In the heart of the University of Ljubljana, in Slovenia, a group of researchers is rewriting the rules of global cooling. Led by the young engineer Jaka Tušekthe researchers have developed a technology capable of overcoming the limits and environmental damage of the classic steam compression systems. Their solution? A solid cooling based on Intelligent metal alloyscompletely without polluting refrigerant gases. An innovation that promises to revolutionize the sector and to offer a concrete response to the climatic emergency.
Our goal is clear: to create a sustainable, efficient and safe technology that can become the new world standard in cooling.
For over a century, the world has entrusted a single technology to cool houses, offices and devices: the steam compression. Present in the air conditioners and refrigerators of the whole planet, this system is based on the use of refrigerant gases. After the CFC announcement (chlorophalocarburi) in 1989, considered devastating for the ozone layer, the market has been oriented towards HFC (hydrophlorocarbons). But the remedy proved worse than evil, as Tušek points out.
A single kilogram of HFC released into the atmosphere has the same environmental impact as a car that runs 30,000 kilometers.
Today the HFCs are also under accusation and subject of progressive elimination policies. However, natural alternativeslike ammonia or isobutan, albeit less impacting in climatic terms, are not free of critical issues. They can in fact be Toxic, flammable or not very performing in hot climates.
To change the cards on the table, the European project takes care of it Supercool (2019-2023), in which the Ljubljana team developed a solid state cooling system. Instead of gases, they are used metal pipes made with special alloyscapable of producing cold in an innovative, silent and sustainable way.
It is a technology designed to last long and to work without compromising the environment or health of people.
Research continues now through E-co-heatan active initiative until 2026, with the aim of industrializing the prototype and bringing it to the market. The team is also depositing a international patentin line with the European strategy that promotes cooling and heating systems compatible with the objectives of Green Deal.
The problem is global. According to theInternational Energy Agency (IEA), The cooling today represents about 10% of the consumption of world electricity. And the data is destined to rise, thanks to the increase in temperatures and the economic growth of tropical and subtropical countries, where the need for air conditioning is increasingly urgent, as stated by Tušek:
Nobody can work at 50 degrees with 90% humidity.
About about them are currently 2 billion of air conditioners in the world. IEA provides that this number will triple by 2050. A growth that, if not accompanied by low environmental impact technologies, could be transformed into a new ecological nightmare.
The heart of the new technology is based on a physical principle as simple as it is revolutionary: the elastocaloric effect. Some materials, when compressed, heat up; And when the pressure is released, they cool each other. All Without state passageswithout liquids and without gas. Among these materials stands out the nitinola league of nickel and titanium Already known in the biomedical field for its biocompatibility, as illustrated by Tušek.
Our prototype has reached an efficiency of 15%. The steam compression systems reach 20-30%, but we have started for less than ten years, against a century of developing traditional technology.
A discovery that could last forever
At the beginning, the largest obstacle was the quick wear of Nitinol threadswhich degraded after just 10,000 cycles – equivalent to only 2 or 3 days of continuous use. But Tušek had a brilliant intuition: Do not iron the threads, but compress them. This made it possible to reduce mechanical stress and drastically increase the duration of the material.
We have exceeded 30 degrees of thermal excursion without degradation. It is the first time that it happens, and it could mean devices that can work for decades without maintenance
The next step is already underway. The Slovenian group is collaborating with Italian and German universities, as well as with an Irish technological company, as part of the project Smacoolwhich aims to make An advanced air conditioner and very low environmental impactas Tušek explains.
With this interdisciplinary approach we go much faster.
The researcher Žiga Ahčin added:
It’s nice to think that one day this technology will be everywhere and that my children will be able to say: my father invented it.
A vision that makes us imagine a world in which cooling will no longer mean pollutingand in which technology will finally be an ally of the earth.
