Three start-up companies that have developed alternative cooling and heating technologies that don’t use standard vapor compression are seeking to partner with manufacturers of natural refrigerant-based systems to bring their products to the marketplace.
Representatives of the companies – Pascal, Magnotherm and MIMiC Systems – communicated this interest to attendees during presentations about their technologies at the ATMO America 2026 conference in Tarrytown, New York, on June 3.
“I think we’re aligned on what we’re trying to do – we want to get rid of HFCs and HFOs as fast as possible,” said Adam Slavney, CEO and Co-Founder of Pascal, a Cambridge, Massachusetts-based developer of a solid refrigerant technology. “I see what we’re working on is just another tool in that toolkit, and so hopefully you will as well.”
Pascal and MIMiC, a Brooklyn, New York-based designer of solid-state semiconductor heating and cooling systems, are in the development stage. Magnotherm, a German developer of magnetocaloric cooling systems, is further along, installing a reach-in cabinet using its system in a Rewe store near Frankfurt, with plans to place an additional eight units in additional Rewe stores this year, said Timur Sirman, CEO & Co-Founder of Magnotherm.
The companies believe that, though their products are currently more expensive than vapor-compression systems, they can be more efficient.
Pascal
Slavney described the Pascal system as a “low pressure CO2 [R744] heat pump” that “avoids the hot ambient challenges of CO2 and the flammability challenges of propane [R290] and is also PFAS-free and very low GWP.”
In the Pascal system, CO2 does not change phase between gas and liquid as it would in standard vapor compression. Instead CO2 gas is pushed by a compressor with 10bar (145psi) of pressure into a metal tube (cartridge) containing porous solid material, which adsorbs the gas. (Slavney did not identify he solid but described it as “safe enough to eat.”)
“When you do that, the porous solid heats up, and then when you release the pressure [desorb the gas], the porous solid cools down,” he explained. “The gas changes its temperature a little bit, but the solid changes its temperature a lot and is able release large amounts of heat, so that’s why I call it a solid refrigerant.” Pascal could use a variety of gases in this process but finds CO2 to be “really convenient.”
“I think we’re aligned on what we’re trying to do – we want to get rid of HFCs and HFOs as fast as possible.”
Adam Slavney, CEO and Co-Founder of Pascal
Pascal has designed a two-cartridge system, simultaneously pressurizing one cartridge while depressurizing the other. Air or water/glycol carries heat or cold out of the system. “When the cartridge is cold you’re circulating into the space you want to cool, and when the cartridge is hot you’re just rejecting that heat to wherever you need to reject it,” Slavney said.
The Pascal system can deliver a wide range of temperatures, from -40°C to 60°C (-40°F to -76°F). It can cover HVAC, industrial cooling and data center applications. But the company is currently focused on refrigeration and has a self-contained three-door commercial cooler operating in its lab with a temperature of 5°C (41°F). “Starting next year we’re very interested in piloting this system in real devices and real applications, mostly focused in medium-temperature refrigeration,” said Slavney.
According to Slavney, the Pascal system is potentially about 20% more efficient than an equivalent R290 system. “By the end of the year, we’re hoping to be able to show you very good efficiency data,” he said.
Because the Pascal system operates at a low pressure (no more than 20bar/290psi), it uses standard off-the-shelf parts, including standard compressors, piping and valves, Slavney said. As a result he does not anticipate more than a 20 to 30% cost increase compared to an R290 system, adding, “We think in the long run we can make these systems very affordably.”
Slavney emphasized to the natural refrigerant stakeholders at ATMO America 2026 that alternative cooling technologies are “close to being ready and we would like to start working with you all to bring it into the market.” In addition to seeking suppliers of compressors and valves, he needs “help with assembly and with customers” for his product. “I think there’s room in the whole value chain.” While Pascal can make fridges “pretty easily,” he is interested in proving the technology in different products, with a goal of finding pilot partners in refrigeration and HVAC for 2027 and deploying commercially by 2029.
MIMiC Systems
MIMiC Systems’ technology generates a thermal gradient using small semiconductor devices, about 2 by 2in. (5.1 by 5.1cm). Electricity going through the devices creates cold on one side and heat on the other. “You’re basically able to control how much heating or cooling you want to generate simply by controlling the voltage or the current,” said Berardo Matalucci, Co-Founder & CEO of MIMiC.
