Category: Papers 2024

Summary for Policy Makers Air conditioning is essential for improving people’s comfort and health, indispensable for the economic development of hot, humid regions, and made increasingly necessary by the more frequent heat waves caused by global warming. Yet it nevertheless contributes to the CO2 emissions that fuel this warming. In order to quantify the impact…

Table of contents ABSTRACT The article discusses the constituents necessary for RACHP to “really” reach net zero. It starts with Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and the call for net zero emissions to keep the global temperature well below 1.5 °C, followed by current climate developments. Estimates are provided for emissions from refrigerants and electricity generation…

Table of contents AMBITION IS THE PATH TO SUCCESS The year 2023 was the hottest year on record. This summer many have experienced unpleasant heatwaves and some had to cope with floods, hailstorms or fires with devastating consequences. Weather and climate-related extreme events have risen between 1980 and 2022, causing 220 000 deaths and € 650…

Table of contents The European Partnership for Energy and the Environment (EPEE) is the voice of the refrigeration, air-conditioning, and heat pump (RACHP) industry in Europe, representing 40-plus manufacturers and industry associations across 19 countries, with more than 30 billion Euro in turnover. EPEE members employ more than 200,000 people in Europe and create indirect…

Table of contents ABSTRACT Global emissions of fluorinated greenhouse gases (F-gases) and ozone-depleting substances (ODS), together represent almost five per cent of total greenhouse gases. On 7 February 2024, the European Union (EU) published new rules to limit F-gases and ODS emissions, which include a complete phase-out of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), new measures to strengthen compliance…

AREA, the European association of refrigeration, air conditioning and heat pump (RACHP) contractors, fully supports an ambitious transition to alternatives to f-gases. However, AREA members have been voicing concerns regarding the very low level of training on alternative refrigerants among F-gas trained personnel and on the risk of a shortage of contractors trained in the…

Table of contents Everyone wants a clean environment and the lowest possible emissions. Likewise, everyone also wants affordable, reliable, and efficient heating, cooling, and water heating equipment. Heating, cooling, and water heating are not luxuries, they are necessary to ensure human health, safety, productivity, and comfort. While the United States, Europe, and most of the rest…

Table of contents ABSTRACT This paper explains the new business opportunities to sell climate-friendly cooling products in developing countries’ markets in which inefficient appliances with obsolete refrigerants are predominantly sold today. Market drivers include the European Union (EU) 2024 F-gas regulation prohibiting the sale of cooling equipment not eligible for sale in Europe and the…

Table of contents INTRODUCTION Global warming, driven by greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide, CO2, hydrofluorocarbons and HFCs, has led to an increase in extreme weather events. Although fluorocarbons represent a minor fraction of greenhouse gas emissions, their high global warming potential, GWP, and widespread use in refrigeration and air conditioning significantly impact climate change. Initially,…

Table of contents INTRODUCTION In Japan, Prime Minister Suga declared carbon neutrality by 2050 in 2021, and various policies have been put forward. In the refrigeration and air conditioning industry, the biggest challenge remains the response to the “phased reduction of HFC (hydrofluorocarbon) refrigerants” agreed upon by 197 countries at the 28th Montreal Protocol Conference…