Since it has been feasible to use hydrogen refrigeration for refrigeration, closed cycle gaseous refrigerators containing expensive compressors, special heat exchangers, and expanders have been used.
Many power generators over 150 MW in capacity utilize hydrogen as a cooling method to transfer heat from the power generating winding enclosure to the heat exchanges known as H2 coolers. Hydrogen cooled power generators are more efficient and have less mass of materials of construction than their air-cooled cousins.
Besides fluorocarbons, other refrigerant gases include ammonia, carbon dioxide, and propane.
But it is not used as domestic fuel, due to several reasons : Hydrogen is not easily available and cost of production is high Unlike other gases, hydrogen is not readily available in the atmosphere. It requires processes like electrolysis of water for its production. This is a very costly process and time consuming.
Basically, you can use almost anything for a refrigerant, but the specifics of the system will affect the best choice, as well as environmental concerns (why we ditched R11 and R12, when they both perform better than R134a in the desired range).
Fluorinated gas refrigerants are powerful greenhouse gases. Alternatives, such as ammonia or captured carbon dioxide, can replace them over time.
R-22 (Chlorodifluoromethane), also known as R22 Freon or HCFC-22 Freon, was a common refrigerant for HVAC systems. It is now a banned refrigerant that is illegal to import or manufacture.
“As a general rule, it takes about twice as much energy to produce hydrogen than can be usefully extracted from it.” Hydrogen has historically not been known to exist alone in nature, being highly reactive and bonding with oxygen in the air to form water, H20.
Specifically, hydrogen has a wide range of flammable concentrations in air and lower ignition energy than gasoline or natural gas, which means it can ignite more easily. Consequently, adequate ventilation and leak detection are important elements in the design of safe hydrogen systems.
Hydrodgen is highly explosive : Using it as domestic fuel is very dangerous, because even a small spark can cause ucontrolled combustion leading to huge explosions. It does not burn at a slow rate. Transport of hydrogen is very difficult.
Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) are a group of synthetic gases primarily used for cooling and refrigeration. Many HFCs are very powerful, short-lived climate pollutants with an average atmospheric lifetime of 15 years.
R-32 is the most balanced refrigerant in terms of environmental impact, energy efficiency, safety, and cost-effectiveness. Refrigerant is a medium for conveying heat. Air conditioners transfer heat while circulating refrigerant between the indoor and outdoor units.
Since it has been feasible to use hydrogen refrigeration for refrigeration, closed cycle gaseous refrigerators containing expensive compressors, special heat exchangers, and expanders have been used.
As it turns out, we can. The hydrogen internal combustion engine (H2ICE) is a version of the infamous ICE that runs entirely on hydrogen gas, giving us a cleaner, more efficient option for transportation and freight.
Solid hydrogen is the solid state of the element hydrogen. At standard pressure, this is achieved by decreasing the temperature below hydrogen's melting point of 14.01 K (−259.14 °C; −434.45 °F).
If it is not produced using renewable sources, hydrogen pollutes. To date, more than 96% of the hydrogen used is grey. It costs less, but its impact on the environment is so great that 10 kilos of carbon dioxide are produced for every kilo of hydrogen obtained.
It is well-known that sudden hydrogen release from high-pressure vessel into air can be spontaneously ignited without any apparent ignition sources present, such as spark, hot surface, fire, etc.
The production of hydrogen using renewable energy sources, such as solar or wind power, is not yet commercially viable on a large scale. Storage and transportation of hydrogen is also very costly, with complex engineering and materials involved in keeping it contained.
Nearly all the hydrogen used today is extracted from natural gas, in a process that creates CO2 as a byproduct. Carbon capture systems can be used to keep that CO2 out of the atmosphere (a setup experts call “blue hydrogen”), but that makes already-pricey hydrogen even more expensive.
Who is the largest hydrogen producer in the United States? Linde is the largest hydrogen producer in the world. Its total liquid hydrogen production was 170 tons per day in 2024.
Tesla has set an ambitious date for the release of their first hydrogen powered car by 2026. The model has been dubbed “Model H” and will use advanced fuel-cell technology. Tesla plans on advancing and solving problems with storing hydrogen and its associated infrastructure.
R-454B is the newest refrigerant, which will gradually replace R-410A, the refrigerant used in current HVAC manufacturing. R-454B is a blend of R-32, a hydrofluorocarbon (HFC), and R-1234yf a hydrofluoroolefin (HFO). R-454B has a lower GWP than previous refrigerants, meaning it has a much lower climate impact.
As Freon was phased out, new HVAC systems began using a refrigerant known as Puron® or R-410A, an HFC. More efficient and less harmful to the environment, R-410A has been in use since its introduction in 1996 and is found in most of today's modern HVAC systems.
Notice that R-11 has the highest ODP of 1. R-11 is the most destructive refrigerant and we compare all other refrigerants against it. Note also that R-11 is a CFC, which we have already discussed is the most destructive refrigerant to ozone.