EAGER · Exploring Aurivillius phases for Green Electrocaloric Refrigeration
Horizon 2020 — Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
- Duration
- 2021-10-01 → 2023-09-30
- EU contribution
- €172,932
- Participants
- 1
- Scheme
- MSCA-IF
Lines connect the coordinator with its partners.
Results in brief
Exploring Aurivillius phases for Green Electrocaloric Refrigeration
The EAGER project investigated new electrocaloric materials based on Aurivillius oxides for clean and efficient refrigeration solutions. The topic is very timely given the rapidly growing refrigeration demand, which already takes a large fraction of the global electricity consumption and represents a major source of the current greenhouse emissions since it still relies on vapor compression of harmful gases, mainly hydrofluorocarbons, with a high global warming potential. The project combined unique abilities in calorimetry and caloric measurement methods, preparation of Bi-based Aurivillius oxides in bulk and thin film form and advanced synchrotron-based X-ray absorption spectroscopy. Three scientific sub-goals were outlined towards the overarching goal of developing new lead-free Aurivillius oxides with strong electrocaloric effect (ECE): (1) implementation of a reliable ECE characterization, (2) production of bulk and thin-film Aurivillius materials, and (3) thorough understanding of the microscopic origin of the ECE underlying mechanisms: • Implementation of instrumentation for direct and indirect ECE measurements (WP1) • Synthesis and macroscopic characterization of Aurivillius oxides (WP2) • Advanced microscopic characterization by means of synchrotron-based X-ray spectroscopy (WP3)
Data: CORDIS, © European Union
Project objective
Climate change is one of the main challenges in the world today as addressed in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the European Green Deal. An important contribution to global warming comes from the current cooling technology based on vapour compression of greenhouse gases. Electrocaloric (EC) materials show reversible thermal changes in response to an applied electric field known as the electrocaloric effect (ECE), and are in the spotlight as candidates for future green refrigeration with even a better energy efficiency than vapour compression. Despite the intense research activity in EC materials (mostly focused on lead-containing oxides), ECE effects sufficiently large for applications have only been reported in thin films and the progress in the field is hindered by the reliability of the ECE measurement methods. Besides, the microscopic origin of the ECE remains to be understood in order to enable a rational design of EC materials. The aim of this project is to develop new lead-free Aurivillius oxides with strong ECE by: i) implementing experimental setups for direct (calorimeter) and indirect (polarization analyzer) ECE measurements to allow for a comprehensive analysis; ii) synthesizing Aurivillius oxides with targeted compositions towards EC performance, both in bulk and thin-film forms; and iii) combining the macroscopic characterization of the electric and EC properties with an advanced microscopic characterization using cutting-edge synchrotron-based X-ray spectroscopies. The outcomes of this work will include the determination of the most reliable ECE detection method for bulk and thin films, the finding of novel compounds with enhanced EC properties, and new understanding of the underlying mechanisms by which the materials show the ECE behaviour. All these will contribute to open new directions in the field of EC cooling, ultimately also providing guidance for exploiting the ECE in practical refrigeration devices.
Original text from CORDIS.
Participants
- AGENCIA ESTATAL CONSEJO SUPERIOR DE INVESTIGACIONES CIENTIFICAS · MadridCoordinatorSpain
Links
Data: CORDIS, © European Union