Producing Passive Radiative Cooling Panels And Modules

A fabrication system for producing passive radiative cooling panels on an aluminum ribbon drawn from a feed roller, the system comprising:

• an anodization station including a first guide mechanism configured to guide a first section of said ribbon through a first chemical bath, said anodization station being configured to generate metamaterial nanostructures disposed in an ultra-black metamaterial-based pattern on said first ribbon section;
• a metal plating station disposed downstream from said anodization station including a second guide mechanism configured to guide a second section of said ribbon through a second chemical bath, said metal plating station being configured to deposit a plated metal over previously formed metamaterial nanostructures to produce metal-plated metamaterial nanostructures configured to generate radiant energy having wavelengths in the range of 8 μm to 13 μm with an emissivity of at least 0.998;
• and
• a reflector mounting station configured to mount a reflective layer onto a third section of said ribbon such that the reflective layer covers said metal-plated metamaterial nanostructures, wherein the reflective layer is configured to have a reflectance of at least 90% for radiant energy having wavelengths of 2 μm or less, and is also configured to have a reflectance of 10% or less for radiant energy having wavelengths in the range of 8 μm to 13 μm.

A method for producing a passive radiative cooling module, the method comprising:

• anodizing an aluminum foil while the controlling the formation of an aluminum oxide layer on the aluminum foil using an Anodic Aluminum Oxide (AAO) self-assembly template technique such that tapered nanopores disposed in a hexagonally packed array are formed in said aluminum oxide layer on a first surface of said aluminum foil;
• forming a plated metal layer onto the first surface of said aluminum foil such that said plated metal layer is formed on tapered side walls disposed inside said tapered nanopores, thereby forming metal-coated tapered nanopores;
• mounting a reflective layer onto said first surface of said aluminum foil;
• and
• mounting a conduit structure under aluminum foil such that said conduit structure and a second surface of said aluminum foil define a flow channel configured to contain a coolant such that the coolant contacts the second surface of said aluminum foil, whereby thermal energy from the coolant is transferred through said aluminum foil to said metal-coated tapered nanopores.