Bryan Kilgore for Zondits, March 13, 2015
Carbon dioxide refrigerant is being used in 200 Sainsbury’s grocery stores, replacing their old R-404A, hydro-fluorocarbon (HFC) refrigerant. This is not new, as many northern European supermarkets are switching away from HCF refrigerants. What makes this interesting is that the CO2 at these Sainsbury’s stores is created as a byproduct from bioethanol production, using sugar beets. Additionally, CO2 derived from bioethanol production contains half the moisture content of alternative CO2 refrigerants, meaning potentially fewer problems with moisture freezing within the refrigeration system.