EPA’s HFC Phasedown: How Regulatory Heat is Advancing the Coolant Industry | Article

On May 3, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a phasedown of the production and use of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), highly potent greenhouse gases commonly used in appliances like refrigerators, heat pumps, and air conditioners, as it implements the American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act of 2020.

The AIM Act tasks the EPA with reducing the production and use of HFCs in the United States by 85 percent over the next 15 years. According to the EPA's press release, a global HFC phasedown could avoid up to 0.5°C of global warming by 2100.

HFCs have a high global warming potential (GWP), or atmospheric heat absorption capability, which makes them an especially potent greenhouse gas. The high GWP of HFCs becomes a problem if they are released through leakages that can occur during manufacturing, operation, or disposal of HFC-containing appliances. In a recent webinar on the new regulations, Miranda Gorman, senior fellow of industry at Project Drawdown, noted that refrigerant management is a solution that focuses on preventing and controlling HFC leakage throughout the lifetime of an appliance.

“HFCs have very high global warming potential, upwards of one thousand times that of CO2, so one of the most important things we can do is be careful of how we deal with them,” Gorman said. “That includes collection at end-of-life destruction, and refrigerants being transformed into other materials that can be reused.”

Project Drawdown estimates that approximately 80 percent of unmanaged refrigerant leakages can be contained through proper refrigerant management like proper end-of-life collection and that refrigerant recycling could reduce 57.75 gigatons of CO2 equivalent by 2050. The costs of implementing these solutions can likely be offset through the revenue gained from the sale of recycled refrigerants, resulting in $629.25 billion saved in lifetime net operational costs.

Gorman explained that the second solution for addressing HFC refrigerants is by replacing them with alternative refrigerants, including “ammonia, captured CO2, and propane, which have much lower global warming potential.” According to Project Drawdown, the replacement of between 67 to 82 percent of HFCs by 2050 could reduce emissions between 43.53 and 50.53 gigatons of CO2 equivalent by the same year.

To reach ambitious climate goals, both refrigerant management and alternative refrigerant solutions must happen—and both will become increasingly necessary within the refrigeration industry in light of the new EPA regulations.

Kristen Taddonio, senior climate and energy advisor at the Institute for Governance and Sustainable Development (IGSD), explained that U.S. state and federal policy is increasingly mandating a transition toward climate-friendly refrigerants.

“The good news is that many affordable energy-efficient options are available now, and many more will likely be available very soon due to recent regulatory and federal action,” Taddonio said.

Implementing products that are energy-efficient and also use climate-friendly refrigerants will lead to the most favorable outcomes, according to the IGSD. Such products provide the environmental benefits of reduced refrigerant and energy-related emissions while also yielding financial benefits by minimizing life-cycle ownership costs thanks to reduced energy usage.

“Consider setting an organizational HFC policy, and conduct an inventory of your air conditioner and refrigeration equipment,” Taddonio said. “Work with your maintenance team to ensure that, when equipment is replaced, your organization is prioritizing options that are energy efficient and use climate-friendly refrigerants.”

For example, high-efficiency heat pumps, many of which use HFCs as a coolant, have become a popular energy efficiency and beneficial electrification solution for building heating and cooling. This form of electric climate control can be a great way to reduce carbon emissions, particularly when powered by lower-carbon electric grids. But the climate benefits of heat pumps and other appliances can be undermined if they leak HFCs into the atmosphere.

In certain states, the purchase and installation of an AC unit or heat pump using a refrigerant with a GWP of over 750 will be illegal beginning in 2025, according to IGSD, and consumers should avoid buying a product that uses previous-generation refrigerants. By using resources like the Climate Friendly Cooling Campaign, a product list toolkit developed by IGSD and the Sustainable Purchasing Leadership Council, consumers of refrigeration equipment can commit to purchasing low-GWP, energy-efficient products.

While the new phasedown regulations empower the EPA to more restrictively limit HFCs, it will likely be several years before these changes are finalized and start to take effect. But by ensuring that efficient heat pumps and other refrigerant-based appliances are climate-friendly, the new EPA regulations are accelerating the advancement of electrification technology, as well as the consumer and climate-centric benefits that come with it.

“National standards will ensure all communities have access to higher quality products, and that we are giving U.S. industry the best opportunity to innovate and lead the global transition to HFC alternatives,” Julie Cerqueira, executive director of the U.S. Climate Alliance, said in a statement. “It’s a win for jobs, a win for our economy, and it will help us achieve our bold state and federal climate goals.”

Author: Jaxon Tolbert