Due to increasingly stringent restrictions on the use of refrigerants with high global warming potential (GWP), research is being conducted into the use of alternative refrigerants that maintain comparable energy efficiency. In this study, simple calculations were performed for a heat pump operating between a vaporization temperature of 0 °C and a condensation temperature of 40 °C, with 5 °C of superheat and subcooling. A comparison was made with the reference refrigerant R410A, against which we compared the refrigerants R32, R454B, R452B, R451B, R1234ze(E), R290, and R600a. For each refrigerant, we calculated the evaporator and condenser pressures, the pressure ratio, the heating number, the volumetric heat capacity, the GWP value according to Regulation (EU) 2024/573, and the safety classification according to ISO 817. The results show that refrigerants R32, R454B, and R452B represent the best compromise between working parameters, energy efficiency, safety class, and environmental impact. The results obtained enable a systematic comparison of the impact of refrigerant selection on the thermodynamic performance of a heat pump and an evaluation of refrigerants in terms of environmental impact and safety classification.
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