GE Plans Isobutane Refrigerators for U.S
LOUISVILLE, Ky.—Appliance manufacturer GE has submitted a request to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for approval to use isobutane as a refrigerant in household refrigerators. Upon gaining EPA approval, GE plans to include isobutane in a new GE Monogram¯ brand refrigerator in development for introduction in early 2010. The refrigerator would use cyclopentane, another hydrocarbon, as the insulation foam-blowing agent to replace commonly used HFC foam-blowing agents. According to the company, isobutane has been widely used in household refrigerators in Europe and parts of Asia for several years. EPA approval would allow, for the first time, use of a hydrocarbon refrigerant as a substitute for HCFC-based refrigerants now widely used in the U.S.
http://www.genewscenter.com/Content/Detail.asp?ReleaseID=4303&NewsAreaID=2&MenuSearchCategoryID=
Replies
So what's the significance of this?
More efficient, cheaper, no CFCs. The main reason it's not been accepted in the US is that the isobutane is flammable, but experience in the rest of the world has demonstrated that this isn't a big issue.
The mark of the immature man is that he wants to die nobly for a cause, while the mark of a mature man is that he wants to live humbly for one. --Wilhelm Stekel
I'm sure Americans will find a way to make it a big issue ... through shear stupidity or through 'logic' of legal restrictions. OK I"m being extremely cynical. No offense intended toward you personally.
In layman terms, what Dan said "has given the nail a traumatic brain injury".
Plus, Junkhound has a personal project in the works using propane (not a great deal different that isobutane, at least in the obstacle to poular use in the US) as a refrigerant. My company makes products that operate with R-123, R-22, R407c, R-134a and R-410a refrigerants that I know of. Refrigerants, and their future(s) is a big deal for manufacturers, LEED designers and engineers as well as facility owners and eventually, consumers and home owners.