Quick answer
R-454C is a blend of R-32 and R-1234yf. Calculated under Annex VI from the manufacturer's nominal composition — 21.5 % R-32 and 78.5 % R-1234yf — its GWP is roughly 145.5.
That figure takes it under the lowest line in the regulation, the one at 150. The practical consequence is short: no GWP-based servicing ban touches it, and in Annex IV only the rows written “any fluorinated greenhouse gas” catch it, not the ones with a 150 or 750 limit.
What the figure does not settle is the safety class. The manufacturer's documentation classifies it A2L, and the F-gas Regulation does not deal with flammability: that is decided by product standards and by the safety requirements at the site of operation.
| Situation | Value |
|---|---|
| GWP | ≈ 145.5 — calculated under Annex VI |
| Servicing today | Allowed — not caught by the servicing bans that apply today |
| From 1 January 2032 | Allowed — stays below the 750 limit in Article 13(5) |
| Leak-check threshold | 5 t CO2e ≈ 34.4 kg (Annex I) |
It carries no thermodynamic properties, charge limits, ventilation or detection requirements for flammable refrigerants, oil compatibility, glide values or transport thresholds. None of those are in the F-gas Regulation. Take them from the safety data sheet, from the equipment manufacturer's documentation and from the applicable product standards.
The GWP, and where it comes from
R-454C is a blend, so it is not listed with a value of its own in Annex I. Its GWP is calculated under Annex VI as the weighted average of the mass fractions, using the binding values from Annexes I and II.
| Component | Share by weight | GWP | Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| HFC-32 | 21.5 % | 675 | 145.1 |
| HFC-1234yf | 78.5 % | 0.501 | 0.393 |
| Total | ≈ 145.5 | ||
R-32 is listed in Annex I at 675. R-1234yf is listed in Section 1 of Annex II at 0.501. Nearly four fifths of the mass therefore contributes less than half a unit to the result: the entire GWP of this blend comes from its 21.5 % of R-32.
Annex VI allows a weight tolerance of ± 1 %, and substances not listed in the annexes count as 0. The figure on the label or in the product documentation may be rounded; where it carries commercial weight, use that one.
The product bulletin for Opteon XL20 gives a GWP of 148, calculated on AR4 values. The whole difference against ≈ 145.5 comes from the value attributed to the HFO component. The regulation leaves no choice here: the binding value for HFC-1234yf is 0.501, from Section 1 of Annex II.
The second is headed “20 years-GWP — for information purposes only”. It is not the value the thresholds are measured against. Using it inflates the result several times over.
The margin against the 150 line is about three per cent. That is enough, but it is not enormous: the ± 1 % tolerance in Annex VI does not consume it, though a real composition that drifted far would. This is exactly why the figure has to come from the product document and not from a general table.
Servicing: what you may charge, and until when
Article 13 contains three GWP lines for maintenance and servicing. R-454C clears all three.
- Article 13(3) prohibits fluorinated greenhouse gases with a GWP of 2 500 or more for maintaining or servicing refrigeration equipment with a charge size of 40 tonnes of CO2 equivalent or more; from 1 January 2025 the prohibition covers any refrigeration equipment.
- Article 13(4) brings the same 2 500 limit to air conditioning and heat pumps from 1 January 2026.
- Article 13(5) prohibits, from 1 January 2032, Annex I gases with a GWP of 750 or more for maintaining or servicing stationary refrigeration equipment, chillers excluded.
At ≈ 145.5, R-454C is below every one of those thresholds. In the text in force today there is no date on which servicing with R-454C becomes prohibited on GWP grounds.
The absence of a servicing ban changes nothing else. Purchase stays restricted to certified persons and the undertakings that employ them under Article 11(6). The seller records each purchaser's certificate number and the quantities under Article 7(3). Recovery is carried out by certified persons under Article 8.
Article 13(6) lets the Commission authorise time-limited exemptions from the prohibitions in paragraphs 4 and 5 where it finds a verified shortage of reclaimed or recycled gas. That mechanism concerns the gases caught by those paragraphs, not R-454C.
Equipment: what may no longer be placed on the market
Annex IV lists the products and equipment that may no longer be placed on the market, each with its GWP limit and its date. Almost every refrigeration and air conditioning row is written with a limit of 150 or 750, so R-454C clears them. The rows that catch it are the ones written with no GWP limit at all:
| Annex IV point | Equipment | Limit | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2(b) | Domestic refrigerators and freezers | any fluorinated greenhouse gas | 1.1.2026 |
| 7(c) | Chillers up to and including 12 kW | any fluorinated greenhouse gas | 1.1.2032 |
| 8(c) | Self-contained air conditioning and heat pumps, up to and including 12 kW | any fluorinated greenhouse gas (750 where safety requires) | 1.1.2032 |
| 9(d) | Split systems up to and including 12 kW | any fluorinated greenhouse gas | 1.1.2035 |
The rows that matter most in commercial refrigeration let it through: point 3(c) and point 4 (limit 150, from 1 January 2025), point 5(c) (limit 150, from 1 January 2030) and point 6 (multipack centralised systems of 40 kW or more, limit 150, from 1 January 2022). That is the reason the blend exists.
