The Chemours Company (Chemours), a global chemistry company with leading market positions in titanium technologies, fluoroproducts, and chemical solutions announced that G.I. Industrial Holding, a group of leading companies in the comfort and industrial cooling industry present in Europe, Africa, Middle East and Asia, and headquartered in Latisana, Italy, has adopted Opteon™ XL41 (R-454B) and Opteon™ XL55 (R-452B) low Global Warming Potential (GWP) hydrofluoroolefins (HFO) refrigerants as the R-410A replacement for their screw chiller systems. The selection of Opteon™ XL refrigerants by G.I. Industrial Holding has been made in close collaboration with Chemours and Italian distributor Nippon Gases Italia. This selection demonstrates the commitment of major industry players across the value chain to provide the chiller market with long-term, sustainable solutions ahead of the upcoming 2021 European F-Gas HFC cap and phase down.
Opteon™ XL41 (R-454B) and XL55 (R-452B) are HFO A2L class refrigerants for new equipment with similar capacity and improved energy efficiency compared to R-410A, as well as a close match in compressor discharge temperature. With a 78% reduction in GWP compared to R-410A, Opteon™ XL41 offers the lowest GWP, and correspondingly longer-term solution, to replace R-410A.
Opteon™ XL55 provides a 65% reduction in GWP vs. R-410A (similar to the reduction in GWP with R-32) but enables faster market implementation due to the fact that it is the closest overall performance match to R-410A, resulting in minimal equipment redesign and cost.
“Our product portfolio is the very first in the HVAC sector to offer a complete range of high-efficiency AC & chiller units with the more sustainable refrigerant R-452B instead of traditional R-410A used in scroll compressors. Along with its 65% lower GWP, similar or better performance vs. R-410A, Ecodesign compliance and compatibility with the full G.I. Industrial Holding product range (liquid chillers, heat pumps and multifunctional units from 50 to 1,220 kW), the use of R-452B combines the key elements of the CLINT and KTK brands philosophy: Respect for the Environment, Efficiency, and Versatility,” says Enrico Pin, Product Marketing Manager, G.I Industrial Holding. “Recently, we have also qualified R-454B and released compatible equipment that brings a longer-term solution to the chiller market,” he added.
“As Chemours long-term partner and key Italian Gas distributor, we are actively engaged in supporting the market readiness of A2L HFO refrigerants by providing customers with technical and commercial support to facilitate the transition to these low GWP refrigerants. The switch from high GWP gases to more sustainable solutions can be a challenging journey for customers and we believe the cooperation of highly professional companies such as Chemours, G.I Industrial and Nippon Gases Italia can bring success,” says Alessandro Paschero, Business Manager, Nippon Gases Italia. “We are convinced that lower flammable solutions such as Opteon™ XL41 & XL55 will be extensively used in air-conditioning applications in the future, and therefore have invested in a new filling station that can store up to 200,000 kg of A2L refrigerants,” he added.
Opteon™ low GWP HFO refrigerants are a portfolio of sustainable and versatile refrigerants that meet the long-term needs of the refrigeration, air conditioning, heat pump, and chiller markets. They have been developed to help meet increasingly stringent global regulations while maintaining or improving performance compared to the products they replace, as well as encouraging more sustainable refrigerant choices and equipment designs to reduce the carbon footprint of the HVACR industry. Specifically, in Europe, the very low GWP Opteon™ XL refrigerant portfolio supports the market transitions required by the F-Gas Regulation and enables customers to select their optimal solution – considering performance, safety, sustainability, and total cost of ownership.
