- What are CoolAnt products?
- CoolAnt Beehive: Zero-energy Air Conditioner
- CoolAnt Aeroleaf: Breathing Facade
- CoolAnt Binary: Vertical Garden that cools spaces
- From Commercial spaces to Residential Homes
Summers have come this year with record-breaking temperatures all over India. While many of us flock to install air conditioners, we forget there are better ways to cool our?houses,?without hurting the environment. Sustainable cooling is a very much-needed discussion in the current scenario. In comparison, our older generations used courtyard houses and evaporative cooling, but the present and future call for more innovative solutions in this field. A Delhi-based studio known as Ant Studio seems to have the?right?answer, as they unveil their eco-friendly cooling solution, CoolAnt, a breathing wall that can cool you without hurting the environment.
What are CoolAnt products?
Some of the ?cool? products launched by Ant Studio consist of CoolAnt Beehive, Binary, and Aeroleaf, made from terracotta, which can be installed in all scales and ranges, from facades to vertical gardens. Apart from using sustainable materials for its design and functionalities, it produces no harmful gases like CFC that damage the ozone layer and further lead to climate change. With this initiative, the creators also seek to revive the dying craft of pottery by employing traditional artisans to make terracotta-based materials.
It can be installed in open spaces to semi-open spaces, and even be integrated into the facades of new and old buildings, making it a win-win situation for all.?The product was recently featured?in the popular show Shark Tank India, where it received soaring reviews and appreciation for its much-needed thoughts and?actions
CoolAnt Beehive: Zero-energy Air Conditioner
CoolAnt Beehive is a green cooling technology made of terracotta cones in a beehive structure that lowers the temperature. Traditional Indian households used earthen pots to cool the water due to their porous nature, and this product uses the same?strategy,?but with a twist. CoolAnt?is made?of multiple terracotta cones. Water?is made?to pass through these cones and this water is recirculated throughout the system. The wet terracotta cones automatically cool the water that passes through them.?
The solution is energy efficient (saving 15-20% of the energy needed for cooling), and cost-effective, since it reduces about 5-10% of the operational costs, according to Ant Studio. For those of us who like the touch of earth in our houses rather than boring old machinery, CoolAnt has a pleasing appearance to satisfy our aesthetic needs.
The advantages of using this system to benefit the environment don?t stop at that though. Since the cones are wet for a prolonged time, this results in moss and biofilm formation. Moss and biofilm can absorb ten times the volume of carbon from the environment. The studio is trying to explore possibilities in this area. Due to its high carbon-absorbing nature, they are trying to cultivate moss and biofilm in their future models.
CoolAnt Aeroleaf: Breathing Facade
The evapotranspiration of leaves inspired the CoolAnt Aeroloaf facade system.?It is in a unique shape known as an Aerofoil that enhances airflow and has a pocket to store water for evaporative cooling. The foils?are arranged?in a sequence that cools the hot air as it gushes through it. The system?is designed to be a second skin and can?be installed?in a wall, windows, or as a fa?ade. It has also an option to install intelligent sensing into it that supplies water droplets according to the microclimate. The natural cooling system also acts as the second skin and shades the building from the direct sun, thereby reducing the heat gain.
CoolAnt Binary: Vertical Garden that cools spaces
CoolAnt Binary is innovative cooling technology and can be used as a second skin, over windows, ventilators, and even balconies. It can also be used as a free-standing installation. Binary consists of terracotta tiles and pots arranged in an aesthetic way to resemble a vertical garden. It is positioned over a galvanized iron frame while water circulates through it. The water evaporates to cool the air that passes through the system.
From Commercial spaces to Residential Homes
The versatile portfolio of CoolAnt products proves what it claims. It can literally be installed in most building typologies. The first venture that used CoolAnt was Deki Electronics, in Uttar Pradesh. CoolAnt products are slowly finding their way into the mainstream buildings. The CoolAnt Aerofoil was used in a commercial complex in Bilaspur. This is proof that sustainable cooling is not just confined to residential structures and can also be expanded to suit large-scale structures that use heavy active cooling techniques.
CoolAnt binary is used in many residential and commercial spaces, like Concept Hospitality in Mumbai and Commanders? Mess Army Quarters in Jaipur. The CoolAnt Cacti, a freestanding installation resembling a cactus, will be completed soon at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, Ahmedabad. Various residents have also approached Ant Studio to cool their homes with their innovative cooling technology. The creators have honestly expressed their difficulty in incorporating CoolAnt into apartments and flats. This seems like a hurdle they are exploring to get ahead of.
As we sweat through the rising heat and global warming, remember that innovative cooling technologies like CoolAnt can provide energy-efficient cooling while serving your aesthetic needs. Sustainability is the need of the hour, and Ant Studio, with its latest products, can give air conditioners and other active cooling systems a run for their money.
Sources
- https://www.coolant.co/
- https://www.instagram.com/coolant.co
- https://authindia.com/coolant-zero-energy-air-conditioner-a-terracotta-air-conditioner-designed-by-ant-studio/
- https://www.seforall.org/stories-of-success/coolant-beehive-passive-cooling-innovation-from-india
- https://www.stirworld.com/see-features-traditional-solutions-to-air-pollution-coolant-coral-by-ant-studio
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