Refrigeration, Air Conditioning, and Heating (HVAC/R)
From component manufacturing and end-of-line testing to refrigerant recovery in the field
From residential heat pumps to industrial refrigeration and data center cooling, HVAC/R systems must deliver maximum efficiency, reliability, and environmental compliance throughout their lifecycle as global demand for cooling continues to grow. In addition to everyday products such as refrigerators, heat pumps, and air conditioning systems, commercial applications like supermarkets, cold chains, and building climate control require reliable cooling systems that deliver consistent temperature control and energy efficiency.
Across all these applications, environmentally friendly refrigerants, reliable HVAC/R leak testing, accurate gas analysis, and efficient recovery and evacuation processes help manufacturers and service professionals improve system reliability, increase productivity, and meet increasingly stringent environmental requirements. System evacuation is one critical part of this. Precise vacuum measurement is essential during evacuation to ensure moisture and noncondensable gases are fully removed before refrigerant charging.
This is especially important for mildly flammable A2L refrigerants such as R1234yf and R32, where residual moisture can compromise system chemistry and long-term reliability. Assessing system dryness helps verify adequate evacuation while avoiding unnecessarily long pump-down times. Accurate vacuum monitoring helps manufacturers ensure every system meets quality requirements before refrigerant charging.
Beyond traditional HVAC/R applications, INFICON technologies are well suited to thermal management systems for modern data centers. As AI workloads and high-performance computing push heat densities beyond what traditional air cooling can handle, direct-to-chip (D2C) liquid cooling is emerging as the leading solution. Like HVAC/R systems, D2C cooling loops require leak-tight components and stable processes during manufacturing and filling, making it a natural extension of INFICON's HVAC/R expertise.
INFICON supports the full HVAC/R chain
INFICON provides end-to-end HVAC/R solutions—from component manufacturing through final-assembly testing to service in the field.
Our portfolio combines leak detection systems that secure refrigerant integrity at every production stage, gas analysis instruments for refrigerant identification and purity verification, vacuum gauges and controllers for precise evacuation monitoring, vacuum components for reliable system evacuation and charging, and recovery and evacuation tools that help service technicians handle refrigerants safely and in compliance with environmental regulations.
Whether you are developing the next generation of heat pumps with rigorous end-of-line testing, scaling high-efficiency refrigeration production, or maintaining a data center cooling loop, INFICON delivers solutions that keep HVAC/R systems sealed, efficient, and compliant.
The air conditioning industry is undergoing a fundamental transformation. Under the revised EU F-Gas Regulation 2024/573—and the AIM Act in the United States—high-GWP refrigerants face strict phase-down and, in many cases, service restrictions. As of 2025, refrigerants with a GWP of 2500 or above, such as R404A and R507, are being phased down for servicing in many applications. R410A (GWP 2088) is equally affected, with new installations in single-split AC systems prohibited since January 2025. The market is transitioning toward low-GWP A2L alternatives such as R32 and R454B.
Today, many parts are still being tested in the production process using the water bath method or pressure decay method—evaporators and condensers, for example. These large-surface components have many small-part connecting points which must be located precisely. This can hardly be accomplished with the water bath method since the bubbles do not exit reliably at the site of the actual leak. The pressure decay method equally falls short, as it can only detect leak rates down to 1 × 10⁻³ mbar∙L/s at best, making it insufficient for the required test sensitivity.
Furthermore, such components should typically be tested for a leak rate of 1 × 10⁻⁵ mbar∙L/s—two orders of magnitude below what either the water bath or pressure decay method can reliably achieve.
Refrigeration systems are classified according to their application into commercial, residential, or industrial systems. During manufacturing, completed assemblies are typically tested using sniffer leak detection with helium or forming gas, with admissible leak rates often around 1 × 10⁻⁵ mbar∙L/s. Once installed on-site, the connecting lines and joints are re-checked by the installation team using a sniffer leak detector, again commonly based on helium or forming gas. In some cases, systems arrive pre-charged and are tested directly for refrigerant leaks. Where leaks are found, the refrigerant must be reclaimed prior to repair and the system re-evacuated before recharging.
The heat pump market is one of the fastest-growing segments within HVAC/R. Driven by Europe's commitment to carbon neutrality by 2050 and the EU's "Fit for 55" package, heat pump adoption is accelerating rapidly, with governments phasing out fossil fuel–based heating systems. Alongside this growth, the adoption of low-GWP refrigerants such as R32 and R454B is becoming a prominent trend, while natural alternatives like propane (R290) and CO₂ (R744) are gaining traction—each bringing stricter requirements for leak tightness and safety.
Heat pumps work in an effective and environmentally friendly manner with renewable energies, using ambient heat to produce warmth efficiently. For the main components of the refrigerant circuit—compressors, heat exchangers, and expansion valves—testing to the relevant leak rate of 1 × 10⁻⁵ mbar∙L/s directly during production in a vacuum chamber is essential to ensure both product quality and compliance with increasingly stringent environmental regulations.
Data center liquid cooling is one of the most dynamic and fastest-growing segments in thermal management today, driven by the explosive growth of AI workloads and high-performance computing. As rack densities increasingly exceed 150 kW and are projected to rise to 1 MW, traditional air cooling is proving insufficient, making liquid cooling technologies such as direct-to-chip (D2C) and immersion cooling essential.
In D2C cooling, liquid coolant—typically a water-glycol mixture such as PG25—circulates through cold plates mounted directly on CPUs and GPUs, as well as through manifolds, quick-disconnect couplings (QDCs), and server-level piping. Any coolant leak in these loops poses a critical risk: even minor leakage of PG25 onto high-value GPU hardware can cause irreversible damage and significant financial loss.
For this reason, all server-level components—cold plates, QDCs, manifolds, and piping—must be helium leak tested to 1 × 10⁻⁵ mbar∙L/s during production. The same leak rate requirement applies to Coolant Distribution Units (CDUs) and chillers, which manage the primary coolant loop, as well as to Rear Door Heat Exchangers (RDHx), ensuring full system integrity from chip to facility level.
INFICON provides accurate and reliable tools that technicians can rely on for HVAC/R service and repair. Since the early 1990s, the product line has grown from the original D-TEK® refrigerant leak detector to a full line of leak detectors, refrigerant recovery machines, vacuum gauges and evacuation tools, charging scales, and more.
With a close eye on evolving refrigerant standards, INFICON is continuously developing new products and incorporating the latest technology into the reliable tools that techs have come to trust. Many tools are even certified for use with A2L refrigerants, like R1234yf and R32. These semi-flammable refrigerants are becoming increasingly popular due to the global phasedown of HFCs, making it even more important for technicians to have versatile tools that they can rely on.
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Designed for precise and reliable gas analysis across various industrial applications.
Trusted leak detection solutions across the full HVAC/R chain, from manufacturing to field service.
Precise vacuum measurement for reliable system evacuation and charging in HVAC/R installations.
Reliable vacuum components for leak-tight connections throughout the HVAC/R system.
Durable refrigerant charging scales, recovery machines, vacuum pumps and vacuum gauges for HVAC/R service.
