The refrigeration industry covering pre-cooling, cooling, air conditioning and freezing applications became one of the largest economic sectors, consuming about 20 per cent of the total electricity generated worldwide. The industry includes systems for various applications such as pre-coolers, coolers, household fridges, refrigerators, freezers, air conditioners and heat pumps and for this reason its presence is significant in the engineering and industrial sectors.
In the refrigeration industry the primary focus was finding a refrigerant that would provide effective cooling. While early refrigerants commonly used met this requirement, their high flammability and toxicity posed alarming safety hazards.
Chlorofluorocarbons or CFCs were introduced in the 1930s as a safer alternative and eventually dominated the refrigeration and HVAC industry as a result of their efficiency.
Environmental concerns entered the scene in the 1970s and research has found CFCs to be contributing to the depletion of the ozone layer. The
global concern about the depletion of the ozone layer resulted in the Montreal and Kyoto protocols, international treaties that fixated phase-out dates regarding the production and use of ozone-depleting substances.
Hydrochlorofluorocarbons or HCFCs have a considerably lower ozone depletion potential (ODP) while hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) such as the R134a have 0 ozone depletion potential and even greater cooling properties, reason for which they are still being used and the phase-out dates was set out for 2030 and 2040 in developing countries.
