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ANI |
Update: April 18, 2019 18:52 IST
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Washington DC. [USA], April 18 (ANI): In a recent study, researchers have found an environmentally friendly material that could replace traditional coolants used in most refrigerators and air conditioners.
The research was published in Nature Communications.
When they are pressurized, "neopentyl glycol" plastic crystals produce huge cooling effects, enough to be competitive compared to conventional coolants. In addition, the material is inexpensive, widely available and operates near ambient temperature.
The gases currently used in the vast majority of refrigerators and air conditioners – hydrofluorocarbons and hydrocarbons (HFCs and HCs) – are toxic and flammable. When they flee in the air, they also contribute to global warming.
"HFC and HC refrigerators and air conditioners are also relatively ineffective, which is important because refrigeration and air conditioning currently consume one-fifth of the world's energy and cooling demand is only a factor." Increase, "said Dr. Xavier Moya, researcher.
To solve these problems, materials scientists around the world have been looking for solid replacement refrigerants.
In this study, researchers described the enormous thermal changes under pressure obtained with plastic crystals.
Conventional cooling technologies rely on the thermal changes that occur when a compressed fluid expands. Most cooling devices work by compressing and expanding fluids such as HFCs and HCs. As the fluid expands, it decreases in temperature and cools the environment.
With solids, cooling is achieved by modifying the microscopic structure of the material. This change can be achieved by applying a magnetic field, an electric field or through a mechanical force.
For decades, these caloric effects have lagged behind the thermal changes available in fluids, but the discovery of colossal barcaloric effects in a plastic crystal of neopentyl glycol (NPG) and other related organic compounds leveled the playing field.
Due to the nature of their chemical bonds, organic materials are easier to compress and NPG is widely used in the synthesis of paints, polyesters, plasticizers and lubricants. This is not only widely available, but is also inexpensive.
NPG molecules, composed of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen, are almost spherical and interact only weakly. These loose bonds in its microscopic structure allow the molecules to rotate relatively freely.
The term "plastic" in "plastic crystals" does not refer to its chemical composition, but to its malleability. Plastic crystals are at the boundary between solids and liquids.
NPG compression causes thermal changes of unprecedented magnitude due to molecular reconfiguration. The temperature change obtained is comparable to that commercially exploited in HFCs and HCs.
The discovery of colossal barcaloric effects in a plastic crystal should bring barcaloric materials to the forefront of research and development in order to achieve safe and environmentally friendly cooling without compromising the performance. (ANI)
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