The Aqua Clay Atmosphere Cooler reduces the temperature of air surrounding outside units of ACs, thereby reducing the heat released and increasing the efficiency of the air conditioner
Antara Patel and Prisha Patel, students of the Jamnabai Narsee School, with their invention (left). They participated in the competition through an online platform with judges based in Canada.w
Two girls from Mumbai's Jamnabai Narsee School have won the World Robot Olympiad, WRO 2020, Canada, for their innovation that helps reduce the temperature of air surrounding outside units of ACs, thereby reducing the heat released. The duo used traditional Indian methods of cooling using clay for this. This year's WRO theme was around solutions to climate-related problems.
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Antara Patel, 11 and Prisha Patel, 12, formed Team Technonerds as they participated in the competition and developed a system that they named Aqua Clay Atmosphere Cooler or AC square. It's a natural filtering screen made using clay cones arranged in an aluminium frame. The cones are kept moist with recycled water. As the hot air passes through these moist clay cones, it significantly cools down.
The Aqua Clay Atmosphere Cooler can be attached to outside units
Solution to help environment
Looking for a solution that can help the environment, they decided to check all appliances that people use to see if they could improve their efficiency and reduce electricity consumption. As one of the most energy consuming appliances, air conditioners seemed a natural choice. "While passing an outside unit of an AC, we felt that it significantly heated the surroundings. That got us thinking. We all have seen this old practice in villages where mud is used to keep temperature low. We decided to work on this premise and took guidance from few experts in the sector to develop our model. The AC square helps reduce the outside temperature by 7-10 degrees. As this increases the efficiency of the AC, it does not affect the cooling inside," said Antara, a Std VI student who, along with Prisha, a Std VII student, developed a working model of this innovation in a span of six months. One such unit is already installed at Prisha's home for the outer unit of the AC.
Also Read: Mumbai: 'Parents and schools are on same side, side of students', say educators
'Thinking of manufacturers'
Combining sound physics principles, with low tech materials and high-tech methods the girls started the work. They used the concepts of Boyle's Law and Venturi Effect to select the shape and size of the cones. They developed an app with MIT App Inventor, using which one can get information on all the testing parameters directly on the phone. The app gives data which allows the user to set the correct temperature for optimum cooling and energy efficiency. "We are now also working on creating modified versions of similar techniques for other electronic appliances. While the aim is to create more awareness regarding using such alternative methods to reduce the impact on climate, we are also looking at sharing this innovation with manufacturers in future," said Prisha.
More than 75 countries participated in WRO 2020, Canada. At least 15 Indian teams participated in various categories. Technonerds was one of 20 teams selected in the category and age group.
75
No. countries that participated in the competition
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