Sulfur hexafluoride, a gas 24,300 times more potent at creating the greenhouse effect than carbon dioxide, is being released into the atmosphere at an alarming rate as China seeks to expand its electric power grid.
The findings were from a new study conducted by researchers at the MIT Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change, Fudan University, Peking University, University of Bristol, and Meteorological Observation Center of China Meteorological Administration.
“Greenhouse gases differ widely in their global warming potential (GWP), or ability to absorb radiative energy and thereby warm the Earth’s surface,” MIT said. “For example, measured over a 100-year period, the GWP of methane is about 28 times that of carbon dioxide (CO2), and the GWP of sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) is 24,300 times that of CO2.”
Sulfur hexafluoride, SF6, is used “primarily in high-voltage…
