HFO refrigerant pioneer Yana Motta joins Orbia
22nd October 2025
USA: Dr Samuel F Yana Motta, a pioneer in the development of HFO refrigerants, has joined refrigerant manufacturer Orbia Advance Corporation as global refrigerant applications director.
Yana Motta was employed for over 21 years in various senior leadership positions at Honeywell, where he is recognised for contributing to the development of low GWP refrigerants including R1234yf and R1234ze, and blends using HFOs such as R448A.
He joins Orbia after five years at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory as distinguished R&D scientist/engineer.
Often a speaker at major international conferences and the author of several scientific articles, research reports, and patents, Yana Motta is a member of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Refrigeration, Air-Conditioning and Heat Pumps Technical Options Committee. A former chair of two ASHRAE technical committees – TC1.3 (heat transfer and fluid flow) and TC 3.1 (refrigerants and secondary fluids) – he was made an ASHRAE Fellow earlier this year.
Before his employment at Honeywell, he worked for five years at Pontifícia Universidad Católica do Rio de Janeiro and was a postdoctoral researcher at the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Gaithersburg, Maryland.
In his new role he will be responsible for aligning product development with the prospective needs of the automotive and stationary markets. Yana Motta will also set the vision for Orbia Fluor & Energy Materials new application laboratory in Houston, Texas.
