Significant New Alternatives Policy (SNAP)

Substitutes in Polystyrene: Extruded Sheet

You will need Adobe Reader to view some of the files on this page. See EPA’s About PDF page to learn more.Substitutes are reviewed on the basis of environmental and health risks, including factors such as ozone depletion potential, global warming potential, toxicity, flammability, and exposure potential. Lists of acceptableHelpacceptableThis designation means that a substitute may be used, without restriction, to replace the relevant ODS within the end-use specified. For example, HCFC-22 is an acceptable substitute for R-502 in industrial process refrigeration. Note that all SNAP determinations apply to the use of a specific product as a substitute for a specific ODS in a specific end-use. and unacceptableHelpUnacceptableThis designation means that it is illegal to use a product as a substitute for an ODS in a specific end-use. For example, HCFC-141b is an unacceptable substitute for CFC-11 in building chillers. Note that all SNAP determinations apply to the use of a specific product as a substitute for a specific ODS in a specific end-use. substitutes are updated several times each year. The list of acceptable substitutes are shown below.

Note: SNAP-related information published in the Federal Register takes precedence over all information on this page.

           
Substitute ODPHelpODPA number that refers to the amount of ozone depletion caused by a substance. The ODP is the ratio of the impact on ozone of a chemical compared to the impact of a similar mass of CFC-11. Thus, the ODP of CFC-11 is defined to be 1.0. Other CFCs and HCFCs have ODPs that range from 0.01 to 1.0. The halons have ODPs ranging up to 10. Carbon tetrachloride has an ODP of 1.2, and methyl chloroform's ODP is 0.11. HFCs have zero ODP because they do not contain chlorine. A table of all ozone-depleting substances (http://www.epa.gov/ozone/science/ods/index.html) shows their ODPs, GWPs, and CAS numbers. GWPHelpGWPThe index used to translate the level of emissions of various gases into a common measure in order to compare the relative radiative forcing of different gases without directly calculating the changes in atmospheric concentrations. GWPs are calculated as the ratio of the radiative forcing that would result from the emissions of one kilogram of a greenhouse gas to that from the emission of one kilogram of carbon dioxide over a period of time (usually 100 years). Gases involved in complex atmospheric chemical processes have not been assigned GWPs. See lifetime. SNAP Listing Date Comments[3] Flammable
Carbon Dioxide 0 1 March 18, 1994;
June 8, 1999
  no
EcomateTM 0 5 or less September 28, 2006   yes
Electroset Technology 0 N/A August 26, 1994;
June 16, 2010
  N/A
Exxsol Blowing Agents 0 5 or less December 6, 1999;
June 16, 2010
  yes
Formacel® TI 0 1,330 - 1,500 September 30, 2009;
July 20, 2015;
December 1, 2016
Acceptable subject to narrowed use limits for military or space- and aeronautics-related applications and unacceptable for all other uses as of January 1, 2017. Unacceptable for military applications as of January 1, 2022 and for space- and aeronautics-related applications as of January 1, 2025. no
Formacel® Z-6 0 370 - 1,290 August 10, 2012;
July 20, 2015;
December 1, 2016
Acceptable subject to narrowed use limits for military or space- and aeronautics-related applications and unacceptable for all other uses as of January 1, 2017. Unacceptable for military applications as of January 1, 2022 and for space- and aeronautics-related applications as of January 1, 2025. N/A[1]
HCFC-124 0.022 609 July 22, 2002 Unacceptable Substitute; Alternatives exist with lower or zero ODP. no
HCFC-141b 0.12 725 September 30, 2004;
July 20, 2015
Unacceptable Substitute; Alternatives exist with lower or zero ODP. no
HFC-134a 0 1,430 March 18, 1994;
June 8, 1999;
July 20, 2015;
December 1, 2016
HFC-134a and blends thereof acceptable subject to narrowed use limits for military or space- and aeronautics-related applications and unacceptable for all other uses as of January 1, 2017. Unacceptable for military applications as of January 1, 2022 and for space- and aeronautics-related applications as of January 1, 2025. no
HFC-152a 0 124 March 18, 1994;
June 8, 1999
  yes
HFC-245fa 0 1,030 December 6, 1999;
July 20, 2015;
December 1, 2016
HFC-245fa and blends thereof acceptable subject to narrowed use limits for military or space- and aeronautics-related applications and unacceptable for all other uses as of January 1, 2017. Unacceptable for military applications as of January 1, 2022 and for space- and aeronautics-related applications as of January 1, 2025. no
HFC-365mfc 0 794 September 30, 2009;
June 16, 2010;
July 20, 2015;
December 1, 2016
HFC-365mfc and blends thereof acceptable subject to narrowed use limits for military or space- and aeronautics-related applications and unacceptable for all other uses as of January 1, 2017. Unacceptable for military applications as of January 1, 2022 and for space- and aeronautics-related applications as of January 1, 2025. yes
Saturated Light Hydrocarbons (C3-C6) 0 3 - 10 March 18, 1994;
April 11, 2000; June 16, 2010
  yes
TranscendTM Technologies 0 5 or less March 29, 2006 Acceptable as an additive to SNAP-approved blowing agents in blends making up to 5% by weight of the total foam formulation. yes[2]
Water 0 N/A June 8, 1999   no

1 Some components and some blends are flammable.

2 When blended with fire retardant and/or other SNAP-approved alternatives, the flammability of TranscendTM Technologies can be reduced to make a formulation that is either combustible or non-flammable (contact the manufacturer of TranscendTM Technologies for more information).

3 Use of closed cell foam products and products that contain closed cell foam manufactured with an unacceptable foam blowing agent prohibited on or before the later of: 1) December 1, 2017, or 2) the date when the foam blowing agent is unacceptable.