A novel way to heat and cool things
A new approach to carrying heat around as an electric current
REFRIGERATORS AND air-conditioners are old and clunky technology, and represent a field ripe for disruption. They consume a lot of electricity. And they generally rely on chemicals called hydrofluorocarbons which, if they leak into the atmosphere, have a potent greenhouse-warming effect. Buildings’ central-heating systems, meanwhile, are often powered by methane in the form of natural gas, which releases carbon dioxide, another greenhouse gas, when it is burned, and also has a tendency to leak from the pipes that deliver it—which is unfortunate, because methane, too, is a greenhouse gas, and one much more potent than CO2.
This article appeared in the Science & technology section of the print edition under the headline “Cool thinking”
From the October 9th 2021 edition
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