Redding School District

When researchers go back through the patent records looking for something of interest, something of value, or overlooked technology they often come across something of a complete surprise.   Malcolm McColluch is just such a researcher and he did find something of interest and more.  He is an electrical engineer at Oxford University and he found this design, a simply brilliant plan for an environmentally friendly refrigerator. 

The modern refrigerator has been called an environmental nightmare.  How it works, you might know, is that it compresses and expands man-made greenhouse gases called Freon’s.  Some consider Freon’s more damaging than carbon dioxide and so the widespread use of these Freon’s has always worried environmental groups from around the world.  You can imagine their delight when Malcolm and his colleagues discovered this non-Freon based refrigerator system.    You might also be intrigued to find out that it takes virtually no electricity.   It also has no moving parts.  Pressurized gases of course but not Freon gases.  The design called for ammonia, butane, and water.  Malcolm McColluch had uncovered a green refrigerator that was invented some ninety years ago.

It was an idea that two fellows came up with long ago.  Al and Leo were those two men.  They came up with the idea, played with it until it worked and became satisfied with its function and design.   They patented the idea and maybe anticipated getting rich on their invention.  There is not any record of them making any money on their device.  Truthfully, not much else is known about this refrigerator except that it was used in some of the earliest kitchen refrigerators.  When compressors, that are more efficient, became popular in 1950, the ones using Freon, then this technology was abandoned along with the original patent.    

After discovering this design, Malcolm McCulluch and his team studied the near century-old design.  Eagerly and carefully, they started building a prototype.   They discovered that it worked.   “It is going to take some fine tuning for commercial viability” but McCulloch promises to keep on it.  Others have taken up the banner and so the race is on to make what was old, new.   Imagine how this type of technology could be used in developing countries.  A refrigerator that does not run on electricity.  It would be just short of a miracle.    Really, this could revolutionize refrigeration for everyone.

If this happens, you and I are going to remember two names.  Remember Al and Leo?  The two individuals who came up with the original patent and the idea to make things cold without toxic gases.  Who were these two men?   One was Hungarian Physicist Leo Szilard.  He happened to be a student of Albert (Al) Einstein.   Five years after receiving his Nobel Prize in Physics, Albert heard about a family who had died of toxic fumes from refrigeration and set out to solve the issue.  He wrote in a letter, “Nothing truly valuable arises from ambition or from a mere sense of duty; it stems rather from love and devotion towards men and towards objective things.” 

As we work on building systems within our classrooms, at our schools, and for the entire district, lets always keep in mind how theories work.  When Albert Einstein came out with his greatest theories, other scientists didn’t pay much attention at first.  However, as the years went on and new avenues of technology make it possible to study what he was saying, it became clearer how convincing his theories were.  

Thanks for working on your theories about how to help those students and families that are struggling within our system.   It is powerful work to continue to make our systems more and more exceptionally powerful for all of our students.

Have a fantastic weekend,

RobSuperintendent