I was pleased but not too surprised to find Tesla on the list of automotive manufacturers that have adopted the new refrigerant.
I've been concerned about the high GWP (Global Warming Potential) of refrigerants for a while now. While researching CO2 as a refrigerant I stumbled across another 'new' refrigerant that borders on being miraculous. CO2 has a GWP of 1 since it's the index. R134a has a 100-year GWP of 1430! The new refrigerant that has been selected to replace R134a, with the catchy name of R1234YF has a GWP of 4!
CO2 is very difficult to use as a refrigerant due to the high pressures required but R1234YF is nearly identical to R134a... although it sadly can't be used in R134a system... I've got a slow refrigerant leak in my Heat Pump Hot Water Heater... hopefully the next generation will use more eco-friendly refrigerant.
I've been concerned about the high GWP (Global Warming Potential) of refrigerants for a while now. While researching CO2 as a refrigerant I stumbled across another 'new' refrigerant that borders on being miraculous. CO2 has a GWP of 1 since it's the index. R134a has a 100-year GWP of 1430! The new refrigerant that has been selected to replace R134a, with the catchy name of R1234YF has a GWP of 4!
CO2 is very difficult to use as a refrigerant due to the high pressures required but R1234YF is nearly identical to R134a... although it sadly can't be used in R134a system... I've got a slow refrigerant leak in my Heat Pump Hot Water Heater... hopefully the next generation will use more eco-friendly refrigerant.