HVAC Refrigerants Myths & Facts

A global commitment to a healthy, sustainable environment is changing therefrigerant landscape for the HVAC industry. Navigating that change has become difficult as regulatory activity, media scrutiny, and competitive forces combine to create a complex landscape of messages. At Daikin, we are committed to solving the problem of climate change by innovating rigorously and responsibly, and creating candid, fact-based dialog to help you make the most informed decisions possible.

Myth: HCFCs are not being phased out..

FACT: HCFCs, including R123, are being phased out. Limitations on HCFC production began in 2004. The Montreal Protocol established a phase-down schedule that mandates the 100 percent phase-out of HCFCs, including R123, in new equipment by January 1, 2020. It allows 0.5 percent of base-level consumption to service existing HVAC equipment until January 1, 2030.

Myth: A little ODP is OK.

FACT: No amount of ODP is OK. Stratospheric ozone protects us from ultraviolet rays. Ozone is depleted by chlorine-containing compounds that reach the upper atmosphere. Because CFCs and HCFCs contain chlorine, which has ozone depletion potential (ODP), the Montreal Protocol originally focused on phasing out CFCs and HCFCs. It mandates that all refrigerants with ODP will be phased out for new equipment by January 1, 2020.

Myth: Lower GWP is always better.

FACT: A lower GWP can come with trade-offs. Many lower GWP refrigerants also have lower efficiency than the refrigerants we are using today. For chillers, the vast majority of impact on climate change will come from generating electricity to run the equipment, versus refrigerant emissions. Containment is also critical: there is no direct impact on global warming from refrigerants as long as they are contained and not released into the atmosphere.