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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 193 / Friday, October 8, 2021 / Rules and Regulations
process of a condensing clothes dryer with a closed-loop process air system, the FMC increases rapidly during the cool-down period.30 AHAM and BSH
asserted that due to the UL 2158
requirement, attaining an FMC of 2
percent on condensing clothes dryers is impractical, and without costly design changes and adjustments to the test procedure, ventless condensing clothes dryers cannot consistently meet both the new UL 2158 safety limit and the current FMC requirement. BSH
suggested a separate FMC target of 4
percent for ventless clothes to compensate for the UL 2158 safety requirement and otherwise agreed with the current 2-percent FMC requirement for vented clothes dryers. AHAM, No.
33 at pp. 5, 12; BSH, No. 30 at pp. 1
2, 4
AHAM and BSH also recommended that DOE specify a time limit in which the test load must be weighed after stopping the test cycle to minimize test variation and moisture reabsorption.
BSH recommended that the test load be weighed within 10 seconds of the drying cycle termination, and AHAM
recommended that the test load be weighed immediately after and within a maximum of 2 minutes after cycle termination. AHAM, No. 33 at pp. 5, 12; BSH, No. 30 at pp. 12, 4; GEA, No.
37 at p. 2; Samsung, No. 36 at p. 2
The current 2-percent FMC
requirement using the DOE test cloth was adopted as representative of approximately 5-percent FMC for realworld clothing, based on data submitted in a joint petition for rulemaking.31 DOE determined in the ventless condensing clothes dryer recirculates the air used to remove moisture from the load during the entire drying cycle. The clothes dryer uses ambient air or cold water in a heat exchanger to condense the moisture from the air in the drum. The dry air exiting the drum is then reheated and recirculated back into the drum.
31 The petition was submitted by AHAM, Whirlpool Corporation, General Electric Company, Electrolux, LG Electronics, Inc., BSH, Alliance Laundry Systems, Viking Range, Sub-Zero Wolf, Friedrich A/C, U-Line, Samsung, Sharp Electronics,
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August 2013 Final Rule that the specified 2-percent FMC using the DOE
test load was representative of consumer expectations for dryness of clothing in field use. 78 FR 49608, 4962049622, 4961049611 Aug. 14, 2013.
DOE reviewed the UL 2158 safety requirements and noted that Clause 12
of UL 2158 requires a cool-down period if the drying cycle air temperature exceeds 131 F at the end of the drying cycle, as measured at the first lint filter.
This cool-down period is required to reduce the temperature of the clothes load to a suitable level before the user is alerted that the drying cycle has ended. As described in Clause 12.1 of UL 2158, this safety standard is in place to reduce the risk of spontaneous ignition of the clothes load. DOE
acknowledges that the air temperature limit specified by UL 2158 i.e., requiring a cool-down period to ensure the temperature at the first lint filter at the end of the drying cycle does not exceed 131 F may result in moisture regain by the load. DOE notes that the safety requirement regarding cool-down periods was introduced in the fourth edition of UL 2158 and has been effective since December 2015. In its internal testing since that time, DOE has not identified any systemic problems with any clothes dryer types, including ventless condensing clothes dryers, being able to achieve the required FMC
of 2 percent or less, such that amendments to the test procedure would be warranted.
Furthermore, commenters did not provide any test results or data to Miele, Heat Controller, AGA Marvel, Brown Stove, Haier, Fagor America, Airwell Group, Arcelik, Fisher & Paykel, Scotsman Ice, Indesit, Kuppersbusch, Kelon, and DeLonghi, American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy, Appliance Standards Awareness Project, Natural Resources Defense Council, Alliance to Save Energy, Alliance for Water Efficiency, Northwest Power and Conservation Council, and Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships, Consumer Federation of America and the National Consumer Law Center. See Docket No. EERE2011BTTP
0054, No. 3.

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demonstrate that the maximum 2percent FMC limit is impracticable or unachievable given the UL 2158 safety requirements. DOE also notes that multiple ventless condensing clothes dryers from various manufacturers have been certified to DOE under the appendix D2 test procedure since the introduction of the safety standard in 2015.
Based on the preceding discussion, DOE is not amending the FMC
requirement for either appendix D1 or appendix D2 in this final rule.
Regarding a time limit in which the test load must be weighed after stopping the test cycle, section 3.3 of previous appendix D1 and sections 3.3.1 and 3.3.2 of previous appendix D2 required that the test load be weighed after stopping the test cycle for timer clothes dryers or after the completion of the test cycle for automatic termination control clothes dryers. To better quantify the potential reabsorption effects associated with the interval between completing the clothes dryer test cycle and weighing the test cloth, DOE tested seven clothes dryers according to appendix D2, with five different time periods for weighing the test cloth after termination of the drying cycle. During the waiting period, the test cloth remained in the clothes dryer drum with the door closed. These time periods ranged from weighing the test cloth as immediately as practicable after termination of the drying cycle to 30
minutes after termination of the drying cycle. DOE acknowledges that test load FMC may change after completion of the clothes dryer cycle, generally regaining moisture; however, testing found that the moisture content for certain units decreased as the waiting period increased, relative to the immediate weighing.
Figure III.4 shows the change in FMC
measured at varying waiting periods relative to the FMC recorded immediately upon removal of the test load after the drying cycle termination.

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