What business activities are you into?
We are the largest fully integrated manufacturer and supplier of refrigerant gases to the automotive, commercial refrigeration and air conditioning industries.
I am seeing two companies at the moment one is Mexichem Fluor and the other one is KLEA, how are they associated?
Our business is called Mexichem Fluor and KLEA is our brand of ozone-friendly hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) refrigerants.
So, what kind of refrigerant are you dealing with?
We produce a range of refrigerants for the major application sectors such as air conditioning and commercial refrigeration. Products you may be familiar with include KLEA 134a, KLEA 407A, KLEA 407C and KLEA 410A.
What about the ‘fluorinated’, does this fluor word come from fluorine?
We are the largest producer of fluorspar in the world. This mineral form of fluorine is key in the production of a huge range of products, including HFC refrigerant gases. We are the largest business of our type in owning the process from mine right through to market – meaning we are in a very strong position to ensure quality and security of supply for the Indian market.
What about HFC utilisation?
HFCs remain the principal mechanism for moving away from ozone depleting HCFC products such as R-22, and are vital in ensuring compliance with the Montreal Protocol. They have zero ozone depletion potential and significantly lower Global Warming Potential (GWP) than the CFCs that they have replaced. The success of HFCs as CFC and HCFC replacements has led to a rapid growth in their consumption across the globe.
However this growth has raised some concerns since some HFCs, particularly R-404A and R-507 are perceived to have relatively high GWP, which has meant in areas _ such as Europe _ moves to limit the GWP impact of HFCs through encouraging the use of lower GWP HFC products.
Whilst some of these products are already available, including R-407A and R-32, there is considerable activity in the development of even lower GWP product such as the hydrofluoroolefins (HFOs) including R-1234yf and R-1234ze.
However, the widespread adoption of HFOs faces some challenges in the form of higher prices and restricted availability. HFCs remain as safe and energy-efficient alternatives to CFCs and HCFCs.
Basically, where is your company situated?
Mexichem is a worldwide leader in plastic pipes, and one of the largest chemical and petrochemical companies with more than 50 years of experience, it has two main chains: Fluorine and Fluent Conductions. Mexichem Fluor is based in Cheshire UK, with facilities in the UK, Japan and the USA.
What about the refrigerant market globally?
As I said earlier, speaking broadly the move is away from HCFC refrigerants – which are already banned in Europe – under the Montreal Protocol towards zero ozone depleting potential solutions that offer lower and low global warming potential.
We should also remember that energy efficiency is also a key driver in ensuring that the environmental footprint associated with the use of refrigeration and air conditioning is minimised.
How are you finding the responses in this exhibition (ACREX India 2015)?
The show has been very positive, with lots of questions on the best refrigerants for the transition from R-22 _ both from equipment manufacturers and engineers involved in the maintenance and servicing of equipment.
You mean to say that these refrigerants are used and conventional equipment is there and you want to use this? Are there retrofit possibilities?
In high-ambient climates such as India, it is a challenge to reproduce the performance of R-22 using existing technology and equipment designs. As a result, manufacturers must look to technology optimsation that makes effective use of the non-ozone depleting refrigerants available such as R-410A.
In the meantime, they must also consider the best way to manage their existing equipment production processes – and technology without having R-22 available. The HFC product R-407C has been specifically developed for this application – providing an effective replacement for R-22 in broadly existing system designs requiring relatively little work to adapt the technology. This allows manufacturers to continue selling R-22 technology – without having to make significant and expensive changes to the technology or their production equipment.
Out of these refrigerants 404, 407,134A, which one has got the more market potential?
It is about choosing the right product for specific applications now and into the future – which particular products that prove to be – will be in part governed by the nature of legislation that is introduced. For example, in Europe we are seeing increasing demand for KLEA 407A because in comparison to R-404A products, it offers a lower GWP (approximately half that of R-404A) – and significantly improved efficiency for a range of commercial refrigeration applications in existing equipment and designs.
R-134a remains as a safe, costeffective and efficient refrigerant across a range of applications.
I saw that the chillers in some booths of this exhibition are using 134a.
Yes, R-134a is probably the most common medium-pressure chiller refrigerants in Europe, Japan and the United States. In the transition from R-11, many system manufacturers made a step change in technology and moved from low pressure designs to those designs that can accommodate R-134a.
So what scope do you see for your refrigerant in Indian Market as a company?
We are looking to help and guide the Indian market during the transition away from R-22 – both in terms of the retrofit options to maintain existing equipment, and also supporting the implementation of new technology – that makes best use of low and lower GWP products.
For each application, it is about balancing environmental, technological and commercial requirements to find the best solution.
What do you think about hydrocarbon refrigerants?
Whilst some ‘natural’ refrigerants, including hydrocarbons, are a potential option here, they require a very high level of training in safe handling – and use due to either high pressure (CO2) or very high flammability (hydrocarbons).
Further, some of the technologies to use these refrigerants are at a relatively early stage of development and – may not be suitable for the high ambient climate of India.
