The Strongest Greenhouse Gases

I seriously doubt that the compounds known as hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) are literally the title of this paper, but they are the most widely produced very strong greenhouse gases (hereafter GHG).

HFCs, CFCs and HCFCs are three generations of refrigerants. Let’s say you own a house or a car with air conditioning. Further, the former has central air conditioning. If you needed to replace it (as I did a few years ago), you are probably looking at laying out mid four-figures to low five-figures. The primary reason I replaced it was for improved efficiency but assume the only reason you need to replace it is that needs to be recharged with one of the above refrigerants. Do you think you would be willing to pay a high enough price for that refrigerant to where there might be a strong black market.

NOx is mainly produced by agricultural fertilizers, combustion and various industrial processes. With modern gasoline-fueled autos, catalytic converters are highly effective in reducing NOx emissions. They achieve conversion efficiencies ranging between 90% and 99.9%1. But large diesel trucks are a different matter.