The Korean manufacturer Hyundai has just lifted the veil on a simple, but very clever technology. This is Nano Cooling, which takes the form of an invisible anti-heat film allowing the temperature of the cabin to be lowered by 10 degrees in the middle of summer in a car.
Whether in summer or winter, and whatever the engine of your car, there are always advantages and disadvantages no matter what.
A simple and effective solution
In winter, it is mainly the charging of electric cars as well as their autonomy that poses a problem. But in summer, the main enemy remains the heat. And when it’s hot, the use of air conditioning is essential, which significantly reduces the distance that can be traveled on a single charge, unless the vehicle is equipped with a heat pump. In addition, harsh conditions can also affect the driver’s concentration. In short, this is obviously not a very good thing.
But how to fight against excessive heat in summer, as the latter become more and more common? Well, the Korean manufacturer Hyundai has found a clever solution, which it presents in a press release just published. The latter is known under the name Nano Cooling, and in fact takes the form of a totally revolutionary invisible film. Indeed, and according to the Seoul-based company, this significantly reduces the temperature of the cabin.
A drop of up to 10 degrees on average compared to a car that is not equipped with this clever device. The Korean firm carried out full-scale tests by equipping no fewer than 70 vehicles owned by its customers in Lahore, Pakistan. In this country, it is common for summer temperatures to exceed 50 degrees, making it an ideal playground for testing this new technology in real conditions. And the results are therefore particularly conclusive. But how does it work?
To tell the truth, it’s quite simple, as you’ll see. In fact, the film designed by Hyundai engineers has three layers, which allow specific wavelengths of heat to be blocked or emitted. The outer layer evacuates the latter towards the outside, while the other two more inside reflect the heat in wavelengths which approach infrared. Which simply allows us to reduce the amount of heat which enters the driving position.
A very practical system
This film can then be placed on all the windows of the car, sinceit is transparent and completely invisible. Thus, it can also be installed in countries where it is prohibited to tint your windows, as has been the case for those at the front in France for several years. However, it is also possible to combine it with a tinted film for those who wish it and if this is authorized by legislation. In this case, the anti-heat effect is increased tenfold and much more effective.
Compared to a classic tinted film, Nano Cooling would reduce the temperature by 12.33 degrees according to the manufacturer. Better yet, on the upper part of the dashboard, the difference would be 22 degrees compared to a car that does not have a protective film at all. Please note that this revolutionary film has not yet been mass-produced by the Korean manufacturer, which is carrying out full-scale tests and will analyze the data collected following these. Perhaps one day it will be offered as standard or as an option on future models.
Regardless, this technology has many advantages, especially for electric cars. It reduces the use of air conditioning, which is one of the most energy-consuming elements. Another solution is to favor white cars, which reflect heat better than black. This color should also be more and more widespread on the roads over the coming decades, according to certain forecasts. But not necessarily for that reason.