What AHRI 700 actually requires

The limits your sample is measured against, published in full, per refrigerant. 22 single-component refrigerants and 25 blends. If you want to know what a pass means before you spend money on a test, it is all here.

01Before the tables

Three things most reports get wrong

There is no purity minimum

AHRI 700 has no “purity, minimum” characteristic. What it specifies is all other volatile impurities, maximum 0.5% by weight. “99.5% minimum” is the arithmetic complement of that, and it only means anything for a single-component refrigerant.

A blend can be 99.5% pure and fail

Blends are judged on a two-sided window per component. R-410A at 47.9% R-32 sits below its 48.5–50.5% window and fails, whatever its total purity says. A purity figure cannot detect that.

Limits are not one generic set

R-11 and R-123 take 20 ppm water, not 10, and are not subject to the non-condensables test at all. R-141b takes 100 ppm. R-142b takes 15 ppm and 3 ppm acidity. One column of limits applied to everything will pass and fail material incorrectly.

02The characteristics

What is measured, how, and on what basis

The basis matters as much as the number. Non-condensables are a vapor-phase measurement defined at 25.0 °C; everything else is liquid phase.

The AHRI 700 characteristics: phase, basis of measurement, and method for each
Characteristic	Phase	Basis	Method
Air and other non-condensables	vapor	% by volume @ 25.0 °C	Gas chromatography — separate vapor-phase sample
Water	liquid	ppm by weight	Karl Fischer titration
All other volatile impurities	liquid	% by weight	Gas chromatography
High boiling residue	liquid	% by volume or % by weight	Gravimetric — the basis used must be recorded
Particulates and solids	liquid	pass/fail	Visual
Acidity	liquid	ppm by weight as HCl	Titration — detection limit 0.1 ppm on a 50–60 g sample
Chloride	liquid	pass/fail	Turbidity — turbidity appears at roughly 3 ppm by weight

03Single-component refrigerants

Contaminant limits, all 22 fluids

Identical across the federally incorporated appendix, AHRI 700-2019 and AHRI 700-2024. Values that differ from the common set are highlighted.

Maximums unless stated. Water in ppm by weight; non-condensables in % by volume at 25.0 °C; acidity in ppm by weight as HCl.
Refrigerant	Non-cond.	Water	Other volatiles	HBR	Acidity	Chloride	Isomer
R-11● common	Not applicable	20	0.5	0.01	1	No visible turbidity	—
R-12● common	1.5	10	0.5	0.01	1	No visible turbidity	—
R-13	1.5	10	0.5	0.01	1	No visible turbidity	—
R-22● common	1.5	10	0.5	0.01	1	No visible turbidity	—
R-23	1.5	10	0.5	0.01	1	No visible turbidity	—
R-32● common	1.5	10	0.5	0.01	1	No visible turbidity	—
R-113	Not applicable	20	0.5	0.01	1	No visible turbidity	0–1 R-113a
R-114	1.5	10	0.5	0.01	1	No visible turbidity	0–30 R-114a
R-115	1.5	10	0.5	0.01	1	Visually clean	—
R-116	1.5	10	0.5	0.01	1	Visually clean	—
R-123● common	Not applicable	20	0.5	0.01	1	No visible turbidity	0–8 each of R-123a, R-123b
R-124	1.5	10	0.5	0.01	1	No visible turbidity	0–5 R-124a
R-125● common	1.5	10	0.5	0.01	1	No visible turbidity	—
R-134a● common	1.5	10	0.5	0.01	1	No visible turbidity	0–0.5 R-134
R-141b	Not applicable	100	0.9	0.01	1	No visible turbidity	0–0.1 each R-141, R-141a
R-142b	2.0	15	0.5	0.01	3	No visible turbidity	0–0.1 each R-142, R-142a
R-143a	1.5	10	0.5	0.01	1	No visible turbidity	0–0.01 R-143
R-152a	1.5	10	0.5	0.01	1	No visible turbidity	—
R-245fa	Not applicable	20	0.5	0.01	1	No visible turbidity	0–0.1 each of R-245ca, cb, ea, eb
R-1233zd(E)	Not applicable	20	0.5	0.01	1	No visible turbidity	—
R-1234yf	1.5	10	0.5	0.01	1	No visible turbidity	—
R-1234ze(E)	1.5	10	0.5	0.01	1	No visible turbidity	0–0.3 R-1234ze(Z)

● Common in Southern California chiller and reclamation work. Highlighted rows differ from the values a generic limit column would apply.

04Blends

Allowable composition is the pass/fail

Every blend shares the same contaminant limits. What differs — and what decides the result — is the composition window for each component.

Shared contaminant limits, all blends

Non-condensables 1.5% vol · Water 10 ppm · Other volatiles 0.5% wt · HBR 0.01% · Acidity 1 ppm · Chloride No visible turbidity · Particulates Visually clean

R-401A

common

R-401A composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-22	53.0	51.0–55.0
R-152a	13.0	11.5–13.5
R-124	34.0	33.0–35.0

All figures % by weight

R-401B

common

R-401B composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-22	61.0	59.0–63.0
R-152a	11.0	9.5–11.5
R-124	28.0	27.0–29.0

All figures % by weight

R-402A

common

R-402A composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-125	60.0	58.0–62.0
R-290	2.0	1.0–2.1
R-22	38.0	36.0–40.0

All figures % by weight

R-402B

common

R-402B composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-125	38.0	36.0–40.0
R-290	2.0	1.0–2.1
R-22	60.0	58.0–62.0

All figures % by weight

R-403A

R-403A composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-290	5.0	3.0–5.2
R-22	75.0	73.0–77.0
R-218	20.0	18.0–22.0

