Quote:
Originally Posted by fsiflyer 
How corrosive is freon in a liquid or gas form anyhow?
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Freon (a trade name for refrigerant) is not corrosive. In fact, in the old days we used to use refrigerant R-11 to clean and degrease parts. R-11 boils at about 76 degrees F, so you could use it in its liquid state.
One of the good things about refrigerant is that is not very corrosive at all, but acts like a cleaning agent. It can damage electronics in its liquid state just like water could. Also when high pressure refrigerant leaks out, its pressure changes rapidly causing evaporation which has a cooling effect.(thats a good thing in air conditioning!) It can cause frost bite and damage human skin, so it can damage electronics that way also. A very cold circuit board will condense moisture on it, and that moisture could lead to corrosion.
Refrigerant in an aircraft seems strange to me. If there is a leak in the air conditioning system, it could kill everyone in the cabin. Refrigerant displaces oxygen, and with a large enough leak you could suffocate.
Oh by the way, I know all this because I've been an air conditioning technician since 1990.