There has been a shift over the past several decades to reduce global warming & the usage of environmentally harmful refrigerants like HFCs. With the recent enactment of the American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act signed into law in December 2020, this shift has taken a significant step forward. Learn how the ComStar Low-GWP Refrigerants will not only help you meet the regulation standards for today, but for years to come.
What is the American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act?
The legislation was passed into law on December 27th, 2020 and is a significant step towards addressing the issue of global warming and the harmful effect of high GWP (global warming potential) refrigeration solutions. The AIM act has established initial benchmarks for the reduction of production and consumption of HFC (hydrofluorocarbon) and CFC (chlorofluorocarbon) refrigerants of 85% by 2036 and extensively reduce damage to the ozone layer.
It is difficult to predict how the EPA will implement & regulate this phase-down, but it is likely to come in a combination of the three approaches below;
Allowances on total production & usage of HFC technology.
Banning high global warming potential (GWP) refrigerants in certain equipment or applications.
Restricting high GWP virgin refrigerants in the service of existing systems.
Table 1. AIM Act Reduction Benchmarks for Production & Consumption of High GWP Refrigerants
How Does the AIM Act Affect Me and My Company?
It's hard to give a specific answer to this question, as it relies on the type of refrigerants being used, the systems involved and the construction of the legislative guidelines and concern of enforcement rules. There are a few high-level impacts that we can assume the AIM Act will make on any business using high GWP refrigeration.
GWP mandate levels will be announced and will require businesses to remain below these values or be subject to penalties.
The acceptable GWP level will reduce on a cadence that supports the reduction benchmarks of 60% by 2024-2028, 30% by 2029-2033, 20% by 2034-2035, 15% by 2036 and beyond.
These factors will require a replacement in the high GWP refrigerant being used and may or may not involve larger and more expensive equipment & system updates or replacements as well.
Why Use a ComStar RS Refrigerant?
ComStar is on the forefront of manufacturing eco-friendly refrigerants, that make an ideal solution when replacing harmful or high GWP technologies. The RS series of refrigerants are a unique combination of ultra low Global Warming Potential values with incredible ease of use & replacement of legacy CFCs or HCFCs used in refrigeration that contribute heavy damage to the ozone layer.
Drop In
Replacement
The ComStar RS Series of eco-friendly refrigerants allow for quick and easy replacement of common high GWP refrigerants including R-22, R404A, R410A, R507 and more. In most cases, these changes can be made without required system updates or exchanging the lubricants.
Long-Term Low GWP Solutions
The ComStar RS product line provides very low-GWP refrigerants compared to legacy HCFCs, CFCs and other common refrigerant solutions. Making a switch to ComStar now will help you meet low GWP mandate levels for decades to come and won’t require additional costly replacements to keep up with the decreasing GWP and ozone protecting thresholds.
.png)
