R-32THE MOST BALANCED REFRIGERANT

Various refrigerants have been used in air conditioners until now. Regulations have increasingly become stricter from greater consideration for the global environment because of the Montreal Protocol in 1987 and the Kyoto Protocol in 1997, resulting in a shift to refrigerants with even lower environmental impact.

Although the mainstream refrigerant R-410A has an ozone depletion potential (ODP) of 0, its global warming potential (GWP) still remains an issue.

While R-32 also has an ozone depletion potential of 0, the refrigerant has only approximately 1/3 of the GWP of R-410A. Consequently, investigation of R-32 has increased as a promising refrigerant with smaller environmental impact.

However, because R-32 had been an extremely difficult refrigerant to handle, its use was not practical until now. Daikin became the world’s first company to succeed in applying R-32 to air conditioners by leveraging its expertise as the only manufacturer that develops and manufactures both air conditioners and refrigerants.

• ^*1)Values for 100 year global warming potential (GWP) from IPCC Fourth Assessment Report. Comparative 100 year GWP: HFC410A, 2,090; HFC32, 675.

Aiming for widespread use throughout the world, Daikin not only manufactures and sells R-32, but it also provides technical assistance in emerging countries in cooperation with governments and international organizations.
In India, verification tests were conducted for inverter type R-32 air conditioners. In executing training for the proper handling of R-32, the technical level also improved. Consequently, Daikin has received requests from various governments, including the Thai and Malaysian governments, and the company is beginning to target local manufacturers for technical assistance for conversion to R-32.
Such efforts as those mentioned above have earned Daikin high acclaim and a variety of awards.