Albert Einstein continues to revolutionize; this time in a very green way. Not only is Einstein known for his math genius and the theory of relativity, he collaborated with a former student nearly seventy years ago in designing an environmentally friendly refrigerator that has no moving parts and does not run on electricity.
Ahead of their time, Einstein and Leo Sziland’s invention was left behind as newer more efficient refrigerator designs emerged. In deciding the efficiency of refrigerators, the environment was not the concern in the 1930s as it is today.
Thanks to an electrical engineer at Oxford, Malcolm McCulloch is reaching back in time to bring Einstein’s discarded refrigerator design into a future that might make good use of it. How does Einstein’s refrigerator differ in design from the refrigerators we use today, and what makes his design so green by comparison?
According to McCulloch, modern refrigerators use freons, which contribute to the nasty greenhouse gases in our atmosphere. Einstein’s design uses pressurized gas for cooling the refrigerator. McCulloch’s team of engineers are working on a design method of using solar energy to heat the pressurized gases that, in turn, will cool the refrigerator.
“It’s very much a prototype; this is nowhere near commercialized. Give us another month and we’ll have it working,” states McCulloch.
Chief scientist at Greenpeace UK Doug Parr explains why this refrigerator design offers a green solution on a global scale, “If you look at developing countries, if they’re aspiring to the lifestyles that we lead, they’re going to require more cooling – whether that’s air conditioning, food cooling or freezing. Putting in place the technologies that are both low greenhouse-gas refrigerants and low energy use is critical.”
McCulloch’s team are not the only ones working to develop an environmentally friendly refrigerator.
For more information, read Einstein’s green refrigerator may be poised for a comeback at Discovery Magazine blogs.