Heat transfer is a long-established way to heat or cool different objects, systems and locations, from heating a building to refrigerating food.
Materials such as copper and aluminium have traditionally been used, but now a British start-up has developed temperature control technology that it says is around 5,000 times more efficient than these metals.
East Sussex-based firm Flint Engineering has unveiled its “game-changing” IsoMat, which could have applications in a wide range of industries, from construction to refrigeration.
The technology could also be effectively deployed to cool electric vehicle (EV) batteries and even to power homes.
The IsoMat uses the company’s own Flint Isothermal Energy Management System (EMS) to produce a higher-tech variation on traditional metallic heat pipe technology.
The mat itself uses a flat aluminium sheet design, but inside there is a network of sealed, liquid-filled channels.
Temperature differentials cause the liquid to undergo fast cycles of evaporation and condensation, producing a heat transfer effect across the mat’s surface that is close to instantaneous.
Cooling EV batteries could extend range and battery life
One potential use for the technology is as efficient cooling plates for EV batteries.
Tests have shown that such a plate is able to keep all battery cells in a large pack to a temperature of 25°C, with a variation of less than 1°C either way.
The cooling fluid inside the IsoMat absorbs heat as it is generated by the battery cells using a phase change process, which is much more efficient than standard water-cooled plates.
Other tests carried out at Brunel University demonstrated that using IsoMat shelving for commercial refrigeration saved between 8% and 30% in direct energy consumption, as well as achieving more consistent temperatures.
In this use case, items were chilled from direct contact with the IsoMat shelving replacements, rather than the traditional method of circulating cool air across them.
Another potential use is in heating and cooling buildings – as well as producing effective temperature control processes, roof cladding made from IsoMat material could harvest energy from the air that could then be used to power the building.
Flint Engineering CEO Mark Robinson said that the IsoMat “tackles the climate crisis head-on”.
Commercial deployment of the technology is scheduled for later this year, with Flint Engineering actively looking for partners and further industry suggestions.
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