Direct Air Capture CO2 Refrigerant for Low-GWP Automotive Cooling

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current refrigerants like HFO-1234yf have significant carbon footprints and toxic manufacturing processes, while sourcing carbon dioxide for use as a refrigerant can also create substantial carbon footprints, limiting their global warming reduction potential.

Innovation Solution

A direct air capture system that uses a multi-stage reactor with a base medium and catalysts to extract and process carbon dioxide from air, which is then used as a low global warming refrigerant in automotive, commercial, and industrial applications, offering a scalable and sustainable cooling solution.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Object-affected harmful factors

If conventional refrigerants like HFO-1234yf are used, then refrigeration performance is achieved, but significant carbon footprints and toxic manufacturing processes occur

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveglobal warming potentialVSAvoidmanufacturing complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Object-affected harmful factorsVSEase of manufacture

Solution Approach 1:

The patent changes the chemical composition parameter from conventional fluorinated refrigerants to carbon dioxide, fundamentally altering the refrigerant's global warming potential from high to minimal (GWP=1), while accepting the trade-off of requiring specialized system design for CO2's high-pressure operation

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

Solution Approach 2:

The patent converts the previously harmful excess carbon dioxide emissions into a beneficial refrigerant resource, transforming a greenhouse gas problem into a sustainable cooling solution that leverages CO2's favorable thermodynamic properties for efficient refrigeration

Inventive Principle:

Principle #22Blessing in disguise (Convert harm into benefit)

2Object-affected harmful factors

If carbon dioxide is sourced from conventional sources for use as refrigerant, then refrigeration performance is improved, but substantial carbon footprints are created

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveglobal warming potentialVSAvoidcarbon footprint

Core Design Contradiction:

Object-affected harmful factorsVSLoss of substance

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements preliminary carbon capture from air or industrial streams before the CO2 is utilized as refrigerant, pre-processing the carbon dioxide to remove impurities and concentrate it into a usable form, thereby enabling its beneficial reuse while minimizing associated carbon footprints

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent recovers carbon dioxide that would otherwise be discarded or emitted as waste from industrial processes or direct air, converting it from a waste product into a valuable refrigerant resource, thereby reducing both carbon footprint and waste management costs

Inventive Principle:

Principle #34Discarding and recovering

3Loss of substance

If direct air capture system is used to obtain carbon dioxide, then carbon footprint is reduced, but system complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecarbon footprintVSAvoidsystem complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of substanceVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the direct air capture system into distinct functional modules including adsorption beds for CO2 capture, regeneration units for releasing concentrated CO2, and integration points for refrigerant distribution, allowing each component to be optimized independently and simplifying overall system implementation

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent designs the direct air capture system to serve multiple functions: capturing CO2 from air or industrial streams, concentrating and purifying the CO2, and directly integrating it into the refrigeration cycle, thereby reducing the need for separate processing systems and overall complexity

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Applied Scientific Principles

This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.

Function Achieved in This Case

The system provides a natural, non-toxic, and efficient cooling option with a global warming potential of one, reducing carbon footprints and operational costs compared to traditional refrigerants, while ensuring sustainable and efficient coolant performance.

Implementation Method 1

Air is brought into contact with the base medium to generate a base medium having a concentration of carbon dioxide

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectAbsorption: Absorption (physical)

Implementation Method 2

The base medium having a concentration of carbon dioxide is heated to generate carbon dioxide

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectDesorption: Desorption

Data Source

PatentUS11906227B2Using carbon dioxide from a direct air capture system as a low global warming car and industrial refrigerant

Publication Date: 2024.02.20 AIRMYNE INC

AI summary

An apparatus includes a captured carbon dioxide input. The captured carbon dioxide input is coupled to receive captured carbon dioxide from a direct air capture system. The apparatus uses the captured carbon dioxide as a low global warming refrigerant to provide cooling functionality in automotive, commercial, and industrial applications, or other operations involving low global warming refrigerants. In various embodiments, the apparatus is a refrigeration apparatus or a heat pump apparatus. Low global warming carbon dioxide refrigerant is natural, non-toxic, non-flammable, and abundant when obtained from a direct air capture system. Moreover, carbon dioxide refrigerant has a high heat transfer coefficient and has a global warming potential (GWP) of one. Carbon dioxide refrigerant is a more sustainable and efficient coolant option than common refrigerants, such as R22, R152, R404a, and R1234yf refrigerants.