Refrigerants; Cow Farts of the Heat Pump Industry
Contrary to common belief, Cow burps contribute more methane emissions than their farts do — and combined methane emissions from Cows help to generate 15% of global greenhouse gas emissions each year.
Another source of GHG emissions comes from F-Gases — refrigerants that our beloved heat pumps and air conditioning units are supposedly farting out at an alarming rate.
Something has to change.
…More on those stinky cows later.
Increasing Appetite
Continuing from my previous article on heat pumps & air conditioning, let’s take a closer look at refrigerants.
Heat pumps* (Air to Air + Air to Water), powered by low‐emissions electricity, are the central technology in the global transition to secure and sustainable heating.
Energy security concerns, climate commitments, air quality and the duality of heating & cooling options all play a part in growing global demand and the shift towards heat pumps.
*Air conditioners are heat pumps.
The IEA estimates heat pumps globally have the potential to reduce global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by at least 500 million tonnes in 2030 — equal to the annual CO2 emissions of all cars in Europe today.
But here’s the kicker, heat pumps do have a carbon footprint. And as our demand for these products increases, so too does their environmental impact.
The life-cycle global warming impact of heat pumps, air conditioners and refrigeration equipment can be divided into three main categories:
- Impacts due to carbon dioxide emissions from procurement, manufacturing, logistics and energy use during these stages — referred to as embodied (or upfront) carbon.
- Indirect impacts due to carbon dioxide emissions from energy consumption during equipment use (operational carbon), and
- Direct impacts when refrigerants are emitted into the atmosphere.
I’ve covered embodied and operational carbon in previous articles, here and here — but I’m going to address the refrigerant component of heat pumps*
*Technically, refrigerant leakage is covered under embodied carbon – but the purpose of this article is to expand on the data surrounding that.
Direct impacts when refrigerants are emitted into the atmosphere.
Before we continue, let’s be clear;
CO2-eq emissions from F-Gases pale in comparison to those from Fossil Fuels.
Heating in buildings is responsible for 4 gigatonnes (Gt) of CO2 emissions annually — 10% of global emissions.
Globally over 40% of our heating still comes from Gas.
65% of global emissions come from Fossil Fuels and Industrial Process.
F-Gas emissions, however, represent just 2% of worldwide emissions
(2% for New Zealand, and 3% for the UK respectively).
Refrigerant emissions remain marginal Vs. fossil fuel emissions.
The heat-trapping emissions of CO2 emissions from gas combustion, and methane emissions from gas wells and pipeline leaks, vastly outweigh average refrigerant emissions.
While some ACs and heat pumps do leak, major leaks are easily avoidable with proper installation and maintenance.
That being said, every per cent, and every tonne, matters.
Let's dive into that 2%.
The 2% of GHG emissions from F-gases covers all F-gases, including those used in a host of different technologies & products, from fridges and fire extinguishers to air-conditioning units and cars.
The specific breakdown of which product group/ sector is most responsible for leakages that contribute to that 2% is a grey area.
The data isn’t always captured across different regions for several reasons, not least, sector-specific policy (or lack of).
Driving Down
Nowadays, refrigerants used in heat pumps (predominantly HFCs) are assessed based on their environmental impacts — their GWP.
The Global Warming Potential (GWP) of a refrigerant is its global warming impact relative to the impact of the same quantity of carbon dioxide over 100 years.
The Kigali Amendment, which entered into force in 2019, added HFCs to the list of controlled substances under the Montreal Protocol. The foreseen phase-down of HFCs could save around 80 Gigatonnes of CO2 equivalent by 2050 and is a significant contribution to fighting climate change.
As we follow the Kigali Amendment, with a top-down approach by reducing the net GWP of refrigerants we use, we also need to look bottom end — and address any leakages that may be occurring.
Pay attention to the GW[P].
Potential.
Direct impacts IF refrigerants are emitted into the atmosphere.
Heat pumps, unlike boilers and other fossil fuel systems, do not burn gas or refrigerants.
The refrigerants within these systems are not meant to be released into the atmosphere, they work within a closed system.
Accidents Happen
Various studies and methodologies assess the environmental impacts of refrigerant leaks, attributed through averaged annual system leakages and leakages from product end-of-life.
The values used by the likes of CIBSE, the BRE, or NZGBC for refrigerant leakages from heat pumps are country-specific, taking into account regional product quality standards, and installation/ maintenance qualifications and policies, as well as any available in-use system performance data sets.
Poor Equipment, Lack of Awareness or Training, and Accidents.
These are the 3 key areas where refrigerant leaks tend to happen.
Fortunately, technology is constantly improving. All around the world, in every sector you look at, technology is advancing. Improvements are made in performance, quality and value to the end-users. Heat Pumps are no different, what you can buy on the market today is a vast improvement from 10 years ago. Product Standards safeguard customers, and market competition will continue to drive innovation and improvements across R&D, design and manufacturing.
Lack of awareness or training. We all know that releasing refrigerants into the atmosphere is illegal.
And yet, approximately only 8–12% of refrigerant is recovered in New Zealand. Japan is leading the way with an approximate 40% refrigerant recovery rate.
As stated earlier, we don’t know how much of this is directly attributable to heat pumps or the wider HVAC sector, as this figure is representative of cars and household fridges, but we can’t ignore our part to play in this.
From industry bodies, manufacturers and installers, to consultants, developers and property owners, collaboration is needed cross-industry to raise awareness on the need to safely recover refrigerants, and training on how to do so expertly.
The more accessible, credible & competent training that can be carried out, the better.
Better quality products and installs = fewer leaks, and fewer accidents = fewer emissions.
Refrigerant Reclamation is the Name of the Game
Once we’ve reduced emissions from leakages throughout the production, installation and in-use phase – the next question is, what do we do with the refrigerant once the product is at end-of-life?
Essentially there are 2 options available;
- Destruction (this has a +99.9% efficiency) – this is the most common practice at present and default answer from industry.
- Recycling (re-use) – a newer model that has been championed by businesses across Europe. Studies have been done to show a significantly lower environmental impact associated to using recycled refrigerants, but the key benefit to this solution is that by working towards a more circular approach, you reduce the demand for new/ virgin refrigerant.
The key thing to note here is that there is no one size fits all, and both solutions need to be widely adopted to ensure the HVAC industry minimises any potential environmental damage from their products.
The War on Cows starts now
With refrigerants covered, what about those pesky cows?
Well, there’s an answer for that too.
Veganism.
*and/or regenerative farming.
But for the staunch meat eaters among you, you’ll be happy to know there’s also a technological solution to the cows’ farts.
What if you could pluck pollution out of the air — like the methane gas emitted from cow manure — and create plastics?
A small tech company out of California says it’s cracked the code and is able to do just that, to supply the plastic for packaging, containers and chairs from potent methane that would’ve instead seeped into the atmosphere.
Newlight Technologies Chief Executive Mark Herrema claims his company can make plastics cheaper than traditional alternatives, and he hopes to transform the plastic industry and reduce greenhouse gas emissions!
You can read more on understanding the significance of whole life carbon in businesses and buildings in several articles I’ve previously written that have been referenced throughout or follow the links below.
