Fluorochemicals and refrigerants: Production route
How HF and chlorinated solvents become cooling gases
What this tab covers How it is made: the main production routes or, for product families, the main product types and technologies, compared on share of supply, inputs per tonne, plant scale, yield, co-products and unit cost.All fluorocarbons start from HF and a chlorinated hydrocarbon. Fluorination replaces chlorine with fluorine over a catalyst and releases HCl, which is sold or recycled. HCFC-22 is the oldest high-volume product; it is being phased out as a refrigerant but grows as PTFE feedstock. HFC-32, HFC-134a and HFC-125 are the main HFCs. HFOs such as HFO-1234yf are multistep, patented by Honeywell and Chemours, and use more HF and chlorine per tonne. Fluorospecialty intermediates use Swarts, Halex or diazotisation chemistry in batch plants.
Routes compared
| Route | Share of supply | Inputs per tonne | Typical scale | Yield | Co-products | Unit cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HCFC-22 (R22) from chloroform | probably the largest single fluorocarbon by tonnage including feedstock use (indicative) | about 1.38 t chloroform and 0.46 t HF per t R22 (stoichiometric) | 50-200 kt/yr per site in China (indicative) | HFC-23 by-product about 1.5-4% of R22 output (indicative) | about 0.84 t HCl per t (stoichiometric); HFC-23 | not published |
| HFC-32 (R32) from methylene chloride | largest HFC by volume in China; Juhua holds about 46% of Chinese R32 quota (36Kr 2026) | about 1.63 t methylene chloride and 0.77 t HF per t R32 (stoichiometric) | 15-100 kt/yr (Navin adding 15 kt/yr for Rs 240 crore, ICICI Direct 2026) | high | about 1.40 t HCl per t (stoichiometric) | raw materials about RMB 13,000-17,000/t at HF RMB 12,000-16,000/t and methylene chloride about RMB 2,500/t (calculated, indicative) |
| HFC-134a and HFC-125 (and blends R410A, R404A, R407C) | Juhua 36% of Chinese R134a quota and 38% of R125; Sanmei 24% of R134a (36Kr 2026) | R134a: about 1.29 t TCE and 0.78 t HF; R125: about 1.38 t PCE and 0.83 t HF (stoichiometric) | 20-100 kt/yr (indicative) | high | R134a about 1.07 t HCl; R125 about 1.22 t HCl per t (stoichiometric) | not published |
| HFOs (HFO-1234yf, HFO-1234ze, HFO-1233zd) | small but growing; China had about 2,500 t/yr of R1234yf capacity in 2024 (Juhua), projected 15,000-20,000 t/yr by 2027 (Faxian Gongchang 2026) | about 0.7 t HF per t HFO-1234yf plus chlorinated C3 feedstock (stoichiometric, indicative) | 5-40 kt/yr; SRF 20 kt/yr plus 30 kt/yr HF in Odisha (SRF FY2026) | not published | HCl; HFO-1234yf breaks down in air to trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) | several times R134a (indicative) |
| Fluorospecialty and fluorinated building blocks | about 10% of fluorocarbon tonnage, much more of value (indicative) | varies; LiPF6 needs about 0.65 t AHF per t (Faxian Gongchang 2026) | hundreds of tonnes to a few kt per product | not published | fluoride and salt effluent | not published |
How each route works
HCFC-22 (R22) from chloroformChloroform reacts with HF in the liquid phase over antimony pentachloride. Over-fluorination gives HFC-23, which must be captured and incinerated to avoid huge emissions.
Cheap PTFE feedstock; ozone-depleting as a refrigerant and a source of HFC-23.
stoichiometry; fluoropolymers tile HFC-32 (R32) from methylene chlorideMethylene chloride and HF react in the liquid or gas phase. R32 is used pure in split air conditioners and as half of R410A.
Efficient and lower GWP than R410A; mildly flammable (A2L) and still an HFC under Kigali.
stoichiometry; Faxian Gongchang 2026 (HF price); ICICI Direct (Apr 2026) HFC-134a and HFC-125 (and blends R410A, R404A, R407C)HFC-134a is made from trichloroethylene and HF in two steps; HFC-125 from perchloroethylene and HF through HCFC-123 and HCFC-124. Blends are mixed after purification.
Non-flammable (A1); high GWP (R134a 1,430; R125 3,500) so first in line for cuts.
stoichiometry; 36Kr (Jun 2026) HFOs (HFO-1234yf, HFO-1234ze, HFO-1233zd)Multistep routes, for example from 1,1,2,3-tetrachloropropene via HCFO-1233xf and HCFC-244bb to HFO-1234yf. Process patents are held by Honeywell and Chemours, and licensed or contracted to Chinese and Indian makers.
Very low GWP; costly, patent-heavy, and counted as PFAS by the OECD definition used in the EU proposal.
SRF FY2026 via Multibagg; Faxian Gongchang 2026 Fluorospecialty and fluorinated building blocksBatch fluorination of aromatics and heterocycles (Swarts exchange with HF, Halex with potassium fluoride, Balz-Schiemann diazotisation) to make trifluoromethyl benzenes, fluoroanilines, fluorinated pyrazoles and LiPF6.
High margin and customer lock-in through custom synthesis; volatile when big agro or battery customers destock.
Faxian Gongchang 2026; indicative Unit economics are indicative ranges from the sources named; costs move with feedstock and energy prices, plant size and region.