Unacceptable Substitute Refrigerants
EPA reviews substitutes on the basis of environmental and health risks, including factors such as ozone depletion potential, global warming potential, toxicity, flammability, and exposure potential. Lists of acceptable and unacceptable substitutes are updated several times each year. Alternatives are listed as unacceptable where other available, or potentially available, substitutes pose a lower overall risk to human health and the environment.
| Substitute (Name Used in the Federal Register) | ODS Being Replaced | End-uses | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
| All flammable refrigerants, including OZ-12® (Hydrocarbon Blend A), HC-12a® (Hydrocarbon Blend B), and Duracool 12a except HFC-152a and HFO-1234yf in new MVACs | CFC-12 | Motor vehicle air conditioning, retrofit and new | Lack of adequate assessment that characterizes incremental flammability risk |
| OZ-12® (Hydrocarbon Blend A), HC-12a® (Hydrocarbon Blend B), and Duracool 12a | CFC-12 | All end-uses other than industrial process refrigeration, retrofit and new | Lack of adequate assessment that characterizes incremental flammability risk |
| R-141b | CFC-11 | centrifugal chillers, new | High ODP; other substitutes with lower overall risk have been identified |
| R-176 (R-176 contains CFC-12, HCFC-22, and HCFC-142b. It is a different product from RB-276, typically sold under the name "Free Zone.") |
CFC-12 | All end-uses, retrofit and new | Contains CFC-12 |
| R-403B | R-502 | All end-uses, retrofit and new | Contains a perfluorocarbonA compound consisting of carbon and fluorine. PFCs have extremely high global warming potentials (GWPs) and very long lifetimes. They do not deplete stratospheric ozone, but EPA is concerned about their impact on global warming. that exhibits extremely high GWPGlobal Warming Potential (GWP) is defined as the cumulative radiative forcing effects of a gas over a specified time horizon resulting from the emission of a unit mass of gas relative to a reference gas. The GWP-weighted emissions of direct greenhouse gases in the U.S. Inventory are presented in terms of equivalent emissions of carbon dioxide (CO₂), using units of teragrams of carbon dioxide equivalents (Tg CO₂ Eq.). [Conversion: Tg = 10^9 kg = 10^6 metric tons = 1 million metric tons] The molecular weight of carbon is 12, and the molecular weight of oxygen is 16; therefore, the molecular weight of CO₂ is 44 (i.e., 12+[16 x 2]), as compared to 12 for carbon alone. Thus, carbon comprises 12/44ths of carbon dioxide by weight. and very long lifetime |
| R-405A | CFC-12 | All end-uses, retrofit and new | Contains a perfluorocarbonA compound consisting of carbon and fluorine. PFCs have extremely high global warming potentials (GWPs) and very long lifetimes. They do not deplete stratospheric ozone, but EPA is concerned about their impact on global warming. that exhibits extremely high GWPGlobal Warming Potential (GWP) is defined as the cumulative radiative forcing effects of a gas over a specified time horizon resulting from the emission of a unit mass of gas relative to a reference gas. The GWP-weighted emissions of direct greenhouse gases in the U.S. Inventory are presented in terms of equivalent emissions of carbon dioxide (CO₂), using units of teragrams of carbon dioxide equivalents (Tg CO₂ Eq.). [Conversion: Tg = 10^9 kg = 10^6 metric tons = 1 million metric tons] The molecular weight of carbon is 12, and the molecular weight of oxygen is 16; therefore, the molecular weight of CO₂ is 44 (i.e., 12+[16 x 2]), as compared to 12 for carbon alone. Thus, carbon comprises 12/44ths of carbon dioxide by weight. and very long lifetime |
| MT-31 | all CFCs and HCFCs | All end-uses, retrofit and new | Toxicity of a constituent |
| Hexafluropropylene (HFP) and blends containing it | all CFCs and HCFCs | All end-uses, retrofit and new | HFP is toxic |
| NARM-22 | HCFC-22 | All end-uses, retrofit and new | Contains HCFC-22 |
| Self-Chilling Cans using HFC-134a or HFC-152a | CFC-12, HCFC-22, R-502 | Household Refrigeration, Transport Refrigeration, Vending Machines, Cold Storage Warehouses and Retail Food Refrigeration; retrofit and new | Unacceptably high greenhouse gas emissions from direct release of refrigerant to the atmosphere |