Press releases | 11/29/2022 Using lava stones in cooling and freezing facilitates a quantum leap in energy efficiency

Liebherr-Hausgeräte GmbH is revolutionising technology in its fridges and freezers. Liebherr is the only manufacturer in the world to use a vacuum in conjunction with finely ground lava stone, the raw material perlite, to insulate its appliances. The first vacuum perlite models, named BluRoX, will be on the market as early as January 2023. For the very first time, it is possible to produce freezers with the energy efficiency class “A” and “B” in accordance with EU legislation thanks to the innovative technology.

The first vacuum perlite models, named BluRoX, will be on the market as early as January 2023.

Single image, web (755 KB) Gallery ZIP, Print & Web (92.0 MB)

The patented BlueRoX technology offers many advantages.

Single image, web (421 KB) Gallery ZIP, Print & Web (92.0 MB)

The FNb 5056 freezer will be the first hybrid model whose door is equipped with BluRoX technology.

Single image, web (982 KB) Gallery ZIP, Print & Web (92.0 MB)

Until now, refrigerators and freezers have been insulated with conventional insulating materials made from petroleum-based polyurethane foam. Instead of these common foam elements, and in a world's first, BluRoX uses a vacuum in combination with finely ground perlite for insulation. Due to its crystalline microstructure, the lava stone perlite has a very low thermal conductivity, and the vacuum provides the best possible insulation in terms of energy. “For a family with a 350-litre freezer, the annual power consumption for the appliance could be reduced by up to 20 per cent”, explains Steffen Nagel, Managing Director Sales & Marketing at Liebherr-Hausgeräte GmbH. “This translates into notable savings with steadily rising electricity prices.”

The space-saving miracle: 25 per cent more space for food

The new combination of a vacuum and finely ground lava stone enables a very compact design. Due to the particularly effective BluRoX insulation, Liebherr can design the walls of a BluRoX freezer to be about one third thinner than the walls of a conventional foam-insulated appliance. For an appliance fully equipped with vacuum perlite technology, the result is about 25 percent greater capacity compared to fridges and freezers with the same external dimensions.

Lava stone: the altogether environmentally-friendly cooling wonder

BluRoX equipment is not only manufactured in an environmentally friendly manner, but also proves to be a very eco-conscious choice at the end its service life. That is due to the fact that lava stone perlite can be easily removed and re-introduced into the manufacturing cycle and therefore re-used in new equipment without significant processing. The BluRoX insulation is not bonded to the surrounding components, so the outer shell and inner container can easily be re-processed and re-used.

In addition, the lava stone perlite is a naturally renewable raw material. Only a small area is required for mining, which can then be restored to its natural state. Liebherr sources perlite from Europe and then processes it at its production site in Ochsenhausen and uses it in equipment with BluRoX technology.

Available from January 2023: a BluRoX hybrid appliance

In January 2023, Liebherr-Hausgeräte will launch the first freezer with BluRoX technology in the door. The walls of this FNb 5056 hybrid model are insulated with conventional foam insulation. As the first of its kind, this model will have efficiency class “B” in accordance with the new EU energy label. This will be followed over the next two years by the first BluRoX freezer fully equipped with vacuum perlite technology, which will be even more energy-efficient while offering the full space benefits this technology allows.

Liebherr's world first is based on ten years of research and the company's patented technology. “With BluRoX, we are fulfilling the wish of a growing number of consumers who want to make their everyday lives more sustainable, save energy, and conserve resources,” states Steffen Nagel. “These new BluRoX freezers are extremely energy-efficient, recyclable, and retain the usual Liebherr ‘Made in Germany’ quality – they are going to be real customer magnets.”

Downloads

Here you will find the press release for download.

Presseinformation Deutsch DOCX (225 KB)
Presseinformation Deutsch PDF (234 KB)
Press release English DOCX (217 KB)
Press release English PDF (228 KB)

Video

We need your consent This video is provided by Google*. When you load this video, your data, including your IP address, is transmitted to Google, and may be stored and processed by Google, also for its own purposes, outside the EU or the EEA and thus in a third country, in particular in the USA**. We have no influence on further data processing by Google. By clicking on “ACCEPT”, you consent to the data transmission to Google for this video pursuant to Art. 6 para. 1 point a GDPR. If you do not want to consent to each YouTube video individually in the future and want to be able to load them without this blocker, you can also select “Always accept YouTube videos” and thus also consent to the respectively associated data transmissions to Google for all other YouTube videos that you will access on our website in the future. You can withdraw given consents at any time with effect for the future and thus prevent the further transmission of your data by deselecting the respective service under “Miscellaneous services (optional)” in the settings later also accessible via the “Privacy Settings” in the footer of our website). For further information, please refer to Data Protection Declaration and the Google Privacy Policy. * Google Ireland Limited, Gordon House, Barrow Street, Dublin 4, Ireland; parent company: Google LLC, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
** Note: The data transfer to the USA associated with the data transmission to Google takes place on the basis of the European Commission’s adequacy decision of 10 July 2023 (EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework).

Contact

Nina Bendel

Communication & Brand Management


Liebherr-Hausgeräte Ochsenhausen GmbH

Memminger Straße 77-79

88416 Ochsenhausen

Germany