During the Joint Spring Reception of the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina and the Leopoldina Academy Friends’ Circle, incoming GYA member Jingyuan Xu (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Germany) was awarded the Leopoldina Prize for Young Scientists for her work on innovative cooling processes.
During the reception, Jingyuan presented her research on climate-friendly cooling processes, with applications to small microchip air conditioning systems to refrigerant-free refrigerators. Specifically, Jingyuan is investigating novel solid-based cooling processes that use the so-called elastocaloric effect. These processes do not require any climate-damaging refrigerants, are low-maintenance, can be used anywhere and are more efficient than conventional compressor systems.
The 2023 Leopoldina Prize for Young Scientists is worth €5,000, and is financed by the Leopoldina Academy Friends’ Circle.