This technology lends itself to a modular system architecture, allowing it to be scalable, “like a LEGO block,” and boost capacity “as much as you need,” he said. This differentiates the technology from typical vapor compression systems that use a closed loop connecting an evaporator with a condenser. “In our case, you have an array of modular solid-state modular heat pumps” with a hydronic connection. It could be packaged, centralized or distributed.
MIMiC has been able to reduce costs by partnering with a company that can produce more efficient sold-state materials less expensively. The company has designed its electronics to “reach very high efficiencies,” said Matalucci.
The technology can be used in a variety of markets, including building HVAC, refrigeration and data centers. The current focus is mid-to-high-rise commercial buildings for the multi-family apartments and hospitality with hydronic systems. It can be a drop-in replacement that directly connects to the existing building line.
With support from NYSERDA and the National Science Foundation, MIMiC had its first two pilot installations in Vancouver, Canada, in May of last year and is working on other pilots in New York.
“You’re basically able to control how much heating or cooling you want to generate simply by controlling the voltage or the current.”
Berardo Matalucci, Co-Founder & CEO of MIMiC
Because of its low production quantities the cost premium for a MIMiC system would be considerable – $4,500 (€3,951) compared to $2,000 to $3,000 (€1,756 to €2,634) for a water-source heat pump, he said. The goal is to arrive at “a cost that can be absorbed by the heating, cooling and refrigeration industry.”
“We are technology platform company,” said Matalucci. “Our goal is to partner and collaborate with many of you guys as much as possible to enable the adoptions of different types of technologies that may serve different purposes.” In particular MIMiC is seeking to work with large HVAC OEMs because “they have the logistics distribution and know-how. We can operate this technology, but also we like to learn from people who actually work in the field and can help us to develop a better solution.”
Magnotherm
Magnotherm’s pitch is “forget refrigerants – we don’t need them.” Instead the company has developed technology that uses magnetocaloric material – the porous metal alloy lanthanum-iron-silicon – to generate cooling and heating.
The material is contained in a module called the active magnetic regenerator (AMR) where it is exposed to a magnetic field, heating up instantly via what is called the magnetocaloric effect. “Then we extract the heat by pushing a fluid [water or glycol] through the porous structure,” said Sirman.
“We are basically creating hot water, so you could use it as a heat pump very easily.” After rejecting the heat, the material is demagnetized, making it colder than before and allowing it to cool a transfer fluid. At least two modules are used in a system.
“We see lower total cost of ownership with lower energy and maintenance costs.”
Timur Sirman, CEO & Co-Founder of Magnotherm.
Magnotherm offers three versions of its system: Polaris (up to 100W/.03TR)),which can be used in beverage coolers; Eclipse (up to 1kW/.3TR), which is incorporated in retail cabinets; and the new Stellar model (up to 125kW/35.5TR), which employs superconducting magnets, for commercial refrigeration and HVAC, including data centers. Temperatures for the models range from -5°C (23°F) to 50°C (122°F) or higher; currently the focus is medium temperatures.
The company has partnered with German retailer Rewe to test its technology. Rewe, which has installed one Eclipse unit with plans to install eight more, compared it to a propane-based top-loading cabinet and found that the Magnotherm unit was 15% more efficient; Sirman said the efficiency could go up to 30% higher. He is also aiming to eliminate maintenance costs.
Magnotherm has installed the Eclipse system in its own cabinet but also integrates it into the cabinets of OEMs; one example is Austrian manufacturer Hauser, which recently merged with Italian manufacturer Epta.
The cost of the unit is about 20% more than a comparable propane cabinet at the low production levels. “A lot of cost reduction will come,” said Sirman, adding, “We see lower total cost of ownership with lower energy and maintenance costs.”
Sirman said Magnotherm would prefer to outsource manufacturing of its system. To date it has established a co-development and licensing agreement with German manufacturer KMW and is seeking other partners. “Our core knowledge is how the material works, so we think of ourselves as a material supplier in the long term.”
In its recent announcement of the Stellar system, Magnotherm noted that it is seeking technical, commercial and financial partners to “help support the next steps.”
