How should the refrigerant market develop in the future

China's second phase HCFC phase-out plan begins. R11, R12, R13, R14, R113, R114 and other CFCs refrigerants have all been phased out; R22, R123, R142b and other HCFCs refrigerants are in the phase-out sequence; Although HFCs refrigerants such as R134a, R410a, and R407c are currently widely used, they are transition products. And according to relevant requirements, they will withdraw from the market around 2025.

According to the Montreal Protocol, although the government has proposed a phase-out process and timetable, it has not clearly given the specific direction of the new refrigerant. As a result, many brands can only develop new environmentally-friendly refrigerants based on their own capabilities and technologies. Second, there is no perfect refrigerant. From a technical point of view, most of the refrigerants in the market are not pure refrigerants at present, and they are formulated from multiple varieties of formulas, so more or less problems will occur. For example, R513a, although this refrigerant has zero effect on the ozone layer, it is still a mixed refrigerant, and there are still problems in flammability.

Third, cost constraints. From the perspective of environmental protection, many existing refrigerants will be discontinued in the future. Before new technological innovations come, many brands will still choose to use existing refrigerants in view of cost issues, mainly because of cost. The application of new refrigerants takes a long time to be validated and accepted by the market. Fourth, consideration of interests. The current refrigerant is mainly monopolized by companies such as Honeywell and Chemours (formerly DuPont), and their core technologies and patents are also controlled by them. The R1234ze and R1233zd exhibited at this refrigeration exhibition are produced by Honeywell. Although the direction of the refrigerant is not clear at present, these companies will certainly recommend their technologies and products to the industry, enterprises and governments through their influence, which will have a certain influence on the formulation of the direction of the refrigerant. Finally, it will achieve a monopoly on refrigerant technology and the market to ensure that the brand's own profits are maximized.

At the 2017 China Refrigeration Exhibition, we can already analyze these issues through on-site display. Throughout this refrigeration exhibition, new refrigerants such as R290, R32, R1234ze, R1233zd, and R513a are applied to brand-new products, but even so, there are still many uncertain factors in the future.