Claims
- 1. A method for determining whether a fluid in an air-conditioning or refrigeration system has been altered, comprising the steps of:
a) preparing at least one non-radioactive label for a fluid used in an air-conditioning system or refrigeration system, wherein said fluid comprises a compound selected from the group consisting of a lubricant, a fluorescent dye and combinations thereof; b) adding a known quantity of the label to the fluid used in the air-conditioning or refrigeration system to form a labeled mixture of the fluid; c) performing an analysis of the labeled mixture of the fluid to obtain a base-line profile of the labeled mixture of the fluid; d) adding the labeled mixture of the fluid to an air-conditioning or refrigeration system; e) providing the air-conditioning or refrigeration system to a user or customer; f) thereafter, performing an analysis of the fluid in the air-conditioning or refrigeration system to obtain a test profile of the fluid in the air-conditioning or refrigeration system; and g) determining whether the fluid in the air-conditioning or refrigeration system has been altered by comparing the base-line profile of the labeled mixture with the test profile of the fluid in the air-conditioning or refrigeration system.
- 2. The method of claim 1, wherein said label is not normally present in said fluid.
- 3. The method of claim 1, wherein said label is deuterated.
- 4. The method of claim 2, further comprising a second label, wherein said chemical label is deuterated.
- 5. The method of claim 1, wherein said analysis comprises chromatography.
- 6. The method of claim 1, wherein said analysis comprises mass spectrometry.
- 7. The method of claim 4, wherein said analysis comprises chromatography and mass spectrometry.
- 8. The method of claim 1, wherein said lubricant is selected from the group consisting of mineral oil, alkyl benzenes, PAG oil, POE oil and combinations thereof.
- 9. The method of claim 1, wherein said label is a polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbon or a halogenated hydrocarbon.
- 10. The method of claim 9, wherein said label is selected from the group consisting of 1,2-diphenylbenzene; 1,4-diphenylbenzene; triphenylmethane; 1,3,5-triphenylbenzene; 1,1,2-triphenylethylene; tetraphenylethylene; 1,2,3,4-tetrahydrocarbazole; 4-4′-dichlorobenzophenone; 4-benzoylphenone; 4-bromobenzophenone; 4-methoxybenzophenone; 4-methylbenzophenone; 9-fluorenone; 1-phenylnapthalene; 3,3′-dimethoxybiphenyl; and 9-phenylanthracene.
- 11. The method of claim 1, wherein said label is selected from the group consisting of 1-(4-morpholino)-3-(alpha naphthylamino)-propane; 1-(4-morpholino)-3-(beta naphthylamino)-propane;
- 12. The method of claim 1, wherein said label has a formula:
Parent Case Info
[0001] The present application is directly related to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/332,169, filed Nov. 16, 2001, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference and relied upon.
Provisional Applications (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
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60332169 |
Nov 2001 |
US |