Refrigerant R32 - once little known - is now one of the most commonly used refrigerants in air conditioning and heat pumps. It is replacing the previous refrigerant R410A (or others like R134a... the list could go on), which dominated the market for years. But why is R32 gaining such popularity in the heat pump and air conditioning industry and what benefits does it bring? Below, we explain all the most important issues. Why is it promoted by the European Union and pro-climate lobbies? Does the growing market position of R32 owe solely to ecology?
R32 (difluoromethane) is a new generation refrigerant, classified as an HFC. It is a single-component refrigerant, which distinguishes it from the popular R410A, which is a mixture of two different gases. This makes R32 easier to handle – filling, recovery, and recycling become simpler. It also has a number of ecological advantages over older refrigerants - mainly concerning indicators such as GWP or the ODP coefficient - which we will discuss later in the article. Moreover, its efficiency in heat pumps or air conditioners seems to be very high, in some cases even greater.
One of the key reasons why refrigerant R32 is becoming the standard is its ecological properties.
Another reason for the popularity of R32 is its high energy efficiency:
All this translates to lower energy consumption and real savings for end users.
Refrigerant R32 - strictly speaking, difluoromethane - is not a new discovery; it was developed and introduced for use back in the 1990s. It first entered the heat pump market in 1991, when Daikin began testing it as an alternative to older refrigerants (R22, R410A). Daikin - still operates in many countries as a fairly well-known heat pump supplier.
For many years, difluoromethane was used mainly as a component of mixtures (e.g., in R410A and R407C), but it wasn't widely used on its own. It wasn't until around 2012–2013 that devices operating solely on R32 began to be introduced – first in Japan, then in Europe and the United States.
It's worth knowing that refrigerant R32 has been classified into flammability class A2L – meaning it is mildly flammable. For this reason:
In essence, it is not considered a dangerous substance in any way - but it still falls under the Regulation (EU) No 517/2014 on F-gases. This means that filling, refrigerant replacement, and all servicing work related to R32 refrigerant require F-gas certifications.
This is an interesting topic:
Its comparison with other refrigerants therefore fares well - in most aspects it is simply better, which explains its popularity. Strengthened only by top-down regulations.
R32 has one drawback - namely, it operates at slightly higher working pressures than most refrigerants it competes with on the market. Although the difference is small compared to R410a, compared to, for example, R407c, and especially to R134a - it requires pressures an order of magnitude higher. This requires the use of different, more pressure-resistant designs, particularly for evaporators, condensers - that is, heat exchangers for freons and refrigerants. We can see this in the graph below.
Manufacturers of air conditioners and heat pumps are increasingly designing devices exclusively for R32 refrigerant because:
Refrigerant R32 is gaining popularity because it combines ecological properties, high energy efficiency, and compliance with strict EU regulations. Although it requires adherence to safety rules due to its mild flammability, in practice it is a safe and economical solution.
Thanks to these advantages, R32 is increasingly replacing R410A and becoming the new standard in air conditioning and heat pumps.
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