ORC technology is one of the most promising technologies for the use of residual energy in the generation of electrical energy, offering simple and environmentally friendly alternatives. In this field, the selection of working fluids plays an important role in the operation of the cycle, whether in terms of the energy efficiency or the minimization of environmental impacts. Therefore, in this paper, a comprehensive review is presented on the use of R1234yf refrigerant and its mixtures as working fluids in ORC systems. These fluids are used in low- and medium-temperature applications for the use of residual energy generated from solar energy, geothermal energy, and internal combustion engines. It was concluded that R1234yf and its mixtures are competitive as compared with conventional refrigerants used in ORC.

CO₂-based transcritical refrigeration cycles are currently gaining significant research attention, as they offer a viable solution to the use of natural refrigerants (e.g., CO₂). However, there are almost no papers that offer an exergoeconomic comparison between the different configurations of these types of systems. Accordingly, the present work deals with a comparative exergoeconomic analysis of four different CO₂-based transcritical refrigeration cycles. In addition, the work is complemented by an analysis of the CO₂ abatement costs. The influences of the variation of the evaporating temperature, the gas cooler outlet temperature, and the pressure ratio on the exergy efficiency, product cost rate, exergy destruction cost rate, exergoeconomic factor, and CO₂ penalty cost rate are compared in detail. The results show that the transcritical cycle with the ejector has the lowest exergetic product cost and a low environmental impact.

The use of an internal heat exchanger in vapor compression refrigeration systems of one stage is a common practice because it helps to increase the cooling capacity in the evaporator. Furthermore, the use of refrigerants with low global warming potential is becoming more frequent due to environmental regulations worldwide. Thus, this paper presents an evaluation of the improvement produced by the inclusion of an internal heat exchanger cycle (IHXC) in an experimental installation from the viewpoint of exergy, economic and environmental through to exergy, exergoeconomics, and Specific Life Cycle Climate Performance (SLCCP) studies. The tests were conducted using R1234ze(E) as a replacement alternative to R134a in three evaporating temperature conditions: 4 °C, 9 °C, and 14 °C. Comparisons were made considering R134a in BRC mode versus R1234ze(E) in BRC and IHXC modes. Results show that a lower environmental impact is produced by an evaporating temperature of 14 °C with a reduction in SLCCP of 13.3% using IHXC and R1234ze(E). Moreover, the highest increase in exergy efficiency was observed for an evaporating temperature of 4 °C, with this increase being 9%, while the lowest increase in the total cost rate was observed for the same evaporating temperature, being 12.3% and 21.2% for BRC and IHXC modes using R1234ze(E), respectively.