GWP calculator: refrigerant kg to tonnes of CO2e
Pick a gas, enter the mass charged or released, and read its CO₂ equivalent under each IPCC assessment report. The formula is kg × GWP / 1000 = t CO₂e.
How it is calculated
A gas's global warming potential (GWP) says how many kilograms of CO₂ would warm the climate as much as one kilogram of that gas over 100 years. Multiply the mass in kilograms by the GWP to get kilograms of CO₂e, then divide by 1,000 to get tonnes. The GWP used here is the one most open publishers print under each report; each gas's page lists every figure and who prints it.
Worked example: 2.5 kg of R410A, about the charge of a small split air conditioner.
- AR4: 2.5 × 2,088 / 1000 = 5.22 t CO₂e
- AR5: 2.5 × 1,924 / 1000 = 4.81 t CO₂e
- AR6: 2.5 × 2,256 / 1000 = 5.64 t CO₂e
Which IPCC report to use
Use the report your regulation or inventory names. AR6 (2021) is the IPCC's latest, and many rules and inventories still name AR4 (2007) or AR5 (2013), so the same charge gives a different tonnage under each. The EU F-gas rules state their thresholds, leak checks among them, in tonnes of CO₂e, which is why a charge in kg is converted before it is compared.
GWP of the most searched refrigerants and gases
- R32 (HFC-32)
- R410A
- R134a (HFC-134a)
- R290 (C3H8)
- R407C
- R404A
- R1234yf (HFO-1234yf)
- CO2 (R744)
- CH4
- N2O (R744a)
- SF6
Source: the open records of the open-climate.ai catalogue, version 1677.