FAQ & techsheets | TerraVac

FAQ

General

What is vacuum insulation and how does it work?

In an insulation material, heat is mainly transported by gas molecules. Vacuum insulation removes exactly these molecules. A porous core material is enclosed in a gas-tight high-barrier film and evacuated. What remains is a structure that barely conducts heat. The result is insulation performance many times higher than conventional insulation of the same thickness.

What are the advantages of vacuum insulation over conventional insulation?

For the same insulation performance, the insulation layer is much thinner. That frees up installation space, giving more usable volume within unchanged outer dimensions or more compact products. At the same insulation thickness, energy consumption falls, enabling a better energy efficiency class. With TerraVac, the vacuum body is also self-supporting and combines structure and insulation in a single component.

Who is TerraVac?

TerraVac is a Deep Tech company for industrial vacuum insulation based in Karlstadt, Germany, and a wholly owned subsidiary of the Liebherr Group. We develop film-based perlite vacuum insulation and other insulation technologies, from thermodynamic design to series production. The technology has been in series production since 2019 and is used today in refrigerators and freezers, storage tanks, pipes and panels.

How does perlite vacuum insulation differ from vacuum insulation panels (VIPs)?

VIPs are inserted or foamed in as finished panels, with thermal bridges at every joint. Perlite vacuum insulation instead forms a continuous, self-supporting vacuum body in the shape of the product. Then there is the core material. Perlite is a volcanic rock, which makes it much cheaper and less energy-intensive to produce than fumed silica, and therefore more sustainable.

How thin can vacuum insulation be?

Vacuum insulation only makes sense above a certain thickness. A lower limit for STRATMO is 30 mm, for STRATMO+ 10 mm. There are exceptions, and in some cases even half that thickness can be economically viable. Because our technology often changes the product architecture, installation space becomes a design parameter rather than a constraint.

When is vacuum insulation economically worthwhile?

When insulation has to do more than insulate. As soon as installation space, energy efficiency class or usable volume define the value of a product, it pays off, often through eliminated process steps and design elements alone. What matters is the overall picture. Anyone who only compares material costs per square metre misses most of the benefit. And even on cost alone, our technology can keep up in high-volume production.

What does a better energy efficiency class cost, and what does it deliver?

The additional cost depends heavily on the product and the volume. In our calculations, it is regularly below the premium the market is willing to pay, and in some cases manufacturing costs even fall because design elements are no longer needed. The benefit is twofold. A better label today, and compliance with future tightening without another development cycle.

STRATMO

What applications is STRATMO suitable for?

STRATMO is suitable wherever larger volumes or complex geometries need high-quality insulation. That includes refrigerators and freezers, refrigerated furniture and cold room construction, transport and pharma boxes, hot water and cold storage tanks, district heating and cryogenic pipes, and insulation panels for cold stores and building applications. The technology is proven in high-volume production.

How does STRATMO create more usable volume in refrigeration appliances?

Because the insulation layer is thinner for the same performance, interior space is freed up within unchanged outer dimensions. In a freezer, for example, 30 to 80 percent more usable volume is achievable. As the vacuum body is self-supporting, structural parts can also be eliminated and the refrigeration system can be rearranged, all the way to completely new form factors.

How do hot water storage tanks reach energy efficiency class A with STRATMO?

The EU energy label (ErP) rates standing heat loss in watts. Conventional insulation reaches a practical limit here, because the required thickness makes the tank unwieldy. STRATMO reduces heat loss with a thinner insulation layer to the point where class A becomes achievable, even with the planned tightening of requirements in mind.

Is STRATMO suitable for district heating and piping systems?

Yes. In a comparison on a DN 125 pipe, perlite vacuum insulation achieves significantly lower heat loss than PU foam with an outer diameter around 20 percent smaller. The thinner insulation reduces transport costs and allows narrower trenches with less civil engineering work. Pipes for cryogenic applications can also be built with the technology.

Can STRATMO technology also be used to make insulation panels for the construction industry?

Yes. Panels and boards for cold stores, façades and building applications are among its uses. We work with manufacturers and system providers who integrate the panels into their own products and systems. We do not supply private customers or tradespeople.

What is STRATMO+ and how does it differ from STRATMO?

STRATMO+ embeds a glass fibre vacuum panel in the vacuum space of a STRATMO body. As a standalone panel, glass fibre ages too quickly for products with a service life of several years. Inside the second vacuum space, however, its very low thermal conductivity is retained over the long term. STRATMO+ is more complex to design but delivers the best insulation performance per unit of weight.

SILYNT

What makes SILYNT special?

SILYNT combines insulation and active cooling in one product. The Peltier elements sit directly in the vacuum space of an almost thermal-bridge-free insulation body and work very efficiently thanks to the low heat ingress. With no compressor, cooling is silent and needs only minimal installation space.

Which compact cooling applications is SILYNT suitable for?

