One of the 25 semi-finalists at this year’s Electrolux Design Lab competition is this radical re-imagining of the refrigerator, which if you think of it hasn’t really changed that much in recent years. We have refrigerators that are run by different power sources, but basically, what we know as refrigerators are insulated compartments with heat pumps that remove heat from inside the compartment and transfer it outside. Which is what makes Yuriy Dmitriev’s entry, the Bio Robot Refrigerator, an exciting take on the handy fridge.
Yuri’s refrigerator uses no energy because it’s basically just a large compartment filled with “bio-gel”, a “non sticky, odorless gel” that “morphs around products to create a separate pod that suspends items for easy access”. Items placed inside the refrigerator are cooled by “bio-robots” using luminescence.
As you can imagine, the refrigerator has many advantages – it uses no energy, it’s space efficient, and it can practically be any size or shape, as long as it has space for the bio-gel. So what’s the catch? Simple – it’s not backed by hard data. The fridge is dependent on this non-existing goo filled with tiny robots that cool via luminescence.
Unfortunately, Dmitriev didn’t mention if he knew of developments or experiments that could someday lead to the development of bio-gel. But I can’t help but praise the man’s imagination. You think he’ll make it to the finals? Check out the rest of the semi-finalists at Electrolux’ website.
[via Inhabitat]
