Which statement correctly describes GWP?

Which statement correctly describes GWP?

• A. It measures energy trapped by a gas over 100 years
• B. It measures the gas's flammability
• C. It compares warming potential to carbon dioxide over 100 years
• D. It indicates the toxicity of the refrigerant

Answer: (C)

Global Warming Potential is a relative measure of how much heat a given amount of a greenhouse gas will trap in the atmosphere compared with the same amount of carbon dioxide, evaluated over a standard time frame—typically 100 years. This lets us compare different gases on a common scale and translate amounts into CO2-equivalent (CO2e) values. That makes the statement describing GWP as a comparison to CO2 over 100 years the best fit, because it captures the essence of GWP: a unitless, comparative metric of warming impact over a specified horizon. The other ideas—measuring flammability or toxicity, or counting energy trapped as an absolute value—aren’t what GWP measures.

Global Warming Potential is a relative measure of how much heat a given amount of a greenhouse gas will trap in the atmosphere compared with the same amount of carbon dioxide, evaluated over a standard time frame—typically 100 years. This lets us compare different gases on a common scale and translate amounts into CO2-equivalent (CO2e) values. That makes the statement describing GWP as a comparison to CO2 over 100 years the best fit, because it captures the essence of GWP: a unitless, comparative metric of warming impact over a specified horizon. The other ideas—measuring flammability or toxicity, or counting energy trapped as an absolute value—aren’t what GWP measures.