SBIR-STTR Award

Direct to Phase II

New Columbia-class submarine steel preheat requirements will introduce larger operational environment demands on naval welders. Novel heat reduction methods integrated within existing ergonomic textiles used by welders as heat shields will be needed to provide a “cool” suit capable of extending productivity and mitigating medical concerns associated with heat exhaustion. To meet these challenges, Nanohmics Inc., proposes to design, integrate, and fabricate a thermoelectric-integrated welder’s jacket with convective heat exchange based on Nanohmics’ modular cooling technology. The primary goal of the DP2 is to design and develop a cost-effective cooling module with a coefficient of performance (CoP) > 1 for ?T = 10 °C and cooling power > 0.2 W/cm2 and a cost-equivalent of < $150/sqft. The low-cost, lightweight, thermoelectric actively-cooled TAC jacket will provide heat extraction rates that will improve comfort and extend a welder work interval minimally > 30 minutes and a goal of > 2-3 hours.