The Development History of Industrial Refrigerants

The Development History of Industrial Refrigerants

Early exploration stage (1830-1930): In 1834, Jacob Perkins built a vapor compression system using ether as the refrigerant. The earliest "refrigerators" mainly used carbon dioxide and ammonia as refrigerants, but the effect was not good and they were not widely used. At this stage, refrigerants are still in the exploration stage, and people have conducted a lot of experiments and explorations. The selected refrigerants often have the disadvantages of flammability, toxicity, and unstable chemical properties, and their applications are mainly limited to the industrial field.

The beginning of modern industrial refrigerants (1920s and 1930s): In 1930, DuPont invented chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) refrigerants. A series of halogenated hydrocarbon refrigerants emerged one after another, and DuPont named them Freon. This was the first generation of refrigerants in modern industrial history, which solved the safety and efficiency problems of refrigerants and was widely used. However, it was later discovered that they caused serious damage to the Earth's ozone layer.

Intergenerational transition stage

Second generation refrigerant: The second generation refrigerant is hydrochlorofluorocarbon (HCFCs), with representative product HCFC-22 (R22), which was introduced almost simultaneously with the first generation refrigerant and widely used in industries such as air conditioning, refrigeration, and foaming. Other representative products include HCFC-142b (R142b) and HCFC-141b (R141b). The second-generation refrigerant has achieved low ODP, but its GWP remains high.

Third generation refrigerants, represented by HFC-34a (R134a), HFC-410a (R410a), and HFC-245fa (R245fa foaming agent), have zero ODP values and have been rapidly and widely used in industries such as air conditioning, refrigeration, and foaming due to their excellent energy efficiency and environmental protection characteristics. But third-generation refrigerants have high GWP values, and their widespread use will still accelerate global warming.

Fourth generation refrigerants: The third generation refrigerants mainly refer to HFOs refrigerants, which are chemically synthesized working fluids. Representative products of hydrofluoroolefins (HFOs) include R1234ze and R1234yf. Both types of refrigerants have zero ODP values and extremely low GWP values, perfectly solving the environmental problems of the previous two generations of refrigerants. However, their development is still in its infancy, and high costs and the increase in related patents and equipment costs limit their large-scale application.