Engineers at GE Global Research have unveiled a new method of moving air in order to cool consumer electronics based on technology used to improve air flow in military fighter jets. Tentatively known as a “dual piezoelectric cooling jet,” the technology consumes an average of 50 percent less energy than modern fan-powered cooling units.
According to Dr. Seyed Saddoughi, principal engineer on the project, the company “copied nature” with the new cooling method for consumer electronics.
“Dual jets are based on the idea of your lungs,” he said.
The dual piezoelectric cooling jets consist of two thin nickel-based discs connected by special ceramics. When the ceramics are triggered with an AC signal, the metal discs are activated and begin to “pump” air. According to GE’s report, the metal discs are currently capable of expanding as fast as 150 times per second.
GE Global Research was successful in exchanging the thermal cooling fan of a Lenovo ThinkPad ultrabook with a prototype of the dual piezoelectric cooling jet, but has yet to release any “real-world” results of the modification.
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Image: GE Global Research
