Carbon coolers

Hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) refrigerants used in fridges and air conditioning units could soon be replaced with more environmentally benign CO

combined with various sorbents.

The technology to achieve this is being developed by UK refrigerant specialist,

(TESL), which has raised £300,000 from a consortium of investors including

, the

and

.

TESL director John Poole and technical director Dick Powell said their concept uses commercially available components, which eliminates the need to retool production facilities with expensive new equipment.

'By using known materials and components that are already proven, we avoid safety problems that would be associated with new compounds,' said Powell.

He added that the successful use of CO

as a replacement for HFC rests on achieving pressure levels that can accommodate CO

.

'Carbon dioxide can be as high as 150 bar, whereas a typical hydroflurocarbon ranges from 15 to 30 bar,' he said. 'Existing refrigeration equipment is rated at 30 bar.'

Powell and Poole have developed a method to reduce the pressure level equal to that used by HFCs using unnamed sorbents to absorb the CO