Matt Dillon
The Global Cooling Prize (GCP), a worldwide competition to spur the development of radically more energy-efficient cooling technology, has released its Detailed Technical Application.
“We’re very excited to announce that we’ve released the Detailed Technical Application,” say staffers from the Global Cooling Prize. “In this stage of the Prize, applicants must submit comprehensive information about their technology including a detailed schematic, design calculations, and technical drawings showcasing that their technology achieves the prize criteria.”
The in-depth application is due August 31.
The brainchild of a global coalition that includes the Rocky Mountain Institute, AIRAH and ASHRAE, the Global Cooling Prize is worth US$1 million to the ultimate winner to support commercialisation and scaling of technology.
The Prize’s goal is to incentivise development of a residential cooling solution that will have at least five times less climate impact than today’s standard RAC units.
This technology could prevent up to 100 gigatonnes of CO2e emissions by 2050, and help mitigate up to 0.5°C of global warming by 2100, while enhancing living standards for people in developing countries around the globe.
The Rocky Mountain Institute estimates that 3.3 billion room AC units will be installed in the world between now and 2050. Many of those will be in developing countries such as India, China, Brazil and Indonesia.
The winning solution will need to operate within predefined constraints on materials, water consumption, full-load power consumption, and maintenance requirements. It will also need to be affordable to typical consumers, costing no more than twice the retail price of today’s standard units at assessed industrial scale (resulting in a payback period of three to four years).
The Global Cooling Prize’s stated mission is to provide cooling for all, without warming the planet.
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