High-Performance, Lower-cost Plastic Heat Exchangers

Metallic Heat exchangers are expensive at lower operating temperatures. This leads to 25 quads of low-level energy (~ $200 billion) wasted annually in the US. This reduces US manufacturing competitiveness, contributes to GHG emissions, and leads to unhealthy environment. In the building sector this causes poor ventilation, leading to a sick building syndrome and increased vulnerability to the spread of pathogens and viruses such as Covid-19. The T2M team is developing a mass producible modular plastic heat exchanger (P-HEX) which can be extruded at very high-speeds, making it affordable for low-level heat recovery. Its very thin walls, made of conductive polymer composites, coupled with a very high packing density make it efficient and cost-effective with a smaller physical footprint. A baseline P-HEX design with novel ultra-thin self-supporting tube structure was manufactured and validated meeting all DOE targets with excellent feasibility. The primary goals are to scaleup the P-HEX technology by 10x including high-speed manufacturing processes. A market responsive P-HEX module will be designed for different market sectors. P-HEX pressure capability will be increased to meet the need of these market sectors. Benefits to Federal Government: Deployment of P-HEX will reduce HVAC bills by over $1 billion/yr, better ventilation will lead to greater productivity and extended mission duration for DoD. Up to 25% Reduction in Energy Use: P-HEX would reduce energy consumption in buildings, industries, transportation, and stationery power sectors. Our preliminary estimations show up to 50 billion terms in savings from reduced fuel consumption. Solution for the Sick Building Syndrome and Post-COVID Safety: P-HEX provides a cost- effective solution for ventilation to achieve 40 cfm/person while decreasing HVAC bills. Significant Cost Savings to Ratepayers and Consumers: The recovered heat by P-HEX translates to $50 billion/yr in savings to consumers, improving U.S. competitiveness. Supporting Intermittent Renewables: Resulting Natural Gas savings from P-HEX deployment will support intermittency of solar and wind, as well as microgrids needed for resiliency against natural disasters. National Energy Security: The highly efficient P-HEX reduces the dependency on imported fossil fuels from politically unstable regions, thus enhancing a sustainable economy.Reduced GHG Emissions: P-HEX recovers process heat without additional harmful emissions. It will strengthen the U.S. position to comply with the Paris Agreement. Job Creation: Deployment of P-HEX will create >50,000 domestic jobs in manufacturing, installation, service and the associated ripple effects (assuming 1 job per GWh saved).