t’s time to brace for record-breaking heat. Last year was the hottest on record and 2024 is shaping up to be even more extreme, with the mercury soaring close to 50 °C on days in Nevada, Egypt and Australia. June marked the 13th month in a row of chart-topping temperatures globally. And four consecutive days in July were the hottest in recorded history for the entire planet.
Scorching temperatures spur water shortages, damage crops, strain electricity grids and trigger heat stress and mass mortality — killing close to 500,000 people each year, according to one estimate1. So scientists are working hard to develop innovative ways to cool cities and slash electricity use in the warming world. Advances range from high-efficiency air conditioners to special materials that keep surfaces colder than their surroundings without using electricity.
In most air conditioners and refrigerators, a fluid is compressed to transfer heat from inside the room or appliance to outside. But this process emits greenhouse gases and guzzles energy. Globally, air conditioners and electric fans consume about 20% of the electricity used in buildings, according to the International Energy Agency. And the agency predicts that the amount of energy required for air conditioning around the globe will surge threefold by 2050.
With that in mind, many researchers are working to reduce the amount of energy that air conditioners consume. One potential solution emerged last year, when a team of researchers developed a technology that might make the appliances work much more efficiently2. And it has the added benefit of not relying on environmentally damaging liquid coolants.
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