US HFC phase-down: alternative refrigerants for commercial refrigeration

The American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act was enacted by the US Congress on 27th December 2020. The AIM Act directs the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to address hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) by: phasing down production and consumption, maximising reclamation and minimising releases from equipment, and facilitating the transition to next-generation technologies through sector-based restrictions.

 

The year 2022 marks the beginning of new regulatory requirements for HFCs at the state and federals levels. As of 1st January 2022, the production of HFC refrigerants, such as R410A and R404A, has been reduced by 10%. By 2024, the production must be reduced to 60% of the baseline established by the EPA.

 

The North American Sustainable Refrigeration Council (NASRC) has launched online tools to help guide the industry through the new and changing regulations. Namely, they have published a summary of current and future refrigerant options for U.S. commercial refrigeration applications, including stationary refrigeration remote systems, remote condensing units, self-contained refrigerated cases.

 

The tool can be downloaded here.

 

Please find below a screenshot of the tool as of its last update in February 2022.

 

 

 

 

Sources

Protecting Our Climate by Reducing Use of HFCs. https://www.epa.gov/climate-hfcs-reduction

New Year marks start of HFC phasedown in U.S. https://www.achrnews.com/blogs/17-opinions/post/145931-new-year-marks-start-of-hfc-phasedown-in-us

NASRC Releases NEW Policy Resources. https://nasrc.org/articles1/2021/11/18/top-5-takeaways-from-the-sustainable-refrigeration-summit-g42my