Experimental and kinetic modeling study on refrigerants: A comparative case study on methane and difluoromethane

Growing concern over refrigerants' environmental impact drives interest in low global warming potential (GWP) alternatives like hydrocarbon-based refrigerants (HCs) such as butane, propane, ethane, methane, isobutene, ethylene, and propylene. R32, R-1234yf, and R-1234ze are favored due to their lower GWP and superior energy efficiency. Comparing the environmental impacts of R-1234yf (4/100 yr) and R-1234ze (7/100 yr) explains potential hazards and toxicity, while investigating R32's (675/100 yr) ignition behavior enhances understanding of fluorinated compound oxidation, emphasizing safety in environmental assessments. To address this, state-of-the-art techniques combining a shock tube and tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy (TDLAS) were used to measure ignition delay, hazard product formation like carbon monoxide, and energy release behind shock waves, aiding safety evaluations and supporting predictive chemical kinetic mechanisms for numerical simulations.