All-weather friendly cooling technology works without mechanical compressors or chemical refrigerants, and generates drinking water
A team of researchers from the National University of Singapore (NUS) has pioneered a new water-based air-conditioning system that cools air to as low as 18 degrees Celsius without the use of energy-intensive compressors and environmentally harmful chemical refrigerants. This game-changing technology could potentially replace the century-old air-cooling principle that is still being used in our modern-day air-conditioners. Suitable for both indoor and outdoor use, the novel system is portable and it can also be customised for all types of weather conditions.
Led by Associate Professor Ernest Chua from the Department of Mechanical Engineering at NUS Faculty of Engineering, the team’s novel air-conditioning system is cost-effective to produce, and it is also more eco-friendly and sustainable. The system consumes about 40 per cent less electricity than current compressor-based air-conditioners used in homes and commercial buildings. This translates into more than 40 per cent reduction in carbon emissions. In addition, it adopts a water-based cooling technology instead of using chemical refrigerants such as chlorofluorocarbon and hydrochlorofluorocarbon for cooling, thus making it safer and more environmentally-friendly.
To add another feather to its eco-friendliness cap, the novel system generates potable drinking water while it cools ambient air.
Assoc Prof Chua said, “For buildings located in the tropics, more than 40 per cent of the building’s energy consumption is attributed to air-conditioning. We expect this rate to increase dramatically, adding an extra punch to global warming. First invented by Willis Carrier in 1902, vapour compression air-conditioning is the most widely used air-conditioning technology today. This approach is very energy-intensive and environmentally harmful. In contrast, our novel membrane and water-based cooling technology is very eco-friendly – it can provide cool and dry air without using a compressor and chemical refrigerants. This is a new starting point for the next generation of air-conditioners, and our technology has immense potential to disrupt how air-conditioning has traditionally been provided.”
Innovative membrane and water-based cooling technology
Current air-conditioning systems require a large amount of energy to remove moisture and to cool the dehumidified air. By developing two systems to perform these two processes separately, the NUS Engineering team can better control each process and hence achieve greater energy efficiency.
The novel air-conditioning system first uses an innovative membrane technology – a paper-like material – to remove moisture from humid outdoor air. The dehumidified air is then cooled via a dew-point cooling system that uses water as the cooling medium instead of harmful chemical refrigerants. Unlike vapour compression air-conditioners, the novel system does not release hot air to the environment. Instead, a cool air stream that is comparatively less humid than environmental humidity is discharged – negating the effect of micro-climate. About 12 to 15 litres of potable drinking water can also be harvested after operating the air-conditioning system for a day.
“Our cooling technology can be easily tailored for all types of weather conditions, from humid climate in the tropics to arid climate in the deserts. While it can be used for indoor living and commercial spaces, it can also be easily scaled up to provide air-conditioning for clusters of buildings in an energy-efficient manner. This novel technology is also highly suitable for confined spaces such as bomb shelters or bunkers, where removing moisture from the air is critical for human comfort, as well as for sustainable operation of delicate equipment in areas such as field hospitals, armoured personnel carriers, and operation decks of navy ships as well as aircrafts,” explained Assoc Prof Chua.
The research team is currently refining the design of the air-conditioning system to further improve its user-friendliness. The NUS researchers are also working to incorporate smart features such as pre-programmed thermal settings based on human occupancy and real-time tracking of its energy efficiency. The team hopes to work with industry partners to commercialise the technology.
Learn more: NUS researchers pioneer water-based, eco-friendly and energy-saving air-conditioner
The Latest on: Cooling technology
[google_news title=”” keyword=”Cooling technology” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]- The Christ Hospital's cooling caps aim to help cancer patients keep their hair after chemoon April 26, 2024 at 1:36 pm
Francie Pepper loved the cooling caps so much, she wanted others to experience it as well. She donated more than $100,000 dollars to be able to purchase more machines.
- Don’t wait for Memorial Day — I found 3 of the best cooling mattresses on sale up to $1,859 offon April 25, 2024 at 5:36 am
The Memorial Day mattress sales in May is one of the best times to buy a new bed, thanks to the hefty discounts many of the big brands roll out. However, if you can’t wait until then, I’ve tracked ...
- 5 Star Refrigerators Under 20000 To Save Big On Your Electricity Billson April 24, 2024 at 9:31 am
Discover things like roomy interiors, cutting-edge cooling technology, and chic style, thus ensuring both environmental sustainability and cost savings by not sacrificing quality. Let's embark on ...
- 'Inflection Point': 1 In 3 Data Centers To Use Liquid Cooling By 2026, Report Sayson April 23, 2024 at 7:17 pm
More than a third of enterprise data centers plan to use liquid cooling by 2026 as rack densities continue to rise.
- Accelsius offers liquid cooling without a data center retrofiton April 23, 2024 at 5:00 pm
direct-to-chip liquid cooling technology, which is designed to be deployed without having to do a massive retrofit of your data center. Liquid cooling is a growing technology to address rising heat ...
- DOD makes new bet on missile defense laser cooling technologyon April 23, 2024 at 3:12 pm
The Defense Department is placing a bet on new laser-cooling technology for missile defense capabilities that carries such promise that the Pentagon will not disclose the company associated with the ...
- Popilush Introduces Bluetag COOLING Collection with Body-Cooling Technologyon April 23, 2024 at 12:00 pm
Popilush, the pioneer in shapewear apparel, is excited to introduce its latest innovation - the Bluetag COOLING Collection. Crafted with proprietary yarn fiber made from oyster shell extraction, these ...
- More than a third of enterprise datacenters expect to deploy liquid cooling by 2026on April 22, 2024 at 6:30 am
Which one of you is already running 100-plus kilowatt racks? Survey As CPUs and GPUs grow ever denser and power-hungry, many, including Register readers, expect liquid cooling to play a larger role in ...
- 3 key features to look for when buying a cooling mattresson April 21, 2024 at 8:10 am
If you struggle to fall asleep because you're simply too warm in bed, investing in a cooling mattress will help reduce overheating so you fall asleep faster. With some brands making lofty claims about ...
- Liquid cooling technology to support NVIDIA's advanced GPUs for sustainable AIon April 17, 2024 at 5:46 am
ZutaCore, a provider of direct-to-chip, waterless liquid cooling solutions, is providing support for the NVIDIA H100 and H200 Tensor Core GPUs to help data centers maximum artificial intelligence (AI) ...
via Google News and Bing News