We recently joined a team of U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) Engineering Research Center (ERC), formed by a group of faculty from six engineering schools, including UMD A. James Clark School of Engineering. Named as Environmentally Applied Refrigerant Technology Hub (EARTH), the team is focused on reining in the environmental costs of refrigeration technologies and will reimagine the process for heating, ventilation, air-conditioning, and refrigeration (HVACR) systems across the globe. EARTH will develop sustainable, accessible, and equitable refrigerant technologies and practices through research, education, and innovation that will improve quality of life and combat climate change.

NSF’s Engineering Research Centers program brings technology-based industry and universities together to strengthen the competitive position of American industry in the global marketplace. This ERC has interacting foundational components that go beyond the research project, including engineering workforce development and value creation within an innovation ecosystem that will outlast the lifetime of the ERC.