Zero Energy Cool Chambers

The Times of India: Considering the need for a substitute to a refrigerator in rural areas, especially when the power supply in the villages is erratic, Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) of CSA University has demonstrated that the chambers – a temporary storage structure – can keep vegetables and milk products fresh for longer periods, without using any electricity.
These zero energy cool chambers are based on the principle of evaporation and thus, they maintain a low temperature inside even in hot weather. The initiative has been taken so that garden produce, medicine and milk products can be stored as fresh for longer and thus, farmers can improve their standard of living.
“It works like the conventional mud-pitcher. The chambers were constructed and it was observed that even at a high temperature of 40-42 degrees Celsius, the milk stored in these cool chambers was fresh up to 24-36 hours, while green vegetables like bottle gourd, tomato, brinjal and chillies remained fresh for 24-40 hours,” said Nimisha Awasthi, a home scientist, who was actively involved in the implementation of this technology at Daleep Nagar, KVK.
She explained further that not only does it retain low temperature, it works without electricity and saves on the power and energy as well, and thus, the name zero energy cool chambers.
A fridge in your backyard [The Times of India]