US air conditioning and refrigeration equipment manufacturer has confirmed that HFO refrigerants will be the basis for “most” of its future European product applications.
Carrier has been working to select the best candidate to replace the HFC R134a in screw and centrifugal chillers and HFC R410A in scroll chillers, heat pumps and rooftop units.
In a new statement, Carrier says it is committed to delivering solutions that preserve the environment and comply with the EU’s F-gas regulations. It points out that in, Europe, Carrier has already achieved a significant reduction of the refrigerant charge in its products of up to 50% over the last five years.
For screw chillers and heat pumps, Carrier has chosen the HFO R1234ze to replace R134a. R1234ze(E) is not impacted by restrictions from the EU F-gas regulation or the Kigali Amendment of the Montreal Protocol on fluorinated greenhouse gases. More than 300 AquaForce chillers using R1234ze(E) have been installed in Europe, Middle East and Africa since its launch three years ago, cumulating more than 2 million hours of use.
Carrier has chosen the HFO R1233zd(E) as the preferred long-term refrigerant for centrifugal chillers. With a GWP of 1, it is also not impacted by F-gas regulations. The Carrier AquaEdge 19DV already offers this refrigerant.
However, Carrier point out that for scroll commercial chillers and heat pump ranges, currently available compressor technology is not compatible with low GWP HFO refrigerants.
“Some solutions operate with mid-GWP HFC refrigerants and Carrier is developing a full range of cooling and heating products that will comply with and exceed Eco-design 2021 efficiency requirements and operate with mid-GWP HFC refrigerants,” the company said in a statement.
“These ranges are expected to launch very soon and are optimised for energy efficiency while offering the same operating temperature flexibility as current units operating with R410A.”
