MNN.com/Christian Cotroneo: These students came up with an ingenious way to keep buildings cool

MNN.com                                                            
Tech > Research & Innovations
These students came up with an ingenious way to keep buildings cool
No electricity. No moving parts.
Christian Cotroneo
Christian Cotroneo
June 27, 2019, 8:22 a.m.

Tweet

5
Students working on Phalanx insulation in a workshop. The student team took a page from mother nature to develop this sun-thwarting insulation. (Photo: Phalanx)

From Mount Everest's slushy summit to the fading ice fields of Greenland, the dial on the global furnace ticks ever upward.

And so, too, the air-conditioning dial.

Climate may change, but old habits, they die hard. No one wants to sweat out a heat wave. And, indeed, air conditioning can save lives — even as it also takes the long way around to taking lives.

All those AC units chugging away in homes and offices work tirelessly to stave off heat. At the same time, the emissions and particulate matter they dump into the atmosphere makes our lot even worse.

It's a dilemma scientists have been grappling with for decades: How do we keep our living spaces, well, livable, without adding to the planetary problem that is global warming?

And yet, termites seemed to have worked it all out ages ago. The cathedral-like mounds they build — often as tall as eight feet — may function much as giant lungs, cooling and heating the small inner chamber where the insects actually dwell.

Wildflowers surround a termite mound in Australia.
Termite mounds like this one in Australia were just one element of inspiration for the student inventors. (Photo: Martin Horsky/Shutterstock)

It's the kind of setup that has weathered all kinds of weather extremities over the millennia. And the kind that's inspiring student engineers to emulate.

Taking a page from the termite construction manual, a team from the Industrial Design program at California State University, Long Beach has developed an insulation that could revolutionize how homes and offices are cooled.

They've dubbed the material, which is still in early testing, Phalanx.

"The idea for Phalanx started out with us discovering that the cooling and heating of buildings contributed the largest amount of CO2 emissions to the atmosphere," team member Albert Gonzalez explained to MNN via email. "Our goal was to find a passive way to cool buildings and limit the use of HVAC units. We began by looking at the eons of research and development done by mother nature."

They came up with a system of panels that could be attached to existing structures, particularly in places where the sun bears down most.

Those insulating sheets comprise three layers, each taking its cue from the natural world. While termite engineering inspires the middle layer, the first looks to the cactus — a plant renowned for its ability to stare down the sun. Wavy, waxy patterns on that layer, much like cactus flesh, dissipate and reflect heat.

A sheet of Phalanx insulation
The insulation comprises three layers, each inspired by the natural world. (Photo: Phalanx)

The final outer layer channels the sun-coping strategies of camels and even wheat. It gathers cooling dew from the air or draws up gray water from a trough installed beneath.

It all adds up to a passive cooling system that the student engineers maintain can dramatically dial down our reliance on air conditioning.

What's more, it draws no electricity, there are no moving parts, and — unlike other promising new materials like super-strong sun-cloaking wood — it can be attached relatively easily to existing structures.

A diagram showing hosPhalanx insulation works.
The system doesn't use electricity and can pull morning dew out of the atmosphere. (Photo: Phalanx)

The first test for Phalanx, however, didn't go quite the way the team had hoped.

They were vying for this month's Ray of Hope Prize — an annual award given to innovations that tackle real-world problems by drawing inspiration from the natural world. That prize was awarded earlier this month to startup company Watchtower Robotics for its use of robots to find and patch leaky city pipes, an innovation that could save an estimated 20 percent of the clean, freshwater that's lost to the world.

Not being among last week's finalists may make the road for Phalanx a little more arduous — winning concepts certainly benefit from having the prestigious prize under their wings — but for this team it's hardly a dead end.

They're looking to raise enough funds to help move Phalanx into a second phase of testing.

"During our alpha testing, we saw very promising results," Gonzalez noted. "There was a 30 degree Fahrenheit difference between our Phalanx setup and our control. Now, we want to apply Phalanx to a small building and test a variety of materials for the first and second layer to see which yields the best results."

As students, they have time on their side to hone their ideas. But their most important ally in developing Phalanx may be an ever-warming planet that's in dire need of fresh ideas, if it's ever going to breathe easy again.

Related on MNN:
woman in front of air conditioning unit
Yes, air conditioning is a basic necessity
Related topics: Climate Change, Environmental Science, Research & Innovation
Read this next
Here's what happens when you hold back gas
Here's what happens when you hold back gas
I like stacking rocks, but here's why I stopped
I like stacking rocks, but here's why I stopped
This newly identified critter eats rocks and secretes them as sand
This newly identified critter eats rocks and secretes them as sand
Community rallies to reunite man and dog
Community rallies to reunite man and dog
The moment this street dog recognizes his long-lost owner is pure joy
The moment this street dog recognizes his long-lost owner is pure joy
What would Earth look like if all the ice melted?
What would Earth look like if all the ice melted?
These baby squirrels were found in a hopeless tangle of tails
These baby squirrels were found in a hopeless tangle of tails
A mysterious seismic wave washed over the planet, and now we think we know what it was
A mysterious seismic wave washed over the planet, and now we think we know what it was
Recommended by
Trending on MNN

    1
    Seniors don hardhats after signing letters of employment with a local Virginia business.
    'Signing Day' recognizes high school seniors starting jobs, not college

    2
    Students working on Phalanx insulation in a workshop.
    These students came up with an ingenious way to keep buildings cool

    3
    Nelson Mandela shown in May 2006 in London.
    8 great heroes of human rights

    4
    Bare feet on a rocky trail.
    Why not wearing shoes does a body good

    5
    Though the octopus is a famous ocean resident, surprisingly little is actually known about most species.
    7 clever behaviors of octopuses

    6
    NASA's Terra satellite captures a view of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in May 2010
    Why is a spill that started in 2004 still leaking oil in the Gulf of Mexico?

Summer Gardening

    Caterpillar crawls along a tomato
    How to tell what's eating your garden plants

    There are plenty of potential culprits, and there are just as many ways to stop them.
    young peas growing in the garden
    Top 10 vegetables to grow in your garden

    These nutritional powerhouses can flourish in your yard or in containers.
    sunflowers
    Grow birdseed, don't buy it

    Here are 10 flowering plants that look gorgeous and reward you with seeds.
    Ruined church
    10 secret gardens in the middle of major cities

    These hidden gardens are peaceful oases in the middle of the urban hustle and bustle.
    shade patterns cast by trees in a garden
    How to make a sun map of your garden

    There are many ways to map an area's sunlight exposure. Here are a few tips to make sure your pla...
    withered daisy flowers
    How to fight the heat

    Plant selection and design in addition to proper watering can help reduce stress on plants.
    Shade can offer refuge for people, pets and wildlife in summer.
    9 ideas for creating shade

    When the sun gets overbearing — and it will — you have options.

Join our newsletter list
Want to know more?
Quick Links
MNN Tools
Connect
Channels

    About Us
    Advisory Board
    Editors' Blog
    Press
    Privacy
    Terms of Service

    Blogs
    Eco-glossary
    Infographics
    Lists
    Photos
    Videos

    Contact Us
    Newsletters
    RSS

    Earth Matters
    Health
    Lifestyle
    Tech
    Money
    Food & Drink
    Home
    Family

Facebook
Twitter
Pinterest
MNN Flipboard Flipboard
Instagram
LinkedIn
Copyright © 2019 NARRATIVE CONTENT GROUP. All rights reserved.