CHENNAI: IIT Madras is all set to take the West head-on in technical know-how. The West had so far monopolized the hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs)-free air-conditioning and refrigeration systems. HFCs are potent greenhouse gases with a very high global warming potential (GWP). They form 90 per cent of total fluorinated gases (F-gases) that can stay in the atmosphere for centuries and contribute to global greenhouse effect.
Under the leadership of Prof Ashok Jhunjhunwala, co-chairman and faculty-in-charge of IIT Madras Incubation Cell, IIT Madras has developed the “Green Building Cooling System” technology, which will regulate the entire air-conditioning system without harmful HFC chemicals. The technique will also reduce power bills by at least 30 per cent.
Piyush Goyal, Minister of State with independent charge for Power, Coal, New and Renewable Energy and Mines, hailed the technology as “game changer” and said it had the potential to put India on the world map in technical knowhow. After COP21 in Paris, the whole world is focusing on HFC-free cooling systems.
“My grouse is the West develops technologies and new solutions, but it tries to profit from the innovations for protecting the environment. Why should HFC-free air conditioning technology be in the hands of two American private firms who charge heavily and make air-conditioning twice or thrice as expensive. Now, IIT Madras developed technology will show how HFC-free cooling can be achieved not at the cost that the West is trying to sell to the world, but at almost negligible cost compared to the conventional cooling systems,” the minister said.
What the IIT-M technology does is at night, when India is significantly power surplus. Water is cooled to 6-7 degrees C and stored in thermal cold storage tank. It is then used throughout the day using the calibrated technology. The cool water is used to air-condition the different areas to the required temperature using different sensors. No electricity is used in the day time during the peak hours when power is expensive and scarce.
Ankit Poddar, CEO of Swadha Energies, which is a one-year-old IIT Madras incubated company and slated to commercialize this revolutionary cooling system, told the Express that instead of HFC chemicals, cool water is used in the air-conditioning systems.
Dinesh Natarajan, technical officer, Swadha Energies said the innovation in green building cooling system solves two major problems. First, the issue of unbalanced air distribution is solved by making every portion of the room get equal amount of cooling using variable air volume (VAV) sensors fitted in every zone. This helps save energy in air distribution, thereby balancing the air flow by setting the desired temperature.