Project description
Taking the greenhouse gases out of refrigeration
Cooling and refrigeration account for nearly 8 % of global greenhouse gas emissions and 20 % of electricity demand, partially due to the gases they use. While existing refrigerant chemicals (F-gases) are already being phased out in the EU due to their high global-warming potential, alternatives pose serious issues, too. The EU-funded MCD project seeks to offer an alternative with zero-gas magnetic cooling technology. Using alternating magnetic fields and unique magnetocaloric materials sourced from abundant elements, such solid-state cooling neither produces greenhouse emissions nor poses flammability risks. Researchers estimate it could achieve an energy savings of 40 % versus traditional cooling.
Objective
Cooling and refrigeration account for 7.8% of global greenhouse gas emissions and 20% of electricity demand. The standard refrigerant F-gases have a tremendous global warming potential (GWP) and are being phased out in the EU. Available alternative gases are either toxic or explosive, posing serious issues for their applicability.
Magnotherm has developed the first industrially feasible refrigeration unit based on magnetic cooling technology that uses a specific class of material and alternating magnetic fields. This is achieved thanks to a patented process to mass produce highly performant, stable and cheap magnetocaloric materials using abundant, noncritical materials; and to interdisciplinary backgrounds and world-leading research resulting from TU Darmstadt.
Magnetic cooling implements a solid state cooling cycle using no refrigeration gas, with 0 associated GWP, no risk to the environment and no issues of flammability. It is x3 more efficient and achieves 40% electricity savings.
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Funding Scheme
HORIZON-EIC-ACC-BF - HORIZON EIC Accelerator Blended FinanceCoordinator
64297 DARMSTADT
Germany
The organization defined itself as SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) at the time the Grant Agreement was signed.