International News degrees , so that the process can also be used as a heat pump ,” explained Felix Welsch who also worked on the prototype system as part of his doctorate .
Depending on the alloy used , the heating or cooling power of this new technology is up to thirty times greater than the mechanical power required to load and unload the alloy wire bundles . That makes the new system significantly better than currently available heat pumps and conventional refrigerators .
The cooling system is the result of many years of research in different projects , numerous award-winning doctoral theses and close collaboration with the group led by Professor Andreas Schütze of Saarland University . Funding was provided in part by the German Research Foundation ( DFG ) through its priority programme ‘ Ferroic Cooling ’.
Through a combination of experimental studies and numerical modelling , the researchers were able to optimise the underlying mechanisms and were able to determine how many nitinol wires need to be included in a bundle or what wire loading level was needed to achieve a specific degree of cooling . Building on these results , the research team is now able to customise the system . They have developed a software package that allows them to simulate , plan and fine tune cooling systems for specific applications .
The Saarbrücken team is currently working on multiple projects aimed at further optimising the heat transfer process and thus boosting the efficiency of the new technology even further . The objective is to get to a stage where practically all of the energy from the phase transition is being used for heating or cooling .
The researchers in Seelecke ’ s team are currently working on developing their elastocaloric technology for use as a cooling system in electric vehicles . Since January 2022 the team has been working with academic and industrial partners in the government-financed collaborative project NEKKA that aims to develop a novel elastomeric cooling system .
Saarland University
The first ever machine that cools air using ‘ muscles ’ made of nickel-titanium . Felix Welsch and Susanne Marie Kirsch helped to develop the cooling system as part of their doctoral research projects . The new type of energy efficient , ecologically sustainable cooling technology that does not require the use of climatedamaging refrigerants is currently being developed by Professor Stefan Seelecke and his team at Saarland University .
The project will receive a total of EUR 6-million in funding , of which around EUR 1-million will be provided to the Saarbrücken team for their electric car cooling project . “ Our aim is to develop , mathematically model and validate an alternative air-con system that can be used in all vehicle classes . The system will be able to provide vehicle heating and cooling while also being more efficient , more environmentally friendly and more sustainable than other previously available systems . Our technology will also be compacter , lighter and more costeffective ”, explained Paul Motzki , a research engineer and managing director in Seelecke ’ s team .
To develop this and other smart material systems for commercial and industrial applications , researchers at the Intelligent Material Systems Lab have founded the spin-off company Mateligent GmbH . RACA
www . refrigerationandaircon . co . za RACA Journal I October 2022 11