Demonstrating their mutual commitments to environmental leadership, Whirlpool Corporation (NYSE: WHR) and Honeywell (NYSE: HON) have announced that all Whirlpool Corporation U.S.-made refrigerators will begin incorporating Honeywell's Solstice™ Liquid Blowing Agent. This includes future product lineups from Whirlpool Brand, Maytag®, Amana®, Jenn-Air® and KitchenAid® brands. The most environmentally responsible blowing agent available, boasting the lowest Global Warming Potential (GWP) available among non-ozone depleting substitutes, Solstice Liquid Blowing Agent (LBA) outperforms commonly used hydrocarbons such as C-Pentane, providing better low-temperature insulation performance and higher energy savings.
Whirlpool Corporation is the first refrigerator manufacturer in the U.S. committed to incorporating this new class of blowing agents into its products, providing customers with refrigerators that offer the best efficiency and lowest environmental footprint. Honeywell Solstice LBA offers an 8-10 percent improvement in efficiency over refrigerator platforms tested with hydrocarbon blown foam insulation, and a 2 percent improvement over 245fa, currently the most widely-used foam blowing agent in the U.S.
"Whirlpool Corporation is an environmental leader, developing high-quality products that offer both efficiency and low environmental impact," said Ludovic Beaufils, general manager refrigeration and sustainability lead for Whirlpool North America. "Through this collaboration with Honeywell, we are once again leading the way with the most advanced materials that offer the greatest benefits to consumers."
Honeywell Solstice Liquid Blowing Agent, which was recently granted approval under the Significant New Alternatives Policy (SNAP), has a 100-year global warming potential between 4.7 and 7, a 99 percent improvement over 245fa, the most common manufacturing solution in the U.S. today. A near drop-in replacement, it also offers cost benefits and is non-flammable providing safety advantages over other hydrocarbon blowing agents.
"Honeywell's Solstice™ branded solutions deliver the optimal combined enhancement of environment, performance, safety and cost effectiveness," said Terrence Hahn, vice president and general manager, Fluorine Products. "We are pleased to supply Whirlpool with Solstice™ LBA to ensure those benefits are experienced both in their operations and for their customers."
Whirlpool will begin production in late 2013.