Area C - Strategic research
Area C includes Vision & Strategy, Sustainability and Advanced Technologies, which concentrate on strategic research aimed at enhancing sustainability and technological capabilities at both the component and system levels. The strategic projects play a critical role in realising the long-term objectives of the participating organisations such as reducing their carbon footprint, increasing energy efficiency, and minimising waste.
The strategic projects support each of the single fields by providing top-level research on dedicated special topics. Additionally, for low power cooling demands, as required in highly insulated systems, alternative cooling technologies are assessed and further developed. With the prevalence of electronically controlled variable speed compressors in households, the use of electronic sensors and actuators will enter the refrigeration system. This trend enables the introduction of completely new circuit architectures and the expansion into new areas such as washing machines, dishwashers, small water heaters. Accompanying, sustainability considerations are made at all stages of the project.
The COMET project ECHODA should enable a significant step forward in small refrigeration/heat pump technology, both economically as well as ecologically and should enable the substitution of billions of electric heaters with heat pumps, resulting in significant energy savings. With scientific and industrial partners from Austria and the EU, the project strengthens and further expands Austria's and Europe’s role in the field of refrigeration and heat pump research & development in a global context. The goal is to maintain the core industry in Austria and in its neighbor states and compete against international competition and the associated cost pressure. By collaborating with various actors along the value chain, synergies are to be leveraged to successfully implement the project and achieve a positive impact on the economy and the environment.
