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Innovations in reflectometry techniques are described; and the development of an absorbing selective coating is discussed along with details of surface properties. Conclusions as to the parameterization desired for practical applications of selective surfaces are provided.
A complete residential solar space heating and hot water system is described. Low maintenance, durable, and efficient air heating collectors are used. The collectors have a selective absorber and a tempered glass cover nearly one-quarter of an inch thick with an aluminum frame. The solar energy can be delivered directly to the living area when there is a demand; otherwise, it is stored in the form of hot water. Hot water storage is accomplished through the use of an air-to-water exchanger. The hot water storage is used simultaneously to preheat the domestic hot water, as well as to store energy for space heating.
A panel is described for selectively absorbing solar energy comprising an aluminum substrate. A zinc layer was covered by a layer of nickel and an outer layer of solar energy absorbing nickel oxide or a copper substrate with a nickel layer. A layer of solar energy absorbing nickel oxide distal from the copper substrate was included. A method for making these panels is disclosed.
A method for making panels which selectively absorb solar energy is disclosed. The panels are comprised of an aluminum substrate, a layer of zinc thereon, a layer of nickel over the zinc layer and an outer layer of solar energy absorbing nickel oxide or a copper substrate with a layer of nickel thereon and a layer of solar energy absorbing nickel oxide distal from the copper substrate.
Various coatings developed in the FRG (i.e., second-surface mirrors with interference filters with and without conductive layers, conductive layers on solar-cell covers, and selective absorber coatings) have been qualified by accelerated tests under simulated space environment conditions. Experiments with coatings and solar cells have shown, however, that the thermo-optical behavior can differ considerably when performed on the ground and in space because of the great difficulty in simulating the space environment realistically. The objective of this experiment is to qualify these coatings under realistic space environment conditions. In addition, the experiment will provide design criteria, techniques, and test methods to insure control of the combined space and spacecraft environment effects, such as contamination, electrical conductance, and optical degradation, on the coatings. Data to be measured include the temperature of the samples, the electrical resistance of the conductive layers of the samples, the short circuit current of the solar-cell modules, and the deposition of contaminants on the samples (using quartz crystal microbalances (QCM's)).
Longitudinally asymmetric features of gravity wave propagation in a sudden warming are examined theoretically, using observed geostrophic wind fields in the stratosphere for three days of winter 1979. It is shown that the wind patterns accompanying a sudden warming act to reduce, but not eliminate, quasi-stationary gravity wave propagation to the mesosphere. The onset of large-amplitude planetary waves leads to the formation of propagating zones and forbidden zones for gravity waves of intermediate horizontal scale (50-200 km). Lateral ray movement and horizontal refraction are secondary but observable effects for these waves. To the extent that these waves are excited isotropically in the troposphere, it is possible to evaluate the direction and magnitude of the average wavevector reaching the mesosphere as follows. Stationary waves with wavevector orthogonal to the local mean flow are selectively absorbed in the stratosphere, implying that for these waves the average wavevector transmitted to the mesosphere is antiparallel to the average of the mean flow orientation extrema in the underlying stratosphere.
The effects of various gaseous atmospheric constituents on drop-tube solidified samples of elemental metals were examined from a microstructural standpoint. All specimens were prepared from the purest available elements, so effects of impurities should not account for the observed effects. The drop-tube gas has a definite effect on the sample microstructure. Most dramatically, the sample cooling rate is effected. Some samples receive sufficient cooling to solidify in free fall while others do not, splating at the end of the drop tube in the sample catcher. Gases are selectively absorbed into the sample. Upon solidification gas can become less soluble and as a result forms voids within the sample. The general oxidation/reduction characteristics of the gas also affect sample microstructures. In general, under the more favorable experimental conditions including reducing atmospheric conditions and superheatings, examination of sample microstructures indicates that nucleation has been suppressed. This is indicated by underlying uniform dendrite spacings throughout the sample and with a single dendrite orientation through most of the sample. The samples were annealed yielding a few large grains and single or bi-crystal samples were commonly formed. This was especially true of samples that were inadvertently greatly superheated. This is in contrast with results from a previous study in which surface oxides were stable and contained numerous sites of nucleation. The number of nucleation events depends upon the surface state of the specimen as determined by the atmosphere and is consistent with theoretical expectations based upon the thermodynamic stability of surface oxide films. Oxide-free specimens are characterized by shiny surfaces, with no observable features under the scanning electron microscope at 5000X.
