Georges Hadziioannou (Uni. of Bordeaux): "Solid-state electrocaloric cooling, from materials to devices"

Since 2009 Georges Hadziioannou is Professor at the University of Bordeaux, Holder of the Chair “Advanced Functional Materials for the emerging Information, Communication and Energy Technologies”. He is heading the group “Polymers Electronic Materials & Devices” at LCPO. He is holder of the Industrial Chair SMILE (ANR/Arkema/ISORG/VALEO/Surys). Simultaneously he is the Coordinator of the EquipEx ELORPrintTec and Scientific Director of the LabEx AMADEus. Georges Hadziioannou received his Doctorate in Physical Sciences from the Louis Pasteur University of Strasbourg in 1980. Between 1980 and 1982, he was associate researcher at the Polymer Science and Engineering Department of University of Massachusetts. In 1982 he became research staff member at IBM Almaden Research Laboratory where he directed the group “Surface and Interface Dynamics” from 1986 to 1989. Between 1985 and 1989 he was simultaneously Industrial Research Fellow of the National Institute for Science and Technology (NIST), and consulting Professor at the Department of Chemical Engineering at Stanford University. In 1989 he became Professor at the University of Groningen (Netherlands), where he directed the Materials Science Center (today named Zernike Institute for Advanced Materials) from 1997 to 2000. In 2001 he moved to the Louis-Pasteur University in Strasbourg where he took the direction of the European Engineering School of Chemistry, Polymers and Materials between 2004 and 2009.

Abstract: The conventional vapor compression refrigeration (VCR) has high energy consumption, poor cooling efficiency and negative environmental impacts yet it is still the current and ubiquitous cooling technology. Its working principle is based on applying and removing external work to a refrigerant, which induces a phase transition with heat ejection or absorption. In this colloquium we will present an alternative solution, addressing the adverse issues of the VCR, the electrocaloric (EC) cooling. The EC cooling utilizes an electric field to induce a dipolar order-disorder phase transition where a reversible temperature change enables the heat pumping. More precisely, we are developing a ground-breaking concept of a polymer printable “solid-state” EC cooling module using static thermal switches. With this presentation, we will try to put forward our very recent efforts on tailor-made functional electrocaloric polymer materials associated to printable “solid-state” EC cooling modules, towards a promising alternative to VCR technology with higher efficiencies, lower environmental impact, and better energy performance for which important perspectives are envisioned in the electronics, medical and food preservation sectors.