HFC-23 Emissions Levels Continue Rising

KSC Halogen and KCKK Polimer Plant is one of the largest chemical producers in Russia. Scientists are working to advance technologies that recover and reutilize HFC-23GreenTracker| Despite substantial efforts to curb emissions of HFC-23, or trifluoromethane, which is a byproduct of chlorodifluoromethane, or HCFC-22, a refrigerant in air conditioners and refrigerators and a starting material for producing heat and chemical-resistant products, cables and coatings, scientific measurements confirm that emissions of the highly dangerous greenhouse gas are rising.

HFC-23 is one of the most potent greenhouse gases emitted as a result of human activities. Over a 100-year time span, one pound of HFC-23 released into the atmosphere traps heat 14,800 times more effectively than one pound of carbon dioxide.

To date HFC-23 is a minor contributor to climate change, but its rise in developing countries continues.

Because HFC-23 is such a potent greenhouse gas, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has facilitated the destruction of substantial quantities of HFC-23 in developing countries since 2003. The study by Montzka and colleagues shows for the first time that even with these actions HFC-23 emissions from developing countries remained substantial compared to recent years. via Science Daily