Point 6 allows fluorinated greenhouse gases with a GWP of less than 1 500 in the primary refrigerant circuit of cascade systems. R-454C sits comfortably inside that exception too.
Watch the wording “except if required to meet safety requirements at the site of operation”, which appears on almost every recent row. Where site safety will not allow a flammable refrigerant, the GWP limit rises to 750 in points 8 and 9. It is the one place where the regulation acknowledges, indirectly, that an A2L refrigerant cannot go everywhere.
Leak checks and the detection system
Article 5(1) sets from what quantity equipment is checked, and Article 5(6) how often. The duty falls on operators and on manufacturers of the equipment.
For Annex I gases the threshold is 5 tonnes of CO2 equivalent. At ≈ 145.5 that means 5 000 ÷ 145.5 ≈ 34.4 kg of refrigerant in a system.
| Charge | Check at least | With a detection system |
|---|---|---|
| 5 – 50 t CO2e | 12 months | 24 months |
| 50 – 500 t CO2e | 6 months | 12 months |
| ≥ 500 t CO2e | 3 months | 6 months |
Worked example. 40 kg of R-454C is 40 × 145.5 ÷ 1 000 ≈ 5.8 t CO2e — the bottom band, so checks at least every 12 months, or every 24 months where the system has a leakage detection system.
The 500 t CO2e threshold in Article 6(1), above which a detection system becomes mandatory, would take more than 3 400 kg of R-454C in a single system. Ordinary commercial refrigeration does not reach it.
Article 5(1) carries two thresholds: 5 tonnes of CO2 equivalent for gases listed in Annex I and 1 kilogram for gases listed in Section 1 of Annex II. R-454C is 78.5 % HFC-1234yf, which is a Section 1 Annex II gas. The text does not say in terms how the two thresholds combine for a blend with components from both annexes. Do not invent a reading: confirm it with your national competent authority and, until then, treat the system on the stricter reading.
For the intervals and for how the CO2 equivalent is worked out, see the guide to leak-check frequency.
Commercial refrigeration and the A2L class: what the regulation covers
The manufacturer offers R-454C for low- and medium-temperature commercial and industrial refrigeration, as an alternative to R-404A, R-507 and the R-407 series. From a regulatory point of view the attraction is single and large: it is one of the few fluorinated greenhouse gases that stay under the 150 line and therefore survive the 1 January 2030 date in Annex IV point 5(c).
The safety class does not come from the regulation. The manufacturer's product documentation classifies R-454C as A2L, that is, lower flammability. Regulation (EU) 2024/573 does not classify refrigerants by flammability and sets no charge limits, ventilation requirements or zoning. Those come from product and installation standards and from national safety requirements.
The regulation does touch the subject in two places, and both matter to anyone working with an A2L refrigerant:
- Article 10(5), point (e): certification and training programmes must cover safe handling of equipment containing flammable or toxic gases or operating under high pressure.
- Implementing Regulation (EU) 2024/2215 extends the scope of certificates beyond fluorinated greenhouse gases: Article 2 covers work on equipment containing F-gases or the alternatives ammonia, carbon dioxide and hydrocarbons, and Certificate A1 in Article 3(2) covers fluorinated greenhouse gases and hydrocarbons.
The second thing to keep in mind is that a GWP below 150 does not mean outside the regulation. R-454C remains a fluorinated greenhouse gas: label, records, purchase by certified persons, recovery, sales records — all apply exactly as they do to R-404A.
For the direct comparison with the other ways out of R-404A, see the guide to replacing R-404A. For the safety classes explained on their own, see A1, A2L and A3.
Label and record
The label. Article 12(1)(g) puts all fluorinated greenhouse gas containers under the labelling requirement, and Article 12(3) requires an indication that fluorinated greenhouse gases are contained, the accepted industry designation, the quantity in weight and in CO2 equivalent, and the GWP. Article 12(4) requires the label to be clearly legible and indelible and to be written in the official languages of the Member State of commercial destination.
Implementing Regulation (EU) 2024/2174 adds, in Article 1(3), the mandatory text “contains fluorinated greenhouse gases”, and in Article 1(4) points at the “GWP” column of Annexes I, II and III for the CO2 equivalent.
