Gas air conditioners are installed in schools and public institutions nationwide for cooling in summer and heating in winter.
Gas air conditioners are called GHP (gas engine heat pumps), and they operate the engine with city gas and heat and cool by driving a compressor and heat exchanger.
Currently, 2,219 elementary, middle and high schools across the country are installing and operating this gas air conditioner, and there has been a report that air pollutants are present in large quantities.
When the gas air conditioner is operated, air pollutants such as nitrogen oxides and methane are released, which threatens the safety of children.
In fact, as a result of measuring the exhaust gas of gas air conditioners installed in elementary, middle and high schools, pollutants such as nitrogen oxides and methane were spewing out.
Immediately after measurement, the ultrafine dust rose to the level of'very bad'.
It has been confirmed that the gas air conditioner uses the engine of a 2,000cc class medium and large vehicle.
In the case of automobiles, there is a standard for emission gas, so reduction devices such as catalysts are attached to the engine to reduce emission.
However, gas air conditioners are not properly regulated or standardized.
It means that a vehicle engine that does not have a reduction device is running on the roof of the school.
In order to disperse the demand for electricity during the summer season and to efficiently use the remaining LNG, the government began obligating schools and public institutions to use gas or renewable energy for cooling and heating facilities from 2011.
At the time of introduction, did the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy or the Ministry of Environment not know that harmful exhaust gases are emitted in large quantities from gas air conditioners?
And since the introduction of gas air conditioners, why haven't they responded to the exhaust gas problem?
This week's <News Story> will focus on the actual condition of GHP gas air conditioners introduced in schools and public institutions, the problem of excessive pollutants, and countermeasures.