I-GREEN: Improved Green Refrigeration For A Sustainable Future

Oxford nanoSystems Ltd (OnS) is a high-tech start-up that has developed a unique coating technology to improve the efficiency of heat transfer. OnS was founded in 2012 and has spent the past 5 years developing nanoFLUX; a nano-coating which dramatically improves the efficiency of two-phase heat-exchangers, such as evaporators. OnS focuses on the air conditioning and refrigeration markets, whose primary benchmark is to reduce the evaporator size to save environmentally damaging refrigerants and reduce production costs.

Oxford nanoSystems acknowledges the UK's drive to push the new climate goals as reaffirmed by the Katowice Climate Conference 2018\. To reach those, innovative cutting-edge approaches need to be found, especially in an industry which is historically slow in adopting innovation.

For this project Oxford nanoSystems is tackling one major area of application for its technology: heat exchangers for refrigeration systems. Global demand for cooling is constantly increasing with rising temperatures worldwide, but at the same time more energy efficient and environmentally friendlier solutions are desperately needed. OnS will adapt its coating technology for CO2 as refrigerant in cooling technology. CO2 is much less harmful for the environment than the commonly used fluorinated greenhouse gases, but poses some technological challenges. CO2 is generally considered the only sensible refrigerant for the future, because of its low Global Warming Potential of 1 (some common HFC refrigerants go as high as 11,700 times this). Throughout the whole cooling industry all efforts are made to switch completely to CO2\. OnS has a highly specialised team with many years of experience in cooling technology and is confident to be able to overcome these challenges and provide new solutions.

With this project OnS will expand its product range more quickly, with the goal to set up a world class testing facility dedicated production line. OnS will be able to hire additional staff to make the project a success; meaning creating new world class thermal engineering and chemical science jobs in the UK.