Freon, (trademark), any of several simple fluorinated aliphatic organic compounds that are used in commerce and industry. In addition to fluorine and carbon, Freons often contain hydrogen, chlorine, or bromine. Thus, Freons are types of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), and related compounds. The name Freon is a trademark registered by E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company.
The Freons are colourless, odourless, nonflammable, noncorrosive gases or liquids of low toxicity that were introduced as refrigerants in the 1930s; they also proved useful as propellants for aerosols and in numerous technical applications. Their low boiling points, low surface tension, and low viscosity make them especially useful refrigerants. They are extremely stable, inert compounds. The Freons neither present a fire hazard nor give off a detectable odour in their circulation through refrigerating and air-conditioning systems. The most important members of the group have been dichlorodifluoromethane (Freon 12), trichlorofluoromethane (Freon 11), chlorodifluoromethane (Freon 22), dichlorotetrafluoroethane (Freon 114), and trichlorotrifluoroethane (Freon 113).
In the mid-1970s, photochemical dissociation of Freons and related CFCs was implicated as a major cause of the apparent degradation of Earth’s ozone layer. Depletion of the ozone could create a threat to animal life on Earth because ozone absorbs ultraviolet radiation that can induce skin cancer. The use of Freons in aerosol-spray containers was banned in the United States in the late 1970s. By the early 1990s, accumulating evidence of ozone depletion in the polar regions had heightened worldwide public alarm over the problem, and by 1996 most developed countries had banned the production of nearly all Freons. See also chlorofluorocarbon.