IIT Guwahati Researchers Devise Alternative To AC Running Without Electricity

New Delhi: Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati have designed an alternative for an air conditioner (AC), which they claim is not only affordable and efficient but also operates without electricity.

The innovation called ‘Radiative Cooler’ coating material can be applied on the rooftops and functions both during day and night time to provide an alternative to conventional air-conditioners, News18 reported.

Passive radiative cooling systems operate by emitting the heat absorbed from the surrounding in the form of infrared radiations that can pass through the atmosphere before getting dumped into the cold outer space, explained researchers.

Most passive radiative coolers operate only at night. For daytime operation, these coolers need to reflect entire solar radiation as well. Till now, these cooling systems are not able to provide sufficient cooling during the daytime. IIT Guwahati Researchers set out to resolve these issues and bring out an affordable and more efficient radiative cooling system that can operate round the clock.

Fact file:

• The theoretical design of the radiative cooling system has been tested and verified against rigorous computer-based simulations.
• This patterning-free design of radiative cooler is large-area compatible and hence, also less prone to imperfections during the fabrication process, said the IIT.
• It is expected that the cooling power to be obtained after the construction of the cooler is going to closely match the calculations.
• With this innovation, cooler manufacturers can now explore radiative cooling to make electricity-free cooling systems. “The team hopes this will reach the market once the large-scale prototypes are developed and tested for operational stability and durability under different climatic conditions. They are now working towards this,” said the IIT in an official notice.

“The team hopes this will reach the market once the large-scale prototypes are developed and tested for operational stability and durability under different climatic conditions. They are now working towards this,” said the IIT in an official notice.

The innovation has been recently covered in the Current Science Report, which was initially published in the Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics by IOP Publishing, United Kingdom.