The new development is assumed to be more efficient, cheaper and more environmentally friendly than any other method.
Standard refrigeration systems run on gas that cools as it expands. This method is extremely efficient, but the gases it uses are extremely harmful to the environment. Scientific alarm.
In a new study, a team of scientists from Lawrence National Laboratory and the University of California at Berkeley focused on inventing a fundamentally new way of cooling that was not only efficient and cost-effective, but also more environmentally friendly.
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The new method the researchers have developed is called ionocaloric cooling, which exploits the storage and release of energy during material phase changes, such as when water changes from solid to liquid.
According to mechanical engineer Drew Lilly, one way to make ice melt without heating it is to add some charged particles, or ions. A common example of this in action is sprinkling salt on ice in the winter: essentially the ionocaloric cycle also uses salt to change the phase of the liquid and cool the environment.
Today, the refrigerant landscape is one of the most serious unsolved problems. Until now, no one has been able to create an alternative solution that cools food as effectively and at the same time is safe and does not harm the environment.
Researchers suggest that it is the ionocaloric cycle that can help achieve all these goals, but the main task is its correct implementation. In the course of the study, the scientists developed the theory of the ionocaloric cycle to demonstrate how it could potentially compete with, and possibly surpass, the refrigeration systems in use today.
Scientists have developed a model in which a current passing through the system would move the ions within it, thus shifting the melting point of the material to change the temperature. The researchers later confirmed the theory with laboratory experiments using salt (made from iodine and sodium). Note that this organic solvent is used in Li-ion batteries and is manufactured using carbon as a raw material. As a result, this approach can make the system not only zero, but also negative.
During the experiments, the scientists were able to reproduce a temperature shift of 25 degrees Celsius due to less than one volt of electric charge. This result surpasses anything scientists have been able to achieve using other technologies.
According to another mechanical engineer, Ravi Prasher, his main job was to balance three things:
- global warming potential of the refrigerant;
- energy efficiency;
- cost of equipment.
From the first attempt, the researchers’ data looks promising. The researchers note that going forward, they will need to move the technology out of the lab and into practical systems that can be scaled up and used commercially. The scientists also note that their new technology can be used not only for cooling, but also for heating.
Previously Focus written on how long the fridge and freezer stay below freezingif there is a power failure.
