Carrier Aeroseal LLC, a subsidiary of Carrier Corporation, recently signed two new licensing deals that will enable it to use Berkeley Lab aerosol duct-sealing technology in commercial buildings as well as residences.

Research by Lab inventor Mark Modera and colleagues has shown that leaky ducts are responsible for an average of 20 per cent of all heating and cooling energy waste in U.S. homes. The Electric Power Research Institute estimates that duct sealing procedures could result in annual energy savings of up to $300 per home, resulting in national savings of approximately $30 billion for residential sealing alone. Carrier Aeroseal already has over 70 franchises for performing residential sealing, and thousands of homes have been sealed to increase comfort and decrease energy loss.

Carrier Aeroseal has now expanded the field of use of its older license and licensed new Berkeley Lab inventions that allow the technology to work in commercial HVAC systems. Modera and fellow researcher Duo Wang have assumed active roles in working with the Technology Transfer Department to market their innovations. "I have been working on the aerosol duct sealing technology for nine years, and I feel incredibly rewarded that my invention is on the way to saving money, energy, and the environment," says Wang.

Modera developed the original technology for sealing residential ducts remotely in the mid-1990s. A start-up company called Aeroseal licensed the energy-saving technology in 1997. Aeroseal completed commercial development of the technology and then embarked on a franchising program. In 2001, Aeroseal was acquired by Carrier, the world's largest manufacturer of HVAC equipment.