Honeywell Confident SAE International Evaluation Of Its New Automotive Refrigerant Will Reconfirm Safety Of Product
Honeywell has issued a statement saying the company is confident that SAE
International will reconfirm that HFO-1234yf, Honeywell's new low global
warming-potential automotive air conditioning refrigerant, is safe for use
in automobiles.
SAE International, in announcing an update on its fourth and latest Cooper-
ative Research Project (CRP) on the refrigerant, reported last week that,
"To date, the majority of the OEMs involved in the new CRP do not believe
that any of the new information reviewed will lead to a change in the over
all risk assessment."
"With the exception of Daimler, no OEM in the CRP has provided information
that would suggest a concern for the safe use of R-1234yf in their vehicles,"
the statement from SAE International said.
"Based on today's announcement, Honeywell continues to believe that SAE
International's latest evaluation will only reconfirm the overwhelming body
of data – including rigorous and comprehensive studies conducted in Europe,
the U.S. and Japan – that have clearly and repeatedly determined that HFO
-1234yf is safe for use in automobiles," said Dr. Ian Shankland, chief tech
-nology officer for Honeywell Performance Materials andTechnologies. "HFO
-1234yf is a safe and effective refrigerant, and it is better for the environment."
HFO-1234yf is a low-global-warming refrigerant that was developed as a direct
replacement to HFC-134a in mobile air-conditioning applications. Compared with
HFC-134a, HFO-1234yf offers a 99.7 percent improvement in global warming potential
and far exceeds the European Union Mobile Air Conditioning (MAC) Directive requirement.
However, concerns were raised by both Daimler and Volkswagen in recent months, due
to the fact that under certain conditions, which Honeywell described as "rare," HFO
-1234yf exhibits mild flammability. According to Honeywell, that flammability is
exhibited at levels significantly lower than highly flammable materials already
present under the hood of an automobile, including motor oil, automotive transmission
fluid, radiator antifreeze, brake fluid and compressor lubricant, as well as fuel.
In its statement, Honeywell provide a link to a video, which includes a comparison
of HFO-1234yf vs. HFC-134a and other materials.