There are plenty of sophisticated materials that the world is counting on to limit global warming. Polysilicon for solar panels. Rare earth magnets for wind turbines. Lithium for electric vehicle batteries. But propane?

Believe it or not, the fossil hydrocarbon — produced from oil and gas wells, and mostly used as a cooking and heating fuel for barbecues, boilers and domestic stoves — may help turn the tide on some of the most damaging greenhouse gases humans have ever produced. Isobutane, another popular BBQ fuel, has a similar role to play, as do ammonia and even carbon dioxide.

That’s because these chemicals are rapidly displacing the hydrofluorocarbons, or HFCs, circulating through billions of refrigerators and air conditioners installed around the world. The efforts are helping to e

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