A In the early 30s of the 20th century, the use of hydrochlorofluoroalkanes (CFCs) as refrigerants marked the beginning of the application of organofluorine chemicals.
After 1945, various defense programs in the Cold War provided an enduring driving force for the continuous development of fluorine chemistry and the use of fluorinated compounds, and the refrigerant industry dominated by CFCs developed rapidly around the world.
Until 1974, when Molina and other scholars put forward the argument that chlorine fluorine would cause damage to the ozone layer, and then in 1985 The British Antarctic Survey discovered the phenomenon of the ozone layer hole over Antarctica, which has aroused widespread international attention: studies have shown that fluoroalkanes have strong chemical stability, and they are difficult to be decomposed or degraded in the lower atmosphere, and will stay in the atmosphere for more than ten years, directly causing problems such as ozone layer destruction and air pollution, and seriously affecting the ecological environment. Nearly half a century elapsed between the introduction of CFCs and the recognition of the environmental hazards of CFC releases.
In 1987, the global organofluorine industry made a major repositioning: representatives of 28 countries jointly resolved and formulated the Montreal Protocol, an international convention, which stipulates that the production and sales of all generations of fluorohydrocarbons will be gradually restricted, reduced and discontinued, and the global fluorine refrigerants will be gradually upgraded. The Montreal Protocol was signed in 1987 and entered into force in 1989.
On 15 October 2016, in Kigali, Rwanda, nearly 200 countries at the 28th Conference of the Parties to the Montreal Agreement agreed on the reduction of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), a potent greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming, and signed the Kigali Amendment. The Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol requires most developed countries to reduce HFCs starting in 2019, developing countries to freeze HFCs consumption levels in 2024, and a small number of countries to freeze HFCs consumption in 2028. On 17 June 2021, the Permanent Mission of the People's Republic of China to the United Nations deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations its instrument of acceptance of the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol. The amendment came into force for China on 15 September 2021 (not applicable to Hong Kong SAR of China for the time being). The Chinese Government attaches great importance to the implementation of the Ozone Layer Protection, and has carried out solid implementation and governance actions, which have achieved positive results.
