Recycle wasted heat energy for cooling system

Oregon State University researchers try to utilize waste heat either from industries, power plants or heat from car exhaust to run a cooling system or a power. A prototype thermally activated cooling system is an effort to recycle wasted energy that could be used again.

According to the researchers, about 80 percent of the wasted heat could be turned into a kilowatt of cooling capability in which the cooling system could also serve electronic system ventilation which also requires energy-intensive air conditioning to stay cool. Researchers convert heat into power and cooling by combining organic Rankine cycle with a vapor compression cooling cycle.

The research that received support from the Department of Defense will be very useful in a place that requires a cooling system but they also generate waste heat. The prototype technology could also be used to generate electricity for hybrid cars even though only about 20 percent of the wasted heat.