Sustainable management of refrigerants could be a powerful climate solution

Fluorocarbons, which are widely used in refrigeration, air conditioning, foam insulation, and fire suppression, are potent greenhouse gases. Despite international regulations under the Montreal Protocol and its Kigali Amendment, vast quantities of these chemicals remain in old equipment and products. These stockpiles, known as "banks," continue to accumulate, posing a constant environmental threat. In China alone, their emissions could add 0.014°C to global warming by mid-century, with even greater global effects.

But there's good news. The new study published in Environmental Science & Technology highlights an opportunity for China to take the lead in fluorocarbon lifecycle management (FLM) – a strategy that could prevent up to 8 billion tonnes of CO₂-equivalent emissions by 2060. By implementing FLM strategies like recovery, recycling, reclamation, and destruction – known collectively as RRRD – China could reduce more than half of the residual refrigerant emissions expected to remain after meeting its Kigali Amendment pledges. Crucially, up to 93% of this mitigation can be achieved for less than $10 per tonne of CO₂-equivalent, which is far below the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)’s benchmark range of $226–385 for meeting the 1.5°C target.

“Fluorocarbon lifecycle management is one of the most scalable and affordable climate actions available today,” explains lead author Ziwei Chen, a PhD candidate at Peking University and an alumna of the 2024 IIASA Young Scientists Summer Program. “Yet it remains largely untapped, especially in developing countries, where the potential is greatest.”

In 2021, fewer than 3% of end-of-life refrigerants were recovered in China. To address this gap, the research team developed a new modeling tool called the Extended Lifecycle Emissions Framework (ELEF), which accurately tracks emissions across every stage of a product's life. Their analysis shows that current practices result in most refrigerants being vented into the atmosphere instead of recovered.

If China scales up reclamation, it could not only meet domestic servicing demand for fluorocarbons but also generate a surplus for export to developing countries struggling with supply shortages, thereby amplifying climate gains globally. Reclaimed substances also have a significantly smaller carbon footprint compared to newly manufactured ones. In fact, the indirect emissions from virgin production are more than four times higher than from reclamation.

Despite the promise, the road to wide-scale FLM adoption in China is not without barriers. The study identifies weak enforcement, low recovery rates, and limited market demand for reclaimed gases as major hurdles. It calls for clear regulatory mandates, financial incentives, and robust enforcement mechanisms to unlock the sector’s full potential.

“This work shows how managing existing fluorocarbon stocks can deliver fast, scalable, and affordable climate benefits,” says coauthor Pallav Purohit, a senior researcher in the Pollution Management Research Group of the IIASA Energy, Climate, and Environment Program. “If China acts decisively, it could become a model for the rest of the world and help bridge the emissions gap while advancing circular economy principles.”

The authors emphasize that action must begin now, with a focus on large-scale equipment and the development of supporting infrastructure. The systems built today for handling HCFCs and HFCs can later accommodate new-generation fluorinated gases like HFOs, ensuring long-term sustainability.

As climate deadlines loom ever closer, this study offers a rare win-win: a climate strategy that is not only feasible and cost-effective but already within reach. For China and the world, sustainable fluorocarbon management may be one of the clearest paths yet to an affordable climate future.

The study is a result of research partly conducted during the 2024 IIASA Young Scientists Summer Program (YSSP) as part of Chen’s YSSP project.

Reference
Chen, Z., Purohit, P., Bai, F., Gasser, T., He, Y., Höglund-Isaksson, L., Jiang, P., Wu, J., Hu, J. (2025). Sustainable management of banked fluorocarbons as a cost-effective climate action. Environmental Science & Technology DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.5c02575