ECO-KÜHL
»Electrocalorics - for environmentally friendly and efficient cooling«
Funding period: 2025 until 2027
Type of project: demonstrator project
Project partners:
The global demand for cooling and air conditioning systems is constantly increasing, and by 2050 it is assumed that more energy will be used for cooling than for heating. Although the compression chillers used today already achieve a thermodynamic efficiency of up to 60 % of the theoretical limit, they require mechanical and noisy compressors as well as refrigerants, some of which are flammable or harmful to the climate.
The Fraunhofer Institute for Physical Measurement Techniques IPM and the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Solid State Physics IAF have been conducting research for years in the field of electrocalorics, which offers the potential to realise low-noise and efficient heat pumps and cooling systems that do not require harmful fluids. Previous research projects have already demonstrated the high energy efficiency of electrocaloric components as well as a high power density using a special system approach patented by Fraunhofer. Following the successful cascading of several electrocaloric segments for an increased temperature range and a prospective system cost assessment that confirmed the fundamental competitiveness of this technology, the ECO-KÜHL project will now build on the previous research and further develop the technology.
The project objectives are the production of electrocaloric polymer components with a SiOx coating at Fraunhofer IPM to optimise heat dissipation and GaN-on-sapphire transistors with a reverse voltage of 1.7 kV at Fraunhofer IAF for a higher operating voltage and thus an increased electrocaloric effect.
Following the successful implementation of the demonstrator project and the achievement of a higher technology readiness level with the support of the Sustainability Performance Centre, follow-up projects with industrial partners from the intended target markets of cooling system manufacturers are being considered. A further development phase of the prototypes can then serve to optimise the marketability of the system and contribute to a safe and energy-efficient future for cooling systems.
