HydroCool delivers a fundamentally new refrigeration concept that goes beyond the limitations of today’s CO2 and fluorocarbon-based systems.
The project demonstrates, for the first time, that hydraulic isothermal compression and expansion can be applied to small- and medium-scale cooling systems. This innovation allows direct energy recovery from the expansion process, reducing compressor power needs by 40–60% and doubling energy efficiency compared with the best available vapor-compression systems.
The newly identified liquid piston fluid represents another scientific breakthrough: it maintains liquid stability and low CO2 solubility at pressures up to 80 bar and temperatures down to –40 °C, enabling CO2 use for deep-freezing applications — a long-standing challenge in the field.
HydroCool’s integrated approach also achieves a 53% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and 50% lower lifetime costs, proving that high performance and environmental sustainability can be achieved simultanously.
To reach full market readiness, further steps are needed:
- long-term testing and optimisation of the 17.6 kW pilot (TRL 6–7);
- partnerships with industrial manufacturers for scale-up and certification;
-protection and licensing of the key intellectual property (compressor, expander, and LPF formulation);
- engagement with regulators and standards bodies to formalise testing procedures for hydraulic compression systems;
-and access to investment for demonstration and commercialisation.
Once demonstrated, HydroCool will enable a new generation of cost-effective, safe, and low-carbon refrigeration systems, applicable to food storage, industrial processing, data centres, and building air-conditioning. By doing so, it contributes directly to the EU Green Deal, the Energy Efficiency Directive, and global climate-mitigation goals.
