Significant New Alternatives Policy (SNAP)

Substitutes in Residential and Light Commercial Air Conditioning and Heat Pumps

You may need a PDF reader to view some of the files on this page. See EPA’s About PDF page to learn more.Substitutes are reviewed on the basis of environmental and health risks, including factors such as ozone depletion potential, global warming potential, toxicity, flammability, and exposure potential. Lists of acceptableacceptableThis designation means that a substitute may be used, without restriction, to replace the relevant ODS within the end-use specified. For example, HCFC-22 is an acceptable substitute for R-502 in industrial process refrigeration. Note that all SNAP determinations apply to the use of a specific product as a substitute for a specific ODS in a specific end-use. and unacceptableUnacceptableThis designation means that it is illegal to use a product as a substitute for an ODS in a specific end-use. For example, HCFC-141b is an unacceptable substitute for CFC-11 in building chillers. Note that all SNAP determinations apply to the use of a specific product as a substitute for a specific ODS in a specific end-use. substitutes are updated several times each year. The list of substitutes is shown below.

Note: SNAP-related information published in the Federal Register takes precedence over all information on this page.

Substitute	Trade Name(s)	Retrofit/New	ODPODPA number that refers to the amount of ozone depletion caused by a substance. The ODP is the ratio of the impact on ozone of a chemical compared to the impact of a similar mass of CFC-11. Thus, the ODP of CFC-11 is defined to be 1.0. Other CFCs and HCFCs have ODPs that range from 0.01 to 1.0. The halons have ODPs ranging up to 10. Carbon tetrachloride has an ODP of 1.2, and methyl chloroform's ODP is 0.11. HFCs have zero ODP because they do not contain chlorine. A table of all ozone-depleting substances (https://www3.epa.gov/ozone/science/ods/index.html) shows their ODPs, GWPs, and CAS numbers.	GWPGWPThe index used to translate the level of emissions of various gases into a common measure in order to compare the relative radiative forcing of different gases without directly calculating the changes in atmospheric concentrations. GWPs are calculated as the ratio of the radiative forcing that would result from the emissions of one kilogram of a greenhouse gas to that from the emission of one kilogram of carbon dioxide over a period of time (usually 100 years). Gases involved in complex atmospheric chemical processes have not been assigned GWPs. See lifetime.	ASHRAEASHRAEASHRAE is an international organization that establishes standards for the uniform testing and rating of heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration equipment. It also conducts related research, disseminates publications, and provides continuing education to its members. Designation (Safety Classification) ^[1]	SNAP Listing Date	Listing Status

Ammonia Absorption		N	0	0	B2	September 5, 1996	Acceptable
Desiccant Cooling		N	0	N/A	N/A	September 5, 1996; June 16, 2010	Acceptable
Evaporative Cooling		N	0	N/A	N/A	September 5, 1996	Acceptable
HFC-134a		R/N	0	1,430	A1	June 16, 2010: July 21, 2017	Acceptable
HFC-32		N	0	675	A2L	April 10, 2015	Acceptable with Use Conditions: For use in self-contained room air conditioning; see rule for detailed conditions.
R-417C	Hot Shot 2	R	0	1,820	A1	October 4, 2011	Acceptable
R-125/R-134a/R-600a (28.1/70.0/1.9)	NU-22 old composition	R/N	0	1,990	A1	June 16, 2010	Acceptable
R-125/R-290/R-134a/R-600a (55.0/1.0/42.5/1.5)	ICOR AT-22	R/N	0	2,530	A1	March 29, 2006	Acceptable
R-1270 (Propylene)		N	0	1.8	A3	December 1, 2016	Unacceptable, as of January 3, 2017.
R-290 (Propane)		N	0	3	A3	April 10, 2015	Acceptable with Use Conditions: For use in self-contained room air conditioning; see rule for detailed conditions.
R-404A	SUVA HP-62	R/N	0	3,920	A1	December 20, 2002	Acceptable
R-407A	Klea 60, Klea 407A	R/N	0	2,110	A1	January 2, 2009	Acceptable
R-407C	Suva 407C, Klea 407C	R/N	0	1,770	A1	February 8, 1996; December 20, 2002; August 21, 2003	Acceptable
R-407F	Genetron Performax LT	R/N	0	1,820	A1	October 4, 2011	Acceptable
R-410A	AZ-20, Suva 9100, Puron	N	0	2,090	A1	February 8, 1996; December 20, 2002	Acceptable
R-410B		N	0	2,230	A1	February 8, 1996	Acceptable
R-417A	ISCEON 59, NU-22	R/N	0	2,350	A1	December 6, 1999; June 16, 2010	Acceptable
R-421A	Choice R-421A	R/N	0	2,630	A1	September 28, 2006	Acceptable
R-422B	ICOR XAC1, NU-22B	R/N	0	2,530	A1	March 29, 2006	Acceptable
R-422C	ICOR XLT1	R/N	0	3,390	A1	March 29, 2006	Acceptable
R-422D	ISCEON MO29	R/N	0	2,730	A1	September 28, 2006	Acceptable
R-424A	RS-44	R/N	0	2,440	A1	September 28, 2006	Acceptable
R-427A	Forane 427A	R	0	2,140	A1	January 2, 2009	Acceptable
R-434A	RS-45	R/N	0	3,250	A1	October 4, 2007	Acceptable
R-437A	KDD6, ISCEON MO49 Plus	R/N	0	1,810	A1	January 2, 2009; June 16, 2010	Acceptable
R-438A	KDD5, ISCEON MO99	R/N	0	2,270	A1	October 4, 2007; June 16, 2010	Acceptable
R-441A		N	0	<5	A3	April 10, 2015	Acceptable with Use Conditions: For use in self-contained room air conditioning; see rule for detailed conditions.
R-443A		N	0	2.5	A3	December 1, 2016	Unacceptable, as of January 3, 2017.
R-507, R-507A	AZ-50	R/N	0	3,990	A1	September 5, 1996; December 20, 2002	Acceptable
RS-44 (2003 formulation)		R/N	0	2,420	A1	June 16, 2010	Acceptable
THR-03		R/N	0	N/A	A1	December 6, 1999	Acceptable with Use Conditions: For use in residential window unit air conditioning.
R-458A	Bluon TdX 20	R	0	1,650	A1	July 21, 2017	Acceptable

¹ All refrigerants identified as or otherwise meeting the criteria for flammability Class 3 in American National Standards Institute (ANSI)/American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) Standard 34–2013 are listed as Unacceptable for use in retrofit unitary split air conditioning systems and heat pumps as of January 3, 2017 (see SNAP Final Rule 21 for more details). All refrigerants meeting the criteria for flammability Class 3 include, but are not limited to, R-170 (ethane), R-290 (propane), R-600a (isobutane), R-1270 (propylene), R-441A, R-443A and refrigerant products sold under the names R-22a, 22a, Blue Sky 22a refrigerant, Coolant Express 22a, DURACOOL-22a, EC-22, Ecofreeez EF-22a, Envirosafe 22a, ES-22a, Frost 22a, HC-22a, Maxi-Fridge, MX-22a, Oz-Chill 22a, Priority Cool, and RED TEK 22a.

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