Colombia. The development of a new refrigerant for the automotive sector is why DuPont and Honeywell signed a temporary alliance.The idea is to develop the refrigerant HFO-1234yf, which will have a low global warming potential, 99.7% less than the current one, and which will comply with European environmental standards.
During this temporary alliance, both companies will share resources, both financial and technological, for the manufacture of gas for vehicular air conditioning systems, in addition to the construction of a world-scale refrigerant production plant.
Terrence Hahn, vice president and general manager for Honeywell's fluoride/fluorine products business, said the agreement will allow companies to make an environmentally friendly solution available to the automotive industry that meets all operational and regulatory requirements. "Consumers will benefit from this new technology, which reduces greenhouse gas emissions."
Gary W. Spitzer, DuPont's president of chemicals and fluorinated products, said the gas will reduce the ecological footprint of vehicles at a lower cost than other alternatives.
The refrigerant was introduced by both companies to the automotive sector in 2007 and since then has undergone different safety and efficacy tests by independent groups, such as the International Cooperative Research Program of the SAE, of which some of the main car manufacturers are part. These tests have determined that HFO-1234yf offers superior ecological performance to CO2.
The HFO-1234yf will be manufactured by DuPont and Honeywell, but they will market and sell it independently. The product will start to be supplied from the fourth quarter of 2011, just in time to meet the regulatory requirement of the European Union.
