A technician recovers the charge from a system that suffered a severe compressor burnout. What is the appropriate destination for that refrigerant?
- A certified reclaimer, because acid and burn contamination go beyond what field recycling can clean up
- BBack into the repaired system after a single pass through the recovery machine's filter-drier and sight glass
One pass through a drier does not guarantee acid removal, and no field equipment certifies purity. Returning that charge invites a second burnout on the replacement compressor.
- CThe shared shop cylinder that holds the same refrigerant recovered from healthy systems on the truck
Adding a burnout charge to a shared cylinder spreads acid into refrigerant that was clean and puts the whole cylinder at risk of rejection, wherever that cylinder happens to be kept.
- DAny system of the same design belonging to a different customer on the route that week
Refrigerant crossing to a different owner has to be reclaimed first regardless of its condition, and a burnout charge is the last thing to carry into another customer's equipment.
Why A is correct
Burnout residue is acidic and persistent. Field recycling reduces contaminants but cannot verify that the refrigerant is fit for service, so the charge is isolated in its own cylinder and sent to a certified reclaimer for reprocessing and analysis.
What this question is testing
Tests combined judgment: contamination severity, cylinder segregation, and the ownership rule all bear on the answer, and the candidate must weigh all three.
On the job
On a burnout the tech recovers into a marked cylinder, replaces the liquid line drier, installs an oversized suction line drier, and often takes an acid test after a few hours of run time. Reclaimers accept burnout refrigerant, sometimes at a lower credit or with a processing fee. The economics still favor sending it out compared with paying for a second compressor because acid was left in the system.
Memory technique
Burnout means burn the bridge: that charge never goes back in and never joins the clean cylinder.
Exam tip
Burnout questions reward the cautious answer. When acid is in the picture, isolate the charge and send it out.
Where to look it up
Reuse limits in 40 CFR 82.156 plus the definition of reclamation in 82.152; acid-contaminated refrigerant needs plant reprocessing.