The record. Where the equipment has to be checked under Article 5(1), Article 7(1) requires a record for each piece of equipment: the quantity and type of gas, quantities added with dates, the quantity recovered, the origin of any gas added and whether it was recycled or reclaimed, the identity of the undertaking and of the person who did the work, and the dates and results of checks and repairs. Kept five years, by the operator and in copy by the servicing undertaking.
Who may buy it. Article 11(6) allows purchase only by certified persons or undertakings employing them; its second subparagraph makes clear that non-certified undertakings may still collect, transport or deliver the gas.
What the regulation does NOT tell you
Physical properties, safety class and flammability are not in the regulation. Take them from the product's safety data sheet — section 2 for classification and label elements, section 9 for physical and chemical properties, section 14 for transport — in the format required by Regulation (EU) 2020/878, and from the manufacturer's documentation.
Hazard classification and labelling come from Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008. That is a separate regime from the F-gas label: the two pieces of information sit on the same cylinder but come from different acts.
The regulation also does not say whether the gas suits a particular installation. Capacity, pressures, oil compatibility, temperature glide and component ratings are engineering questions answered by the equipment manufacturer's documentation.
And for a flammable refrigerant, the requirements on siting, ventilation, detection and maximum charge come from product standards and national safety requirements, not from the articles above.
Checklist
- The GWP used is the binding columnNot the 20-year column, marked for information only.
- The GWP figure is taken from the product documentThe margin against the 150 line is only a few per cent.
- Charge recorded in kg and in tonnes of CO2 equivalentThe figure that sets the check interval: ≈ 34.4 kg is the 5 t CO2e threshold.
- Check interval assignedArticle 5(6), with or without a detection system.
- Equipment purchases checked against Annex IVThe rows written for any fluorinated greenhouse gas catch it even below 150.
- Safety class confirmed from the safety data sheetA2L does not come from the regulation; it comes from product documentation and standards.
- Label complete on the cylinderDesignation, weight, CO2 equivalent, GWP and the text required by Regulation (EU) 2024/2174.
- Equipment record currentArticle 7(1), kept five years.
- Site safety requirements checked before orderingThey can rule out a flammable refrigerant, and Annex IV then lifts the limit to 750.
Frequently asked questions
What is the GWP of R-454C?
Roughly 145.5, calculated under Annex VI from the nominal composition 21.5 % R-32 and 78.5 % R-1234yf, with the binding values 675 (Annex I) and 0.501 (Section 1 of Annex II). Annex VI allows a ± 1 % weight tolerance.
Can I still service with R-454C after 2032?
Yes, on GWP grounds. Article 13(5) prohibits, from 1 January 2032, Annex I gases with a GWP of 750 or more for servicing stationary refrigeration other than chillers. At ≈ 145.5, R-454C stays far below that limit, as it does below the 2 500 threshold in Article 13(3) and 13(4).
If it is below 150, does it appear in Annex IV at all?
Yes. The rows written for any fluorinated greenhouse gas carry no GWP limit and do catch it: point 2(b) from 2026 for domestic refrigerators, points 7(c) and 8(c) from 2032 for chillers and self-contained equipment up to 12 kW, and point 9(d) from 2035 for split systems up to 12 kW.
At what charge do leak checks start?
At 5 tonnes of CO2 equivalent of Annex I gases, which at ≈ 145.5 is roughly 34.4 kg. Note, though, that Article 5(1) also carries a 1 kilogram threshold for Section 1 Annex II gases, and most of R-454C is such a gas. Confirm the reading with your competent authority.
Where does it say that R-454C is A2L?
Not in the regulation. The safety class comes from the manufacturer's documentation and from the product's safety data sheet. The regulation touches flammability only through Article 10(5), point (e), which requires training to cover safe handling of equipment containing flammable gases.
Is R-454C banned as a substance?
No. The regulation does not ban substances as such. It restricts use for servicing above certain GWP thresholds in Article 13, and the placing on the market of certain equipment containing them in Annex IV. Those are different things with different dates.
Official sources
Annexes I, II, IV and VI and Articles 5, 6, 7, 10, 11, 12 and 13 were read directly in the Official Journal text through the EU Publications Office. The nominal composition and the safety class come from the manufacturer's documentation, cited separately.
Currency of this page and limits of responsibility
This is a regulatory status page, not a technical data sheet and not a safety document. It carries no thermodynamic properties, no charge limits for flammable refrigerants, no ventilation requirements and no application recommendations. For those, use the product's safety data sheet, the equipment manufacturer's documentation and the applicable standards.
General information prepared by EgoLog from the regulation and official Commission material. It is not legal advice and it is not an engineering assessment.
Work on systems with flammable refrigerants is carried out by competent persons certified under Article 10 of the regulation and Implementing Regulation (EU) 2024/2215. Annex IV can be amended, and the Commission may authorise time-limited exemptions. Confirm the current text before you rely on a date commercially.