Nanoparticles can make home refrigeration more accessible for low-income households

Power consumption of a home refrigerator can be cut by 29% while improving cooling capacity. Researchers replaced widely used but environmentally unfriendly R134a refrigerant with the more energy-efficient R600a dosed with multi-walled carbon nanotube nanoparticles (MWCNT). This drop-in refrigerant replacement can be deployed in the field by trained technicians, says an engineer from the University of Johannesburg.