Supporting the Use of Natural Refrigerants

Natural refrigerants— including carbon dioxide, hydrocarbons, and ammonia—are sustainable alternatives to commonly used hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) refrigerants. They have zero or near-zero global warming potential (GWP) and can decrease energy, gas, and water consumption while also permanently reducing greenhouse gas emissions from refrigeration.

However, supermarkets and other end users face a range of barriers when shifting to natural refrigerants, such as high upfront costs, a shortage of workforce training, and a lack of performance data. This collection of resources provides information on the applicability, technical considerations, and benefits of using natural refrigerants in place of traditional HFC refrigerants in order to support the widespread adoption of natural refrigerants.

  • TOOLS
    The North American Sustainable Refrigeration Council (NASRC) has developed the NASRC Resource Library to provide a collection of free tools and educational resources to help the supermarket industry, policymakers, and other environmental stakeholders learn about and contribute to the advancement of natural refrigerants.
    This refrigeration playbook from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory provides guidance to refrigeration system design teams about selecting energy-efficient refrigeration systems that use natural, low-global warming potential refrigerants.
    This fact sheet from the North American Sustainable Refrigeration Council (NASRC) provides an overview of the availability, regulatory considerations, and the benefits of using natural refrigerants.
    Whole Foods Market installed a gray/storm water recycling system, a 157-kW combined heat and power (CHP) plant, a 324-kW solar canopy array, and 19 self-generating wind/solar powered parking lot lights to save 60% energy annually at this Brooklyn, NY store.
    This case study describes the journey from concept to final product installation for the first supermarket in North America to use a commercial R290/carbon dioxide cascade refrigeration system.
    Climate-Friendly Cooling Campaign Online Library/Resource
    The Climate Friendly Cooling Campaign, coordinated by the Sustainable Purchasing Leadership Council and the Institute for Governance & Sustainable Development, provides information on ENERGY STAR® qualified commercial refrigerator and freezer models that use climate-friendly refrigerants.


Sector:

Commercial

Tool type:

Technology Info Suite

Building Type:

Food sales & service

Technology:

Refrigeration