Italian scientists have presented an alternative to air conditioning for cooling indoor air. This was reported by Science Advance with reference to a study by scientists from the Polytechnic University of Turin and the National Institute of Metrological Research INRiM.
Cooling and space heating are most often used with the help of air conditioning technologies, which require a huge amount of energy. Such systems typically use refrigerants that are extremely detrimental to the environment.
A new device from a research team from the Polytechnic University of Turin (SMaLL) and the National Institute of Metrological Research (INRiM) can cool indoor air without using electricity. The new system is based on the mechanism of evaporation of the liquid, but instead of refrigerants, scientists suggest using plain water and sodium chloride. The environmental impact of the new device is reduced because it is based on passive phenomena such as capillarity or evaporation, and not on the operation of pumps and compressors that require energy and maintenance.
In the device, a constant stream of water vapor passes from one end of the membrane to the other. As a result, clean water with salt cools and gradually cools the surrounding area. However, the study does not say how scientists intend to cool the water vapor itself. In addition, scientists note that so far the new device does not give a very strong effect, since the area of air cooling is quite small, but in the future they plan to increase the efficiency of this system.
However, already now, room temperature reduction can be achieved by sending ice water with salt to the batteries installed in the apartments. Sending this water does not require a special pump, since it will occur with the help of water vapor.