SILYNT is designed for refrigeration appliances with tight installation space, where a compressor is a nuisance or simply doesn't fit, such as refrigerated drawers, built-in solutions and refrigerated furniture. In a refrigerated drawer, around four watts are enough for a temperature difference of 20 kelvin. Silent operation also makes the technology attractive for living and working spaces.

Is SILYNT suitable for medical and transport refrigeration?

SILYNT is generally suitable for small, stationary medical refrigeration units with tight installation space. Transport and pharma boxes, on the other hand, we mostly build with STRATMO, because volume, robustness and passive hold time are the priority there. We work out which technology fits based on temperature level, installation space and usage profile.

Technology

How stable is the vacuum over the product's service life?

Undamaged perlite vacuum insulation ages very slowly. In our own measurements over several years, thermal conductivity increased much more slowly than with PU foam and dramatically more slowly than with foamed-in glass fibre panels. Service lives of more than 20 years are readily achievable with STRATMO. A premium manufacturer of refrigerators and freezers gives its customers exactly this commitment.

Does vacuum insulation need maintenance or regular inspection?

No. The vacuum body is a closed system with no moving parts and no wear. Testing takes place in production. Every body goes through quarantine storage and is then checked for leaks with a heat flux sensor. No recurring inspection is required in the field.

What happens if the film is damaged?

If a body loses its vacuum, the perlite remains as a mineral fill and continues to insulate. Much less effectively (from around 7 to around 54 mW/m·K), but the component does not fail suddenly. In series products, a cover layer protects the film, and every body is leak-tested before delivery. We design robustness for each specific application.

What thermal conductivity does TerraVac vacuum insulation achieve?

Thermal conductivity depends on the operating temperature and is often measured at 10 °C. STRATMO reaches around 7 mW/m·K, STRATMO+ locally 1.5 mW/m·K. These values refer to the core material. For design purposes, what counts is the total system heat ingress including edge losses, thermal bridges and ageing. It is naturally somewhat higher and is the only reliable basis for comparing technologies. We provide both values for each project.

Why does TerraVac use perlite as its core material?

Perlite is expanded volcanic rock. It is mineral, widely available and can be produced with little energy. Its fine pore structure lowers the vacuum level required and keeps the vacuum space stable over the long term. As a rock, perlite is also unaffected by the foreseeable regulatory tightening on plastics, blowing agents and flame retardants.

What temperature ranges is the insulation suitable for?

In principle, from cryogenic temperatures up to the hot water range. The limit is set not by the perlite but by the envelope. At higher temperatures, gas permeation through the film increases, and at very low temperatures the seal seam becomes critical. Our metal-to-film bonding extends this range significantly. We define specific limits for each application.

What shapes, sizes and geometries are possible?

The vacuum body is built in the shape of the product rather than inserted as a panel. That makes three-dimensional geometries possible, including containers, pipes, round panels and drawers. Large volumes can also be produced economically. Design limits depend on the component and the manufacturing process and are clarified together at an early stage.

How does the insulation behave in a fire?

Perlite is a mineral rock and is itself non-combustible. However, the complete build-up also includes film and cover layers whose behaviour depends on the materials chosen, so classification is done for each application. Compared with PU foam, there is no need for halogenated flame retardants, which helps with regulatory compliance.

How recyclable is perlite vacuum insulation?

Perlite is a pure natural rock and can be recovered after use. The build-up is deliberately designed so that the materials can be separated. A Liebherr Group freezer fully insulated with perlite vacuum insulation is Cradle to Cradle Certified® at Bronze level and has received the German Sustainability Award.

Collaboration

How does a development project with TerraVac work?

We start with a technical workshop in which we jointly clarify requirements, target values and feasibility and select a pilot product. We then build functional prototypes with your product for you to test under your own conditions. Both sides decide together on the next step at a predefined gate.

How long does it take to reach series maturity?

We expect six to ten months from the workshop to reliable prototypes. The subsequent development to market maturity, including specified equipment and processes, typically takes twelve to eighteen months. After that, the path to series production depends mainly on your own development and investment cycles.

How does TerraVac support us during the development phases?

We take care of design, manufacturing and quality assurance of the prototypes and bring in our own measurement technology, simulation and machine building. For the market launch, we can also set up production ourselves and supply you before you invest in your own equipment. That keeps the step into series production predictable.

What does working with TerraVac cost?

That depends on the phase. Getting started with the first prototypes costs you nothing apart from your team's time. In the subsequent development to market maturity, you share the development costs. From market launch onwards, you buy products at a series price or a series support service. We agree the details for each project.

How can vacuum insulation be integrated into existing production lines?

Not one to one, and we say so openly. The vacuum body requires a new manufacturing process with film handling, perlite filling and evacuation. That is exactly why we first set up this step at our site and supply you until your volumes justify a line of your own. We plan the connection to your assembly from the outset.

Does TerraVac also supply private customers?

No. We work exclusively with industrial customers who integrate our vacuum insulation into their own series products. For building and consumer applications, please contact manufacturers and system providers who produce insulation panels based on our technology. We are happy to forward such enquiries to the right partner.

The hard facts.

techsheets

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SILYNT

Technology

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