Innovate UK, the UK’s innovation agency, has awarded Free Running Buildings £650,000 to develop and manufacture Freecool+ – Adapting Passive Ventilation and Zero-Energy Cooling for Sub-Saharan Africa.

The project is supported by world-leading experts from the Building Environment Group at the University of Hull in addition to humanitarian aid organisations and energy consultancy and social enterprise firms currently operating within Kenya.

Based on state-of-the-art technology solutions developed by Free Running Buildings for markets in the Far East, FREECOOL+ will be adapted to provide a lower-cost, efficient, zero-energy alternative to mechanically ventilated air conditioning systems.

FREECOOL+ is an innovative, passive air-cooling system housed within a roof-mounted wind tower. It uses heat pipes and a cold sink to continually cool incoming air to provide fresh air supply and cool environments by up to 15 degrees Celsius.

The resulting impact entails far-reaching social, economic, health and environmental benefits. In the short term this will include delivering heightened thermal comfort and optimum air quality in schools, healthcare facilities and office complexes in Kenya’s refugee camps. In the medium term, it is expected that uptake of the commercialised product will extend to Kenya’s dominantly rural population and enter the hospitality and tourism industry. Longer term, the uptake of passive technology and development of this market in Sub-Saharan Africa, will reduce CO2 emissions and align with Kenya’s commitment to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 30% by 2030.

Ruby Hughes, Technical Director at FRB explains

This is an exciting international collaboration and challenge that will expand the development of Freecool+ into a new area and play a vital role in proving clean energy access to parts of Kenya and beyond.

Find out more about our product 

Freecool

Managing Director Ben Hughes, Office Manager Lisa Flaherty and Engineering Technician Harry Mahon had the pleasure of hosting Sarah Champion MP, Labour MP for Rotherham & Chair of the International Development Select Committee at the company’s workshop facility in Rotherham.  

Ben explained how Free Running Buildings provides low-cost energy solutions using local materials and skills to supply fresh air and heating/cooling for buildings ranging from classrooms in Kenya to football stadiums in Qatar. Ben showcased past and present work including free cooling for schools in Abu Dhabi and the UAE, low carbon cooling for the Qatar world cup and more recently clean air solutions for dental practices during the pandemic.

The visit rounded off with a discussion regarding FRB’s exciting future projects including how the team are currently developing UV integrated fresh air systems for new builds and retrofits and off grid solutions for rural communities to enable improved access to energy and progress economic and social welfare in a developing country funded by the governments Energy catalyst program.

Sarah Champion MP, was extremely positive about the visit and work at Free Running Buildings, adding:

I was delighted to visit Free Running Buildings at the Advanced Manufacturing Park Technology Centre. I was blown away by how they have focused on the big picture and come up with simple solutions that work. Their cooling/heating systems are genuinely life changing for low income countries and their potential to positively address climate change is immense. I wish them every success with the important and innovative work and will try to raise their profile at every opportunity.

Find out more about past and present projects

Ben Hughes (left), Sarah Champion (centre), Harry Mahon (right)

A collaboration between Free Running Buildings and Qatar University has lead to the companies pioneering technology FREECOOL being installed at the newly renovated 40,000-seat Khalifa International Stadium in Doha, Qatar, to keep players and fans cool at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Khalifa International Stadium, Qatar

Although the football competition has been moved from the summer to November and December, the average temperature during this time ranges between 25° – 29°.

Using passive cooling methods, air towers will capture the air before it is pumped over pipes of cold water, cooled, and delivered stabilised and conformable to the pitch, stand and through the concourses.

The low-energy environmentally friendly cooling system is more sustainable than conventional air conditioning.

In addition to funding received from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), this project was made possible by a National Priorities Research Program (NPRP) award from the Qatar National Research Fund, a member of the Qatar Foundation.

Managing Director Prof Ben Hughes, explains:

The stadium is located in Doha Sports City complex

The main aim of our work is to help maintain sufficient heat recovery and ventilation rates without compromising air-tightness requirements, so we can achieve an energy-efficient system within a building with enhanced thermal comfort for its occupants. Creating a building which is warm, cool or well ventilated is easy but creating one which does this naturally takes skill and expertise. 

Find out more about FREECOOL here

Innovate UK, the UK’s innovation agency, has awarded Free Running Buildings £100,000 to join forces with work safety provider Moore Medtech in the development and manufacture of products using pioneering PROTECT technology.

PROTECT Technology

PROTECT is a flexible and safe FAR-UVC light fixture that can be installed in air handling units and overhead lighting to destroy COVID-19 found in exhaled microdroplets in indoor environments.

