Car-Air Conditioning r1234yf Regas and Repairs

Car manufacturers are being forced to change the refrigerant used in the air conditioning system over the next few years. The motor industry has decided that the refrigerant used for the past 20 years is less environmentally friendly than a refrigerant with a lower Global Warming Potential (GWP).

Initially, the response was to use carbon dioxide gas (CO2) to cool the car. This is actually possible but resulted in very poor results in areas where the temperature is high, like the Sahara – exactly the sort of place where AC is required. This would result in more fuel being used to cool the car – not exactly what we would want nor would that be very environmentally desirable.

Environmentally Friendly Refrigerant HFO-1234yf 

Refrigerant HFO-1234yf behaviour is very similar to R134a, which allows component manufacturers as well as automotive designers the luxury of not having to make drastic changes to current products. In fact, data suggests the possibility that HFO-1234yf could be used as a direct replacement, with only minimal efficiency loss when used in existing R134a systems, allowing for swift global adoption. Studies of the effects of mixing HFO-1234yf with R134a show only minor pressure increases resulting from their blending.

HFO-1234yf also has the potential to be used in direct expansion systems which are more efficient and smaller than secondary loop systems. This can help meet Coefficient of Performance requirements for overall A/C system efficiency.

• HFO-1234yf has the following positive characteristics:
• Global Warming Potential of 4 in 100 years versus 1410 of R134a
• (The EU’s new limit is 150).
• Ozone Depletion score of 0.
• Lowest LCCP of other known alternatives.
• Flammability listed as “mild” or “manageable” compared to the higher flammability of R152-a.
• Much lower operating pressure versus CO2 (R744).