C14 -- Introducing an Innovative Circular Economy Ecosystem to Support the Reuse of Refrigerants Extracted from a Wide Range of HVAC-R Systems Operating under the Building Sector PDF

Under the European Green Deal, the European Union (EU) is committed to cutting greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030 compared to 1990 and reaching net climate neutrality by 2050. Emissions from fluorinated gases (F-gases) are a critical factor of this effort, as they have a warming effect up to 22,800 times greater than the same amount of CO₂. Against this background, an updated F-gas Regulation (517/2014) has come into force from 1st January 2015, introducing, among other requirements, a quota system for hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) with a view to reducing EU F-gas emissions by two-thirds by 2030. An innovative F-gas circular economy ecosystem to Recover, Recycle and Reuse (3R) is currently under development to provide a responsible alternative and a sustainable source of refrigerant supply. Fully aligned with the EU F-gas policy, the proposed solution is based on the maximization of the quantities of recovered F-gases that are reused on the HVAC-R market, while focusing on both pure HFCs (like R32 or R134a) and HFC blends (like R410A, R407C and R404A) contained in HVAC-R applications of building sector. In addition, this paper aims to review the key operating principles of the 3R ECOSYSTEM consisting of 3 components: i. a Self-certification(/Self-declaration) platform, ii. the F-gas identification and recycling unit (prototype) and iii. an online marketplace platform. From July 2021, the 3R ECOSYSTEM is being demonstrated in 3 EU countries: i) Slovakia (SK), ii) Czech Republic (CZ) and iii) Hungary (HU). Since the demos will run until June 2023, Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) & preliminary results are both reported in relation to the recovered F-gas quantities through the 3R ECOSYSTEM and the equivalent CO₂ reduction, assuming an installed refrigerant base from 4 main types of units: Residential, Commercial, Industrial and Commercial Refrigeration. Finally, the long-term goal is considered to be the stepwise replication of the 3R ECOSYSTEM throughout the European territory by 2028. To this end, the respective climate targets to be met by then, in terms of CO₂ emission savings, are also outlined.