LOW-GWP REFRIGERANTS: PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT AND SELECTION TRADEOFFS

Published

April 23, 2017

Author(s)

Piotr A. Domanski, Riccardo Brignoli, J S. Brown, Andrei F. Kazakov, Mark O. McLinden

Abstract

The merits of an alternative refrigerant are established based on many attributes including environmental acceptance, chemical stability in the refrigeration system, low toxicity, flammability, efficiency and volumetric capacity. In an earlier work, these criteria were used to screen a comprehensive database to search for refrigerants with low global warming potentials (GWP). The present paper summarizes the screening process and presents the performance of the ‘best’ 27 replacement fluids for small and medium-sized air conditioning, heating, and refrigeration applications. In addition to considering cycle calculations based only on thermodynamic properties, a simulation model that included transport properties and optimized heat exchangers was used to assess the performance potentials of the candidate fluids. The need for this more detailed modeling approach is demonstrated for systems relying on forced-convection evaporation and condensation. The study shows that the low-GWP refrigerant options are very limited, particularly for fluids with volumetric capacities similar to those of R 410A or R-404A. The probability of finding ‘ideal’, better-performing low-GWP fluids is minimal.

Citation

International Journal of Refrigeration-Revue Internationale Du Froid

Pub Type

Journals

Keywords

Air Conditioning, Coefficient of Performance, Global Warming Potential, Refrigerants

Citation

Domanski, P. , Brignoli, R. , Brown, J. , Kazakov, A. and McLinden, M. (2017), LOW-GWP REFRIGERANTS: PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT AND SELECTION TRADEOFFS, International Journal of Refrigeration-Revue Internationale Du Froid (Accessed October 11, 2025)