Introduction

NanoAir is a breakthrough 21st century air treatment process using nanotechnology to eliminate the use of CFC/HCFC refrigerants associated with the heating, ventilating, air-conditioning and refrigeration industries. NanoAir does not use traditional fluorocarbon producing refrigerants completely eliminating CFC/HFC concerns.

NanoAir reduces energy consumption and the associated carbon footprint by greater than 50%, while reducing harmful CO 2 emissions by over 57%. It provides these unparalleled savings (and comfort) by uniquely separating the management of the moisture content in air from the temperature of the air. This energy-less ‘separation’ is a foundation of NanoAir’s value proposition finding the system projected to have Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratings (SEER) greater than 30, and Energy Efficiency Ratings (EER) in the mid-twenties.

NanoAir offers simplicity in its parts, system architecture and operation with similar or lower projected costs for installation and start-up. The system uses internal components that are made from Dais nanomaterials, a number of commercially available HVAC parts and a potable water connection. For the most part, existing industry installation techniques are used. The result is a family of eco-sensitive heating and cooling, dehumidification, refrigeration and refrigerated transport products.

NanoAir is a proven answer to validated substantially lower CO 2 gas emissions, lower energy consumption and improved indoor air quality. NanoAir is proven by the functionality of the membrane used in the existing commercial product, ConsERV. NanoAir and ConsERV together begins the full HVAC industry shift to using nanotechnology materials with all the attending benefits.

Revolutionizing the Industry

In 2007, the air conditioning industry sold $189 billion worth of small- and medium-size equipment worldwide, and it all operates according to the same principles Willis Carrier patented in 1906.

Current HVAC systems require an expensive artificial refrigerant with a Global Warming Potential between 1300 and 1900 times that of CO 2 when released. Sixty-five percent (65%) of the world’s production of CFC/HCFCs comes from the heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration sector (HVAC/R) the largest source of ozone-depleting fluorocarbons.

Attempts to reduce these chemicals have been challenging. The intended solution for CFCs were to replace them with CFCs and those turned out to have an even higher impact on global warming. Stephen Yurek President of the Air Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) addressed the use of fluorocarbons at an HVAC/R industry meeting at the United Nations Environment Program conference in Milan. He said, “We must ensure the use of HFCs is phased down” which he acknowledged is not an easy task.

The successful implementation of NanoAir can reduce these emissions to zero.

How NanoAir Works

NanoAir shows it can reduce energy consumption greater than 50%. This is mostly achieved by creating separate controls for temperature and humidity.

The current industry standard is air passes over tubes of cold refrigerant and it cools down until it can no longer hold the humidity content of the air. The moisture drops out of the air onto the coil like dew forming on a cold morning. The refrigerant carries the heat that it absorbed out of the building to the compressor, which pressurizes the refrigerant until it transfers its heat to the outside air and can then return inside as a cold liquid.

As modern buildings and appliances have become more energy efficient, the amount of heat needing to be removed is reduced. As a result, the thermostat shuts off the system before there is an opportunity to remove all of the humidity and the result is cold, clammy air that fosters mold growth and other respiratory problems.

The national public health impact of building-related asthma alone was estimated at $3.5 billion by the EPA in 2007.

NanoAir technology separately controls humidity and temperature with a system that eliminates traditional refrigerants in favor of water. This is possible because of the special attributes of the Dais nanotechnology materials (commercialized and in use today). The materials allow NanoAir to “vacuum” moisture directly from the air, or from liquid water.

This can be seen in the NanoAir dehumidifier, where warm, humid air from the building enters and the moisture is pulled into a vacuum inside the tubes treated with the nanotechnology material. The air exits at the same temperature, but with an ideal amount of moisture. Removing humidity through the membrane means there is no drainage system needed and therefore little/no risk of mold growing or water overflowing in a drain pan.

The air then enters a metal chilled water coil, where it cools to the proper temperature before circulating into the building. By doing this in a separate step, the user gains the ability to set the temperature and humidity independently for comfort in all conditions. The heat pulled from the air in the coil is removed by the chiller. The chiller pulls water molecules from the warm liquid water through the nanotechnology material and into a vacuum on the other side, cooling the remaining water so that it is ready to be returned to the coil.

The system’s compressor draws the water molecules from the chiller and dehumidifier and pushes them at a higher pressure to an outdoor enthalpy exchanger. The water vapor evaporates through the nanotechnology materials, rejecting the heat and humidity originally pulled from the inside air and completing the cycle.

NanoAir is versatile enough that the process can be reversed in winter to transfer heat into the building, similar to a heat pump.

The beauty of this – we see substantial energy savings in testing Dais’s testing compared to energy use/costs of a traditional HVAC/R system.

Residential air conditioning units are required to produce 13 Btu/h of cooling for every W of electrical input. This means a typical 3-ton system in a small suburban house uses 2.77 kW of electricity, which releases an average of 3.77 lb/hr of CO 2 when generated.

Over the course of a year, the homeowner releases up to 5.7 tons of CO 2 and pays as much as $1,080 to run this system.

The NanoAir system produces 30 Btu/h of cooling for every W of electrical input. This means the same 3-ton system in the same location uses 1.2 kW of electricity, which releases an average of 1.64 lb/hr of CO 2 when generated. Over the course of a year, the system's CO 2 release is 2.5 tons and the electrical cost drops to $468, savings of 3.2 tons of CO2 and $612 respectively.