A-Gas is urging the refrigeration industry to switch to low-global warming potential (GWP) refrigerants R-448A and R-449A before shortages of R-404A begin to bite.
A-Gas Managing Director John Ormerod said, “Time is running out but some contractors are still ignoring the fact that supplies of R-404A will shrink over the next two years and by 2018 there simply won’t be enough to go around. It is no good making the switch at the last minute — there is a huge bank of equipment out there which will have to be updated with low-GWP refrigerants.”
In a statement the firm said: “The latest round of F-gas regulations will hit hard the availability of R-404A — the most widely used refrigerant in the industry — as high-GWP refrigerants are phased out. R-449A (Opteon XP40) and R-448A (Solstice N40) are now available widely through refrigerant wholesalers and are a perfect solution for end-users looking for alternatives to R-404A.”
The firm added: “They have a lower GWP than R-407A and R-407F, the two medium-GWP alternatives currently available,” said the company. “Both also offer improvements in energy efficiency and are a great choice where discharge temperature is a concern.”
Content for the European Spotlight is provided courtesy of Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Magazine, London. For more information, visit www.racplus.com.
Publication date: 2/8/2016
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