Wearable air con takes passive role in cooling

Beyond cooling, the university claims the device has health care applications such as the ability to monitor blood pressure, electrical activity of the heart and the level of skin hydration. The findings are detailed in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Engineers overcome passive cooling technology challenge

Unlike similar products in use today or other related concepts, this breathable and waterproof device can deliver personal air conditioning to a human body through passive cooling, a process that does not utilise electricity, such as a fan or pump, which researchers believe allows for minimal discomfort to the user.

“Our device can reflect sunlight away from the human body to minimise heat absorption, while simultaneously allowing the body to dissipate body heat, thereby allowing us to achieve around 11^o F of cooling to the human body during the daytime hours,” said corresponding author Zheng Yan, an assistant professor in the College of Engineering. “We believe this is one of the first demonstrations of this capability in the emerging field of on-skin electronics.”