New Refrigerant Deemed “Greener” than CO2

The automotive refrigerant HFO-1234yf has a lower global warming potential (GWP) than carbon dioxide, which has a baseline value of 1.

So says Honeywell International Inc., which co-developed 1234yf with DuPont. Honeywell cites an independent research paper published last year in the Reviews of Geophysics and now endorsed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The panel was set up by the United Nations.

Carmakers in Europe began using 1234yf 13 months ago because of a European Union directive that they switch to refrigerants with a GWP of less than 150. The ruling bans the use of HFC-134a, the world's most widely used automotive refrigerant, which has a GWP of 1,300.

Virtually all major carmakers are shifting to 1234yf. The notable exception is Daimler AG, whose Mercedes-Benz unit insists the refrigerant is dangerous. Daimler says it is developing a CO₂-based system that will be ready to put into production in about four years. But the company faces EU sanctions for continuing to use 134a in the meantime.

1234yf's developers have been rigorously defending the material as safe and effective. Honeywell estimates that adopting its refrigerant for all new vehicles would be the GWP equivalent of eliminating more than 30 million cars, or about 3% of the world's total vehicle fleet.

In a pointed dig at Daimler, the company says switching to a CO ₂ refrigerating system would increase the vehicle's fuel consumption, thus indirectly raising CO₂ emissions.