As part of the US Climate Action Plan, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has increased climate friendly refrigerant options for use in refrigeration and air conditioning equipment.
The new ruling is part of the EPA’s Significant New Alternatives Policy (SNAP) Program. Approved substitutes have GWPs that range from 3 to 675 and can replace older compounds with GWPs between 1400 to 4000.
After receiving input from industry, environmental groups, and others, EPA is approving additional low-GWP hydrocarbon refrigerants, subject to use conditions, in the following applications:
• Ethane in very low temperature refrigeration and in non-mechanical heat transfer;
• Isobutane in retail food refrigeration (stand-alone commercial refrigerators and freezers) and in vending machines;
• Propane in household refrigerators, freezers, or combination refrigerators and freezers, in vending machines, and in room air conditioning units;
• The hydrocarbon blend R-441A in retail food refrigeration (stand-alone commercial refrigerators and freezers), in vending machines and in room air conditioning units; and
• HFC-32 (difluoromethane) in room air conditioning units. HFC-32 has one-third the GWP of the conventional refrigerants currently being used in room air conditioning units.
For details visit http://www.epa.gov/ozone/snap/index.html