Scientists from the Thermal Engineering Group at the Mechanical Engineering and Construction Department of Jaume I University in Valencia have now identified a small number of refrigerant mixtures that could, theoretically, provide more energy efficient options to R600a and R290.

The group studied 110,880 refrigerant blends [that] were evaluated thermodynamically against R600a and R290 for refrigeration purposes…

[O]nly the blends exhibiting theoretical COP increments from 0 to 15% and variations in volumetric cooling capacity from -30 to 30% compared to R600a and R290 were selected. Finally, remaining mixtures were optimized again with a mass fraction variation of each component of 0.5%.

Blends of R1234yf/R600a and R1270/R600a were found to offer a small increase in COP, between 0.3% and 0.6% and between 0.1% and 0.8% respectively, compared to R600a. A small increase in VCC of between 5.9% and 6.4% for the R1234yf/R600a blend and between 6.3% and 11.2% for the R1270/R600a mixture was noted.