All figures % by weight

R-403B

R-403B composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-290	5.0	3.0–5.2
R-22	56.0	54.0–58.0
R-218	39.0	37.0–41.0

All figures % by weight

R-404A

common

R-404A composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-125	44.0	42.0–46.0
R-143a	52.0	51.0–53.0
R-134a	4.0	2.0–6.0

All figures % by weight

R-405A

R-405A composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-22	45.0	43.0–47.0
R-152a	7.0	6.0–8.0
R-142b	5.5	4.5–6.5
RC-318	42.5	40.5–44.5

All figures % by weight

R-406A

R-406A composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-22	55.0	53.0–57.0
R-600a	4.0	3.0–5.0
R-142b	41.0	40.0–42.0

All figures % by weight

R-407A

R-407A composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-32	20.0	18.0–22.0
R-125	40.0	38.0–42.0
R-134a	40.0	38.0–42.0

All figures % by weight

R-407B

R-407B composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-32	10.0	8.0–12.0
R-125	70.0	68.0–72.0
R-134a	20.0	18.0–22.0

All figures % by weight

R-407C

common

R-407C composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-32	23.0	21.0–25.0
R-125	25.0	23.0–27.0
R-134a	52.0	50.0–54.0

All figures % by weight

R-407F

R-407F composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-32	30.0	28.0–32.0
R-125	30.0	28.0–32.0
R-134a	40.0	38.0–42.0

All figures % by weight

R-408A

R-408A composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-125	7.0	5.0–9.0
R-143a	46.0	45.0–47.0
R-22	47.0	45.0–49.0

All figures % by weight

R-409A

R-409A composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-22	60.0	58.0–62.0
R-124	25.0	23.0–27.0
R-142b	15.0	14.0–16.0

All figures % by weight

R-409B

R-409B composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-22	65.0	63.0–67.0
R-124	25.0	23.0–27.0
R-142b	10.0	9.0–11.0

All figures % by weight

R-410A

common

R-410A composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-32	50.0	48.5–50.5
R-125	50.0	49.5–51.5

All figures % by weight

R-410B

R-410B composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-32	45.0	44.0–46.0
R-125	55.0	54.0–56.0

All figures % by weight

R-500

common

R-500 composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-12	73.8	72.8–74.8
R-152a	26.2	25.2–27.2

All figures % by weight

R-502

common

R-502 composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-22	48.8	44.8–52.8
R-115	51.2	47.2–55.2

All figures % by weight

R-503

R-503 composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-23	40.1	39.0–41.0
R-13	59.9	59.0–61.0

All figures % by weight

R-507A

common

R-507A composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-125	50.0	49.5–51.5
R-143a	50.0	48.5–50.5

All figures % by weight

R-508A

R-508A composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-23	39.0	37.0–41.0
R-116	61.0	59.0–63.0

All figures % by weight

R-508B

R-508B composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-23	46.0	44.0–48.0
R-116	54.0	52.0–56.0

All figures % by weight

R-513A

R-513A composition window, percent by weight
Component	Nominal	Allowed range
R-1234yf	56.0	55.0–57.0
R-134a	44.0	43.0–45.0

All figures % by weight

Why R-410A and R-507A are not ±tolerances

Both are nominally 50/50 and both windows are skewed — in opposite directions. R-410A allows R-32 from 48.5 to 50.5 and R-125 from 49.5 to 51.5; R-507A allows R-125 from 49.5 to 51.5 and R-143a from 48.5 to 50.5. Anything implemented as nominal ± tolerance is wrong for both.

Withheld pending verification

R-509A is not published here. Our transcription of its window failed an internal consistency check, and we would rather publish a shorter table than a limit we have not re-read from the standard itself. Ask us and we will confirm it against the published edition.

05Decision rules

How a verdict is reached

Stated in advance, because these are exactly the questions that arise when a result is close to a limit.

A result equal to the limit passes: The standard says the value shall not exceed the maximum, so a result exactly at the limit is a pass.
Non-condensables are not always required: Refrigerants whose normal boiling point is at or above room temperature are exempt. We report those as Not Applicable, never as a pass and never as blank.
R-40 (methyl chloride) is capped at 300 ppm: An AHRI 700-2019 and 700-2024 requirement. It does not appear in the federally incorporated appendix, so we report it without labeling it a federal requirement.
Blends are judged on composition, not purity: Each component has its own two-sided window plus a 0.5%-by-weight cap on anything that is not a named component. A blend can be 99.5% pure and still fail.
Source temperature is recorded at sampling: The non-condensables measurement is defined at 25.0 °C on a vapor-phase sample, so the source temperature at the time of sampling is part of the record.

06Editions

Which edition applies

They are not interchangeable. The exemption list for non-condensables changes between them.

40 CFR 82 subpart F, Appendix A

The federally incorporated text (AHRI 700-2016 basis). This is the binding one for Section 608 work.

Non-condensables not required: R-11, R-113, R-123, R-141b, R-245fa, R-1233zd(E)

AHRI 700-2019

Adds R-1336mzz(Z) to the non-condensables exemption and introduces the R-40 sub-limit.

Non-condensables not required: R-11, R-113, R-123, R-141b, R-245fa, R-1233zd(E), R-1336mzz(Z)

AHRI 700-2024

Adds R-1336mzz(E); §4.2.3.2 also exempts R-514A, which the table note omits.

Non-condensables not required: R-11, R-113, R-123, R-141b, R-245fa, R-1233zd(E), R-1336mzz(Z), R-1336mzz(E), R-514A