Commercial HVAC Refrigerants: Environmental Stewardship and Legislation
Understanding Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Awareness of greenhouse gases – and the regulation of greenhouse-gas producers – has grown exponentially.
Brian S. Smith, Director of Global Marketing, Chiller Solutions, Building Technologies and Solutions, Johnson Controls, explains some of the history, challenges and potential focuses of refrigerant legislation in this article published by FMJ magazine. Smith states that determining the best commercial HVAC refrigerants, like low-GWP options, isn’t the only consideration to be made:
“Within the HVACR industry, the use of refrigerants is just one small part of the greenhouse gas equation. The search for low-GWP refrigerants must strike the right balance of other factors, including safety, reliability, availability, affordability and performance. That performance is critical in terms of the environmental view.”
The article also shares the differences between how the United States and Europe are approaching the challenge of efficiency and environmental stewardship and preemptive actions to reduce CO2 emissions.
Lowering greenhouse gas requires more than refrigerant changes. Considerations must also include safety, reliability, availability, affordability and performance.
Greenhouse Gas Considerations
- Low GWP refrigerants should be safe, reliable, available and affordable
- Refrigerant performance has a large impact on how much energy is required
- The overall impact of refrigerant production is an important factor
