UPV students present their "innovative" sustainable air conditioning system at COP28 in Dubai

VALENCIA, 1 Dec. (EUROPA PRESS) -

A group of four students from the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV) participate in the "most relevant forum in the world for the climate future", the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28), which takes place in Dubai ( United Arab Emirates) until December 12. The Valencian team presents its "innovative" passive air conditioning system 'Xaloc. Bioclimatic, fair and inclusive adaptation for homes', from December 1 to 7.

Participation in COP28 is "a unique opportunity, which will give you access to outstanding activities and meetings." Eva Tortajada, doctoral student at the UPV, will participate in the round table "Development of resilient and liveable cities", representing Xaloc, on December 2. "I will have three minutes to present who we are, what we do and then the round of questions will begin," she explains in a statement.

What motivates the team most is to establish contacts with international cooperation organizations that can implement Xaloc in developing countries, in order to facilitate the adaptation of homes to the climate crisis, according to student Batiste Vidal. The advantages of the Xaloc system are numerous: it is easy to build by non-specialized people, it can be done with available materials, it is low cost and does not consume energy.

Batiste Vidal, student of the Master's Degree in Industrial Engineering; Eva Tortajada, doctoral student in Architecture, Building, Urban Planning and Landscape; José Antonio Gil, with a Bachelor's degree in Energy Engineering, and Nuria Ochogavia, a Master's student in Construction and Industrial Installations, are part of the Xaloc team.

For his part, Professor Tomás Gómez Navarro, director of the University Institute for Research in Energy Engineering of the Polytechnic University of Valencia, is tutor of the project.

The UPV team will share the experiences at COP28 through social networks, since the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge has encouraged them to do so: "We will be recording videos, showing the COP from within, the interesting conversations that we have, interviews*In this way we will bring the COP closer to the citizens and introduce a youth point of view," explains Eva Tortajada.

The construction and buildings sector plays a key role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions but, according to the UN, is not on track to achieve decarbonization by 2050.

To combat this situation, technical building codes are introduced, which ensure economy, comfort and ecology, "although most of the current construction predates these regulations and in many countries this regulation does not yet exist," point out from the UPV team.

The contribution to climate change mitigation from the construction sector is also being introduced into university syllabi "but there is still much to do," points out Professor Tomás Gómez.

Xaloc wants to contribute to adaptation to the climate crisis and continue its journey after COP28. "We would like to obtain resources to continue researching and carry out more industrial tests and in extreme conditions, which we have not been able to execute. We have tested the system in a context of limited resources, in a student project," explains Professor Tomás Gómez Navarro. "We trust in the appeal effect of having won this call, so that bioclimatic architecture or construction companies that work with traditional materials become interested in us."

Xaloc nation in the UPV Generación Spontánea program, during the conception and construction of Azalea, the sustainable house designed by students to participate in the Solar Decathlon Europe university competition, which in the edition with Xaloc won the first prize for innovation.

"The vice-rector for Sustainable Development of the UPV Campuses saw many possibilities in the prototype and encouraged us to apply for the Climate Generation COP 28 competition to attend," explains Batiste Vidal. Finally, they achieved this goal and the UPV hopes that they will achieve many more.