Abstract
Abstract The global focus has shifted towards mitigating the impact of global warming, particularly in the air-conditioning and refrigeration sectors where there is a strong emphasis on the use of environmentally friendly refrigerants. One such refrigerant that has gained increased usage is HFO-1234yf. The increasing use of HFO-1234yf as a refrigerant in automobile air conditioning compressors presents new challenges in terms of material compatibility. In this research, we investigate the impact of HFO-1234yf in automobile compressor applications by comparing the tribological results of the same materials in air. We conducted tribological experiments under starved lubrication conditions using Polyetheretherketone (PEEK)/ Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) and Aromatic thermosetting co-polyesters (ATSP) /PTFE-coated aluminum alloy samples. We found that the ATSP/PTFE coatings perform exceptionally well irrespective of the atmosphere, and the presence of HFO-1234yf refrigerant adversely affects the tribological performance of the PEEK/PTFE coatings citing the lack of a stable tribofilm formation. These findings offer valuable insights for the development of materials and lubricants that are compatible with HFO-1234yf refrigerant applications.
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