The cooling sector accounts for 10% of today’s global greenhouse gas emissions. With the current climate crisis, the demand for air conditioners and refrigerators is destined to increase, creating a vicious cycle. It is estimated that roughly 9 gigatons of CO2 equivalent will be emitted by the cooling sector if this does not undergo any significant changes. Some of the traditional refrigerants have also been linked with ozone-depletion, which intensifies the strength of UV light, and is harmful for life on this planet. It is pivotal to phase out these substances as quickly as possible.
At MAGNOTHERM we work towards the future of sustainable cooling, and together with the European Commission we want to develop green, non-explosive and reliable cooling devices.
Our project, MCD, focuses on the conception, development, and commercialization of Magnetocaloric Devices, which rely on permanent magnets, special magnetic materials, and water as a cooling fluid. Our devices eliminate the dependance on high-GWP gases such as R-134a, as well as unsafe and explosive gases like butane.
The materials that we use in our devices have a special thermodynamic property: they heat up when exposed to a magnetic field (they are subject to the magnetocaloric effect), and cool down once the field is removed. We can utilize this effect by magnetizing the material, removing the heat through water and a heat exchanger, then removing the magnet, to generate lower temperatures. By amplifying and repeating this effect using active magnet regenerators (AMRs), which are 3D-printed parts where the fluids are channeled, we can reach the ideal temperatures to preserve food and drinks, and potentially generate enough cooling power to be viable in the hydrogen liquefaction chain.
MAGNOTHERM intends to compete in the commercial refrigeration sector, proposing a plug-in display cabinet for the grocery stores and the beverage sector: we have collected some positive interest from market leaders and have partnered in a few pilot projects in the past year.
