A solar heater sounds in sync with its name and function but when I pen the words “solar ice-maker,” it sounds a bit unrealistic. Goes against the general notion that the sun’s power would melt ice, not freeze water. However, a team of engineering students from San Jose State University have solved this unsolvable perception and designed an ice-maker that doesn’t a leave carbon footprint at all. A must-have for those parts of the globe where electricity is an unaffordable luxury or beyond reach. Unlike the usual ice-making machines that juice the compressor with electricity, this solar-powered ice-maker uses a refrigerant liquid that evaporates when exposed to the sun. This vapor then moves through pipes that come into contact an absorbent material, which cools when the sun goes down. Once the slow-cooling absorbent hits 104°F, the refrigerant turns back into a liquid and its temperature drops like a rock to below freezing because of pressure differences. Hence when you put some water next to the evaporator’s exterior, you get ice! A prototype is under construction at SJSU that can stir up about 14 pounds of ice per day. With such grid-free ice-making options, you can obliviously demand a few cubes to chill your drink in any corner of the world. But to make your drink available at such places is beyond the sun’s reach too! Via Dvice
