Chemours has announced the start-up of its new Opteon YF (HFO-1234yf) low global warming potential (GWP) refrigerant production facility at its Corpus Christi manufacturing plant in Ingleside, Texas.
This facility will enable Chemours to triple the global capacity of its hydrofluoroolefin (HFO) 1234yf-based products to meet increasing market demands for more environmentally sustainable refrigerants and blends.
“The start-up completes the final phase of the $300 million project we started in 2016, which triples supply capacity of Opteon YF across multiple industries and applications,” said Mark Vergnano, Chemours president and chief executive. “This milestone is a tangible example of our steadfast commitment to providing the world with low GWP refrigerant products that are better for the environment.”
The Opteon YF (HFO-1234yf) refrigerant production facility is the largest such facility in the world. It comes at a critical time as the world transitions to the next generation of refrigerants to achieve long-term sustainability.
Opteon YF refrigerant is used in automotive air conditioning and is designed to replace R134a, with a GWP that is 99.9% lower. This helps decrease the greenhouse gas footprint for motor vehicles and is a significant step towards meeting environmental global warming regulations across the world.
The expanded capacity will also enable Chemours to meet the growing need for next-generation refrigerants in stationary air conditioning, refrigeration, and chillers.
Paul Kirsch, president of Chemours Fluoroproducts, said: “Our US facility reinforces our commitment to meeting the needs of our mobile and stationary refrigerant customers through unmatched capacity, capability, and quality. This also means our production facilities will be closer to our customers in North America and Europe, as well as around the world.”
The Corpus Christi site employs a patented process to manufacture Opteon YF for automotive air conditioning and refrigerant blends used across a range of applications.