Amplified spontaneous emission, ASE, generated by a Ti:Al2O3 laser amplifier has been measured as a function of pump energy, and thus gain, using the atomic absorption of rubidium, Rb, gas at 0.780 micron. By tuning the Ti:Al2O3 laser, the Rb cell could selectively absorb the narrow spectral bandwidth laser radiation while transmitting the wide spectral bandwidth ASE. Transmission of laser amplifier pulses through a Rb absorption cell, measured at various temperatures, thus allows the measurement of the weak ASE in the vicinity of the strong laser pulse. A model for the transmission of Rb as a function of temperature and wavelength has been developed. The measured transmissions are in good agreement with the transmission model predictions.
A piezoelectric cantilever with a non-piezoelectric, or piezoelectric tip useful as mass and viscosity sensors. The change in the cantilever mass can be accurately quantified by monitoring a resonance frequency shift of the cantilever. For bio-detection, antibodies or other specific receptors of target antigens may be immobilized on the cantilever surface, preferably on the non-piezoelectric tip. For chemical detection, high surface-area selective absorbent materials are coated on the cantilever tip. Binding of the target antigens or analytes to the cantilever surface increases the cantilever mass. Detection of target antigens or analytes is achieved by monitoring the cantilever's resonance frequency and determining the resonance frequency shift that is due to the mass of the adsorbed target antigens on the cantilever surface. The use of a piezoelectric unimorph cantilever allows both electrical actuation and electrical sensing. Incorporating a non-piezoelectric tip (14) enhances the sensitivity of the sensor. In addition, the piezoelectric cantilever can withstand damping in highly viscous liquids and can be used as a viscosity sensor in wide viscosity range.
Simplifying the manufacturing processes of renewable energy technologies is crucial to lowering the barriers to commercialization. In this context, to improve the manufacturability of perovskite solar cells (PSCs), here we have developed a one-step solution-coating procedure in which the hole-selective contact and perovskite light absorber spontaneously form, resulting in efficient inverted PSCs. We observed that phosphonic or carboxylic acids, incorporated into perovskite precursor solutions, self-assemble on the indium tin oxide substrate during perovskite film processing. They form a robust self-assembled monolayer as an excellent hole-selective contact while the perovskite crystallizes. Our approach solves wettability issues and simplifies device fabrication, advancing the manufacturability of PSCs. Our PSC devices with positive-intrinsic-negative (p-i-n) geometry show a power conversion efficiency of 24.5% and retain >90% of their initial efficiency after 1,200 h of operating at the maximum power point under continuous illumination. The approach shows good generality as it is compatible with different self-assembled monolayer molecular systems, perovskites, solvents and processing methods.
The design of honeycomb made of sinusoidally corrugated glass strips was optimized for use in water-cooled, single-glazed flat plate solar collectors with non-selective black absorbers. Cell diameter (d), cell height (L), and pitch/diameter ratio (P/d) maximizing solar collector performance and cost effectiveness for given cell wall thickness (t sub w) and optical properties of glass were determined from radiative and convective honeycomb characteristics and collector performance all calculated with experimentally validated algorithms. Relative lifetime values were estimated from present materials costs and postulated production methods for corrugated glass honeycomb cover assemblies. A honeycomb with P/d = 1.05, d = 17.4 mm, L = 146 mm and t sub w = 0.15 mm would provide near-optimal performance over the range delta T sub C greater than or equal to 0 C and less than or equal to 80 C and be superior in performance and cost effectiveness to a non-honeycomb collector with a 0.92/0.12 selective black absorber.
