Refrigerant
New Low GWP Refrigerants Prove Promising for Future Mobile Air
By goHTSN Staff
Jan 27, 2007, 16:46

Wilmington, DL — Jan. 24, 2007 — DuPont Refrigerants will exhibit at the Mobile Air Conditioning Society's (MACS) 27th Annual Convention and Trade Show - the world's largest and best-attended independent event focused on the mobile air conditioning, heat transfer and engine cooling system segments of the automotive aftermarket - in Phoenix, Ariz., Feb. 1-3, 2007. DuPont will highlight its product portfolio of cooling solutions that address today's vehicle air-conditioning needs as well as new, more sustainable refrigerants in development for future mobile air-conditioning (MAC). Visitors at the show can find DuPont at booth 525.

Leveraging more than 75 years of science and technology to deliver more sustainable cooling solutions to the global marketplace, DuPont is a principle supplier of consistent, high-quality DuPont(tm) Suva(r) 134a refrigerant for today's vehicle manufacturers and the automotive aftermarket, including retailers, wholesalers, jobbers and automotive service providers. DuPont has very high standards to eliminate the possibilities of impurities in its refrigerant products. All DuPont refrigerants, including DuPont(tm) Suva(r) 134a, meet the new Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) purity standard, J2776. Approved in October, this standard limits the level of "unsaturated impurities" in the refrigerant HFC-134a to a maximum level of 40 ppm. DuPont refrigerants also meet the ARI Standard 700-2006 Specifications for Fluorocarbon Refrigerants.

DuPont is leading the search for the next generation of automotive refrigerants with lower global warming potential (GWP) to provide more sustainable solutions compatible with existing automotive air-conditioning systems. Last June, DuPont announced that it had identified a leading candidate, "DP-1," in its testing of new, low GWP proprietary refrigerants. Initial technical data showed performance similar to HFC-134a without the need for a complete redesign of automotive air-conditioning systems. "DP-1" also showed significantly lower GWP than current refrigerants and zero ozone depletion potential (ODP). It is non-flammable and has also performed well in tests to date involving thermal stability, materials compatibility, lubricant miscibility and toxicity.

DuPont unveiled the first demonstration of "DP-1" at the 2006 European Automotive Air-Conditioning (EAAC) Show in Frankfurt, Germany, in a current production car equipped with an R-134a MAC system. Although no changes were made to the demonstration vehicle's existing MAC system in order to run on "DP-1," AC systems will need to be optimized to accommodate the differences between DP-1 and 134a. This suggests that the conversion to the more sustainable refrigerant "DP-1" likely will not require extensive redesign of automotive air-conditioning systems, or a major overhaul of the current MAC supply chain, which may be the case with other alternatives. As a result of its compatibility with existing 134a MAC systems, "DP-1" has the potential to enable a cost-effective transition to low GWP refrigerants across the entire global MAC industry.