Barocal can cool your food and drink by squeezing a hunk of plastic crystals
Barocal, a startup founded by University of Cambridge professor Xavier Moya, has developed a new cooling technology using plastic crystals that release and absorb heat when compressed or relaxed. The method avoids harmful refrigerant gases and could significantly reduce energy use compared to traditional vapor compression systems. Barocal has raised $10 million in seed funding to advance the technology toward commercialization.
- ▪Barocal's cooling technology uses solid plastic crystals that transfer heat when mechanically stressed.
- ▪The startup's approach eliminates the risk of leaking greenhouse gases common in conventional refrigeration.
- ▪Barocal has secured $10 million in seed funding from investors including World Fund and Breakthrough Energy Discovery.
- ▪The technology is currently being targeted at large HVAC and commercial refrigeration systems for maximum efficiency impact.
- ▪Xavier Moya, Barocal's founder, based the innovation on his materials physics research at the University of Cambridge.
Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
Refrigerators today run on the same basic technology as they did more than 100 years ago. You’d think we could have come up with something better by now. And we have, but nothing has been able to dethrone cheap, reliable vapor compression — the process that’s keeping your milk cold today. One startup hopes to change that. Barocal has developed an entirely new way of heating and cooling using nothing but an inexpensive solid material. Early prototypes are already as effective as existing refrigerator compressors, and the technology promises to use significantly less energy. Oh, and there’s no risk of leaking climate-warming gases, something that has plagued vapor compression.
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