times that of CO2 when compared over a 100-year period. This is because when released into the atmosphere, CO2 only has a global warming potential (GWP) of 1, whereas that of methane is about 28 over 100 years, and SF6 has a GWP of well over 22,000 over that same time period. Sulfur hexafluoride | F6S - PubChem compound Summary Sulfur hexafluoride Cite Download Contents 1 Structures 2 Names and Identifiers 3 Chemical and Physical Properties 4 Spectral Information 5 Related Records 6 Chemical Vendors 7 Drug and Medication Information 8 Pharmacology and Biochemistry 9 Use and Manufacturing 10 Identification We should find out before going to a different chemical, which could cause cancer or something (in California). In the end, a vacuum is nothing more than keeping out molecules, which is the same as keeping in a pressure. You can lower the temperature and slightly increase the minuscule gravitational gradient, which is used to separate isotopes in gas centrifuges. 32% to reach USD . Lets walk down this road of first-order thinking: The power delivery services do what they must, and take down all the SF6-filled equipment. I assume that this misconception stems from how the greenhouse effect is typically visualized, where rays are depicted as reflecting of the top layer. In this case the gas is being used as an insulating medium for BIL purposes rather than as the interruption medium which is done in vacuum. Marcin Dbrowski liked Universal robot remote. Sulfur hexafluoride. If 10% leakage in a decade is typical for an industry, this means the half-life for leakage is a short 6.5 decades. An official website of the United States government. The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. [25] Gaseous SF6 is used as a tracer gas in short-term experiments of ventilation efficiency in buildings and indoor enclosures, and for determining infiltration rates. and transmitted securely. Environ Sci Technol. Official websites use .gov oil and water. As the gas is emitted, it accumulates in the atmosphere in an essentially un-degraded state for many centuries. CAS Registry Number: 2551-62-4. November 10, 2021 Sulfur hexafluoride (SF 6) is not nearly as infamous as CO 2, with the latter getting most of the blame for anthropogenic climate change. Methane is a greenhouse gas. Sulphur hexafluoride dissolves in water and forms sulphuric acid and hydrogen sulphide. A global average is constructed by first smoothing the data for each site as a function of time, and then smoothed values for each site are . 2) on the timescales SF6 persists, the mere circumstance that its being used means all of it is either reacted or released. SF6 is unmonitored and unregulated: FALSE. Typical for a nonpolar gas, it is poorly soluble in water but soluble in nonpolar organic solvents. But well, theres always Darwin. If you cant keep in a vacuum, it means you cant keep in a pressure either. Or Iphone for smartphones. In some cases, significant leaks can occur from aging equipment. It is a colorless, odorless, non- flammable, and non-toxic gas. Sulfur hexafluoride. There is virtually no reaction chemistry for SF6. And, if anyone ever does find a viable alternative, SF6 usage will of course shrink. I can though see legitimate reasons for this approach being a bit cost ineffective. In my opinion moving to a different inert gas would be the better choice. I think the comparison with CFCs getting to high altitudes is misleading as the effects of concern for SF6 arent altitude dependent. It is used extensively in various electronic components and in the production of magnesium and aluminium. The individual targets for Annex I Parties are listed in the Kyoto Protocol's Annex B. Abatement of sulfur hexafluoride emissions from the semiconductor manufacturing process by atmospheric-pressure plasmas. This can't happen without viable alternatives, such as vacuum technology or different gas mixtures. The comment earlier about molecular cross section and degrees of movement is a good one. Several climate-friendly alternatives to SF6 now exist. things would rapidly change to make releasing it a zero possible option. Sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) measured by the Advanced Global Atmospheric Gases Experiment (AGAGE) in the lower atmosphere (troposphere) at stations around the world. This was also the method used by the discoverers Henri Moissan and Paul Lebeau in 1901. So how do we make new switchgear ,would you say? Of these, HFCs are popular in refrigeration, where they replace the previously popular CFCs, along with a number of other gases. It will diffuse into the upper atmosphere eventually. 2043. And by that point there wont be any large currents forcing an arc to form. Under the partnership, EPA shares information on best management practices and technical issues to help reduce emissions. unless we get very cheap plentiful nuclear power. So even SF6 should be able to climb quite a distance into the air. In a global first for the wind industry, we have committed to phasing out the gas sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) . Note: The above text is excerpted from the Wikipedia article "Sulfur hexafluoride", which. Although SF6 occurs naturally, the overwhelming majority is produced by humans, for use in industrial processes and medicine, but primarily in high-voltage electrical systems as a dielectric gas. [45] Since 1 January 2006, SF6 is banned as a tracer gas and in all applications except high-voltage switchgear. 1) production is increasing, not decreasing How are you going to contain and recycle the same gas for three millennia? Even if you magic up a solution that remove 100% any ingress from outside air (which is impossible) you still have to worry about outgassing of the materials in your vacuum chamber and basically everything out gasses at low pressure to some extent or other. 2004 Aug;54(8):960-70. doi: 10.1080/10473289.2004.10470963. Protective Clothing. Strict training requirements are set for those who work with the gas," adds Runde. In Norway, SF6 is only permitted in relation to switchgear. [49], As with all gases, the density of SF6 affects the resonance frequencies of the vocal tract, thus changing drastically the vocal sound qualities, or timbre, of those who inhale it. For example, teflon and other PFOAs, as well as nitrogen trifluoride. Changes in CO 2 emissions from fossil fuel combustion are influenced by many long-term and short-term factors, including population growth, economic growth, changing energy prices, new technologies, changing behavior, and seasonal temperatures. ABSTRACT This work provides information concerning possible global environmental implications and personnel safety aspects that should be considered during the commercial uses of sulfur hexafluoride (SF6 . You'd probably think not at all, but according to a BBC article published in September 2019, emissions of sulfur hexafluoride (SF), "the most powerful greenhouse gas known to humanity . Theres a thing that I dont understand: the air density is about 1,2 kg/m, while the SF6 density is about 6,17kg/m. [19], SF6 is used to provide a tamponade or plug of a retinal hole in retinal detachment repair operations[20] in the form of a gas bubble. Much of this is due to the distributed nature, instead of the gas being used in a closely monitored industrial process, items like switchgear are located literally around the world, in deserts, at the top of wind turbines and in the middle of fields. Our climate strategy comprises mitigating risks from climate change, reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions as we strive to become carbon neutral by 2050, and enabling our customers . CO2 is not a great greenhouse gas. It might be just a stupid idea , but ill post it anyway : just put a ban on any new production of SF6 , and not on the use of it. Mimmo liked DJI FPV - Battery Breakout Mod [4]: Battery Packs. 2027. Climate Change and Human Health Literature Portal Sulfur dioxide initiates global climate change in four ways. Similarly, lead iodide is also fairly heavy but will dissolve in far lighter water. It doesnt really matter how tall the beaker is. 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