Despite having less than 5% of the world’s population, the United States accounts for a significant portion of global energy consumption. In 2022, the U.S. consumed approximately 16% of total world power. The residential buildings utilize 21% of total energy, which indicates a significant potential for energy savings that still remains untapped. Vlad Batkhin — founder and CEO of Voltcore, a material science climate tech startup that has developed a unique technology of electrically conductive filaments, — shares his ideas about energy-efficient and cost-reducing heating technologies.
The Main Drawbacks of Popular Heating Solutions
It is well-known that residential heating produces fossil CO2 emissions, either directly or indirectly. Heating with fossil fuels directly contributes to atmospheric CO2. In comparison, when using electricity for heating, the amount of CO2 emissions depends on the carbon footprint of the electricity generation process.
In addition to the ecological issue, heating is quite costly, especially in cold weather conditions. During the winter of 2022-2023, the average American family spent $868 to heat their home. This indicates that there are significant reserves for energy savings in the heating sector which can help lower both CO2 emissions and heating expenditures.
How Can New Heating Solutions Help to Save Resources?
It is widely believed that electric heating is more expensive than gas heating. However, when you consider different factors, electric-powered infrared heating can actually be much cheaper than traditional heating especially when combined with smart-home systems. Infrared heaters are not something new to the market and were broadly used for outdoor restaurant heating but recently some promising startups have introduced to the global market way more advanced technologies. Among them is Voltcore, whose aim is to reduce both CO2 footprint and heating costs.
In simple terms, the infrared heating panel, which Voltcore is able to produce, works by directly heating objects in its path, like ceilings, walls, and floors. These objects absorb the heat and slowly release it over time. Infrared heating emits radiant heat that is cleaner compared to traditional heating methods such as radiators, fan heaters, or convector heaters.
In contrast to convection heaters, infrared radiation does not use the air to transport heat, it emits a type of electromagnetic wave that is invisible to the human eye. Like the sun, an infrared heater warms objects instead of the air. Infrared heating is highly energy efficient because it allows for zone heating. You can specify which rooms to heat by switching on the panel heater only in the desired areas. This approach enables you to warm specific parts of your home as needed and adjust the temperature to your preference. Compared to water and metallic cabling systems, infrared heaters have almost zero inertia and start to deliver heat right after turning the system on.
Smart Home Solution
Infrared heating can be conveniently controlled via an app on your smartphone, tablet, computer or remote control. This makes it an ideal addition to smart home systems, allowing for seamless integration and easy management. Besides, by analyzing the behavior of individuals within a household, a well-designed algorithm can effectively monitor and adjust energy usage for smart heating systems based on whether the residents are active, away, or asleep.
With its cost savings, environmental benefits, and effectiveness, smart infrared heating is the ideal solution for households in areas requiring both indoor and outdoor heating.
This piece was written by Vlad Batkhin — a founder and CEO of Voltcore, a professional with over 15 years of expertise in business development and complex new-tech capital project execution in the chemical business. Voltcore is a rapidly developing material science climate tech startup.