FAR-UVC has been shown to have the same highly effective germicidal properties of UV light, but without the associated human health risks. Its benefits include up to 1,000 times greater destruction than any other UV sources, greater ability to break the molecular bonds of all organisms, bactericidal effects and efficacy in destroying coronavirus whilst being safe for human use.

Speaking about the collaboration and use of the latest technologies, techniques and applications, Dr Ruby Hughes, Technical Director at Free Running Buildings explains:

It is well-known that heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning systems exacerbate airborne transmission of COVID-19, particularly with unplanned air currents moving smaller respiratory droplets. As experts in providing thermally comfortable indoor environments, we have been able to work with Moore MedTech to use safe FAR-UVC technology in an innovative light fixture to combat the risk of infection via airborne viruses indoors. Furthermore, we plan to utilise the company’s expertise in virtual simulation to validate the correct location and quantity for fitting FAR-UVC light units.

Free Running Buildings are excited to be collaborating with Moore Medtech to create an energy efficient, pathogen clean indoor environment and believe that this project could mark a major step in supporting public services and organisations to safely reopen the society and businesses in response to the COVID pandemic.

Sarah Champion, Labour MP for Rotherham, adds:

I am delighted that Free Running Buildings have been successful in obtaining funding from Innovate UK. Britain’s dynamic engineering and design sector will play a key part in the UK’s return to normality after an incredibly difficult year. I have been proud to see how businesses have stepped up to play their part in combatting Covid-19 and in supporting our recovery.

I am pleased that this innovative and crucial technology will be developed right in here in Rotherham and I wish Free Running Buildings every success.

Innovate UK logo

Moore Medtech logo

Following independent testing and research at BRE Group, Free Running Buildings have successfully patented a low cost and commercially viable 3D printed design used to replace water in conventional heat pipe technology.

Suitable for application in wind towers, the innovative FREEHEAT design:

• Simplifies heat recovery
• Reduces weight and cost of heat pipes
• Improves the rate of heat transfer between air streams

Using in-house 3D printing to develop prototypes, early iterations of the product were designed and tested to simplify and improve existing heat recovery technologies. The final design was later sent to BRE Group for full-scale wind tunnel testing, the results of which indicate the products ability to reduce energy demand.

Free Running Buildings will continue to use the patented design to conduct further pilot tests and explore its effectiveness in real world applications.

Find out more about FREEHEAT here

Full scale test facility built and utilised at BRE Watford	Heat recovery bank in-situ for air flow measurements
External profile of Freeheat incorporating patented heat recovery design	External airflow testing carried out to determine ventilation and heat recovery performance

The emergence of the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by the highly infectious SARS- CoV-2 virus at the end of 2019 led the  world Health Organisation (WHO) to declare a global pandemic on 11 March 2020.

To ensure protection from COVID-19 while operating, guidelines and traditional working arrangements have been introduced in dental practices to minimise the risk of virus transmission and to promote a safe and effective working environment.

Free Running Buildings alongside Devonshire Quarter Dental Clinic performed a feasibility study to identify the most economic and efficient way to improve the ventilation performance in two surgery rooms in order to reduce the fallow times and increase service provision.

The COVID-19 Infection Prevention and Control Guidance advise:

• In dental surgeries where the ventilation rate is unknown or between 1 and 5 ACH, a baseline fallow time of 30 minutes is recommended after Group A procedures, with mitigation such as high-volume suction/ rubber dam
• In dental surgeries where the ventilation rate is between 6 and 9 ACH, a baseline fallow time of 20 minutes is recommended after Group A procedures
• In dental surgeries where the ventilation rate is 10 ACH or more, a baseline fallow time of 15 minutes is recommended after Group A procedures

Determining fallow times for Group A dental procedures

Dr. Kathryn Houlding  B.Ch.D, Dentist at the Devonshire Quarter Dental Clinic, adds:

One of the things that the Chief Dental Officer and the NHS stipulated for safety was that after any AGP an hour fallow time was left before a deep clean could be done to allow the virus to settle or go out the window. This meant that the surgery had to be shut for an hour and twenty minutes after any procedure so dramatically reducing the amount of surgical time per day we can see patients. I contacted Ben Hughes, the Director of Free Running Buildings, and he was happy to help with an energy efficient solution to help us reduce this time and therefore speed up our ability to see patients.

I feel very lucky to have had the help from Free Running Buildings. It has transformed how we can work and has reduced the time each surgery is shut down. I feel dentistry has benefitted from their skill as other practices have managed to do the same.

Free Running Buildings concluded that a system of window fans and fan speed controllers would adequately increase the ventilation rates in the two surgery rooms to achieve compliance with governmental guidelines.

Surgery 1	Surgery 2
New Ventilation Rate = 21.8 ACH New Fallow Time = 15 mins	New Ventilation Rate = 22.3 ACH New Fallow Time = 15 mins