Einstein Refrigerator Invention May Come Back Into Vogue

When Albert Einstein and Leo Szilard teamed up back in the 1930’s, one of their ideas would go on to change the world forever: the atomic bomb. As destructive as that invention was, they might be happy to know that another invention of theirs – an eco-friendly refrigerator that runs without electricity – could have a role in the fight against global warming nearly eighty years later.

From The Guardian:

Modern fridges are notoriously damaging to the environment. They work by compressing and expanding man-made greenhouse gases called freons - far more damaging that carbon dioxide - and are being manufactured in increasing numbers. Sales of fridges around the world are rising as demand increases in developing countries.

Einstein and Szilard’s idea avoids the need for freons. It uses ammonia, butane and water and takes advantage of the fact that liquids boil at lower temperatures when the air pressure around them is lower. ‘If you go to the top of Mount Everest, water boils at a much lower temperature than it does when you’re at sea level and that’s because the pressure is much lower up there,’ said McCulloch.

At one side is the evaporator, a flask that contains butane. ‘If you introduce a new vapour above the butane, the liquid boiling temperature decreases and, as it boils off, it takes energy from the surroundings to do so,’ says McCulloch. ‘That’s what makes it cold.’

McCulloch believes that the Einstein-Szilard refrigerator can be tweaked so that it’s up to four times more efficient. Plus, since the fridge only needs enough energy to heat a pump, solar power can be used.  McCulloch’s version of the fridge is still in prototype mode, but he hopes to have it close to commercial-quality shortly.

Link [The Guardian]

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