UBA car uses CO₂ MAC for shuttle at Bonn Climate Change Talks

At the United National Climate Change Talks in Bonn, the German Environment Agency (UBA) offered participants a ride in the world's first vehicle equipped with a CO₂ (R744) Mobile Air Conditioning that is used on a daily basis for government transport. A presentation on 9 June sparked high interest from delegates and international journalists.

On 9 June, and as one of the side events to the global Post-Kyoto discussions in Bonn, the UBA presented its VW Touran as the first vehicle for public use that is cooled by an innovative CO₂ Mobile Air Conditioning (MAC) unit. After explaining the basic technical details and presenting results of fuel consumption tests, the car was put at the disposal of participants interested in a test drive. The more than 5000 delegates meeting from 1-12 June at the UN Climate Change talks had the opportunity to use the UBA van as part of the normal car shuttle transportation service provided to participants. The R744 MAC system was a real-life example of how environmentally sound technologies could contribute to lower greenhouse gases – the ultimate target of the current and post-Kyoto Protocol.

The VW Touran, normally part of the Federal Environment Agency’s car fleet, supported vehicles put on duty by the German Environment Ministry (BMU). The latter, embodied by Environment Minister Sigmar Gabriel, just recently stressed in an interview that CO₂ would be an available environmentally friendly alternative to R134a proven in real life. Gabriel and the UBA hence reiterated their call for a choice of CO₂ as the most energy-efficient alternative.

CO₂ works

“R744 MAC is not a fiction or a dream but can be done and is in operation already. The VW Touran displayed here is a car the German government uses on a daily basis,” said Gabriele Hoffmann, UBA.

Measurements carried out in a BMU-sponsored research project had demonstrated the efficiency of CO₂ as a refrigerant in MAC systems. With a very good cooling performance, the R744 system is even more efficient than current R134a systems in normal European summer conditions.

Already in March, UBA President Dr. Andreas Troge urged the automotive sector: “The industry must move full steam ahead to mass-produce CO₂ air-conditioning systems as they are an outstanding example of innovation in environmental protection.” Troge also stressed that “a delay in the start of production amounts to a loss of expertise and market opportunities. This will weaken the international position of the European automotive industry and its components suppliers.“

For more information and the energy efficiency results obtained by UBA and Europe’s leading automotive club ADAC, see the articles provided under “More information” below.