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Saudi Research Tests New Energy-Efficient Cooling System

KAUST's new cooling system
KAUST's new cooling system
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Saudi Research Tests New Energy-Efficient Cooling System

KAUST's new cooling system
KAUST's new cooling system

The King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) has conducted observational experiments in the houses located inside the campus to create a new cooling system that consumes energy less than the currently used systems.

These experiments aim at testing the efficiency of the new system under different weather conditions in Saudi Arabia.

Air conditioning systems in use today typically achieve only 35–40 percent of the cooling possible for the amount of electricity they consume. As well as their principal task of cooling air, they remove moisture from the air by lowering its temperature to the level at which the water in it condenses. But this double step wastes a lot of energy.

A team led by Kim Choon Ng, professor of Environmental Science and Engineering at KAUST, has now devised a way to reduce the amount of energy consumed by decoupling the two processes.

Instead of dehumidifying air by cooling it, the system uses a more efficient process called adsorption. This binds the water in the air to the surface of a specially developed nanomaterial. Made of calcium chloride salt embedded in a silica gel lattice, this material can adsorb up to 20 times as much water as conventional silica gel in proportion to its weight.

Ng is now testing prototypes, and findings to date show an improvement in efficiency of 30–60 percent over conventional air conditioners. “This new type of air conditioner could offer a much-needed mean to slow down the increasing contribution of cooling systems to climate change,” says Kim Choon Ng.

In this new system, the proprietary adsorbent coats the coils of a mechanical vapor compressor, which cools the air the adsorbent has dehumidified in the manner of a conventional AC system. Air flow through the system is reversed and then reversed again in a period cycle to regenerate the saturated adsorbent.

Global consumption of air conditioning electricity, mainly generated from burning fossil fuels, has risen from 600 TWh in 1990 to 2,200 TWh in 2020, and based on current trends, could reach 6,300 TWh in 2050. By then, half of all electricity used by the world’s hottest countries, including Saudi Arabia, would be used just for keeping people cool.

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Jill Biden Gets Priciest Gift from a Foreign Leader in 2023 — a $20,000 Diamond

US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden walk on the South Lawn of the White House as they return to Washington, DC, from Camp David, on January 2, 2025. (Photo by Chris Kleponis / AFP)
US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden walk on the South Lawn of the White House as they return to Washington, DC, from Camp David, on January 2, 2025. (Photo by Chris Kleponis / AFP)
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Jill Biden Gets Priciest Gift from a Foreign Leader in 2023 — a $20,000 Diamond

US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden walk on the South Lawn of the White House as they return to Washington, DC, from Camp David, on January 2, 2025. (Photo by Chris Kleponis / AFP)
US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden walk on the South Lawn of the White House as they return to Washington, DC, from Camp David, on January 2, 2025. (Photo by Chris Kleponis / AFP)

President Joe Biden and his family were given tens of thousands of dollars in gifts from foreign leaders in 2023, according to an annual accounting published by the State Department on Thursday, with first lady Jill Biden receiving the single most expensive present: a $20,000 diamond from India’s leader.
The 7.5-carat diamond from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was easily the most costly gift presented to any member of the first family in 2023, although she also received a brooch valued at $14,063 from the Ukrainian ambassador to the United States and a bracelet, brooch and photograph album worth $4,510 from the president and first lady of Egypt.
The US president himself received a number of expensive presents, including a commemorative photo album valued at $7,100 from South Korea’s recently impeached President Suk Yeol Yoon, a $3,495 statue of Mongolian warriors from the Mongolian prime minister, a $3,300 silver bowl from the sultan of Brunei, a $3,160 sterling silver tray from the president of Israel, and a collage worth $2,400 from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Federal law requires executive branch officials to declare gifts they receive from foreign leaders and counterparts that have an estimated value of more than $480. Many of the gifts that meet that threshold are relatively modest, and the more expensive ones are typically — but not always — transferred to the National Archives or put on official displays.
The $20,000 diamond was retained for official use in the White House East Wing, according to a State Department document, while the other gifts to the president and first lady were sent to the archives.
Vanessa Valdivia, a spokesperson for Jill Biden, said the diamond will be turned over to the archives after they leave office. According to The Associated Press, she did not say what it was being used for.
Ukraine's ambassador, Oksana Markarova, said Friday on Facebook that a Ukrainian designer fashioned the brooch from the remains of a Russian rocket and that the piece was made from inexpensive materials, so its “true value ... lies in its symbolism." The embassy's spokesperson, Halyna Yusypiuk, said US officials provided the assessed value.
Recipients have the option to purchase the gift from the US government at its market value, although that is rare, particularly with high-end items.
According to the State Department’s Office of Protocol, which compiles the list that will be published in Friday’s edition of the Federal Register, several employees of the CIA reported receiving lavish gifts of watches, perfume and jewelry, nearly all of which were destroyed. Of the gifts destroyed, they were worth more than $132,000 combined.
CIA Director William Burns received a $18,000 astrograph, which is a telescope and astrological camera, from an foreign source whose identity is classified. That is being transferred to the General Services Administration. But Burns reported receiving and destroying an $11,000 Omega watch, while numerous others did the same with luxury timepieces.
Below the rank of director, the CIA employees who reported gifts are not identified, but one of them logged an Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra watch, a ladies Omega Constellation watch, a diamond necklace, earring bracelet, and a ring that were valued together at $65,100.