Micro/nanostructures play a key role in tuning the radiative properties of materials and have been applied to the high-temperature energy conversion systems for improved performance. Among the various radiative properties, spectral emittance is of integral importance for the design and analysis of materials that function as radiative absorbers or emitters. This article presents an overview of the spectral emittance measurement techniques using both the direct and indirect methods. Several micro/nanostructures are also introduced, and a special emphasis is placed on the emissometers developed for characterizing engineered micro/nanostructures in high-temperature applications (e.g., solar energy conversion and thermophotovoltaic devices). Both experimental facilities and measured results for different materials are summarized. Future prospects in developing instrumentation and micro/nanostructured surfaces for practical applications are also outlined. This study provides a comprehensive source of information for the application of micro/nanostructures in high-temperature energy conversion engineering.
The Muon g-2 experiment aims to measure the anomalous magnetic moment of the muon with higher precision than previous experiments. In order to do this muons are created from protons hitting the target and are then sent to the M4 and M5 lines to be injected into the storage ring. The storage ring only accepts muons with momentum within 0.2% of 3094 MeV/c. In order to decrease the number of lost muons a wedge was placed in the M5 beam line to utilize the properties of ionization cooling to create a more uniform momentum spread. Previous simulations predicted a much larger gain of storable muons than the experimental results showed. In order to determine the cause of this discrepancy, simulations were run using a GEANT4 based code to track muons through the M4 and M5 lines, the inflector, and the storage ring while adjusting the orientation, material, geometrical parameters and studying the performance of this wedge for a wide range of incoming muon energies.
Most chiral metamaterials and metasurfaces are designed to operate in a single wavelength band and with a certain circular dichroism (CD) value. Here, mid-infrared chiral metasurface absorbers with selective CD in dual-wavelength bands are designed and demonstrated. The dual-band CD selectivity and tunability in the chiral metasurface absorbers are enabled by the unique design of a unit cell with two coupled rectangular bars. It is shown that the sign of CD in each wavelength band can be independently controlled and flipped by simply adjusting the geometric parameters, the width and the length, of the vertical rectangular bars. The mechanism of the dual-band CD selection in the chiral metasurface absorber is further revealed by studying the electric field and magnetic field distributions of the antibonding and bonding modes supported in the coupled bars under circularly polarized incident light. Furthermore, the chiral resonance wavelength can be continuously increased by scaling up the geometric parameters of the metasurface unit cell. The demonstrated results will contribute to the advance of future mid-infrared applications such as chiral molecular sensing, thermophotovoltaics, and optical communication.
We have used a Near-Infrared Camera and Multi-Object Spectrometer (NICMOS3) HgCdTe 256x256 array detector with the Infrared (IR) camera on the 2.3m telescope at Steward Observatory to image several Quasi-Stellar Object (QSO) fields. The limiting magnitude is K'(2.1 microns) = 21.0 - 21.5 mag per square arcsec for a 3 sigma detection in 3 hours of in-field chopping observations. Each QSO line-of-sight samples several known absorbers with Mg2(lambda)2796-2803 A and/or C4(lambda)1548-1551 A absorption doublets. The equivalent width distributions of the low and high ionization absorption lines of the absorber sample are identical to those of the parent population of all absorbers. This selection process, used already for a spectroscopic survey of Mg2 absorption lines in C4-selected absorption systems at high z, gives a methodical approach to observing, reduces the observer biases, and makes a more efficient use of telescope time. This selection guarantees that imaging of the sample of QSO fields will provide complete sampling of the whole population of high z QSO absorbers. Follow-up optical and IR spectroscopy of these objects is scheduled for redshift measurement and confirmation of the absorbing galaxies and the cluster members.
Solar thermal technologies have great potential to provide low-cost storage for solar energy. However, their efficiencies are limited by a lack of scalable, mechanically flexible, durable, yet highly-efficient spectrally-selective solar absorbers suitable for high temperatures at low solar concentrations. Here, we overcome these challenges by fabricating a scalable free-standing spectrally-selective thin-film Si absorber and emitter (SSTFS) composite. Its high-temperature emittance shows strong spectral selectivity, even at 595 °C. Thermal stability is proven by measuring optical properties before and after thermal cycling equivalent to one day of concentrated sunlight. Despite the use of crystalline Si, the fabricated SSTFS composite exhibits exceptional mechanical flexibility to cover most surface geometries. The SSTFS composite demonstrates the potential of high-temperature, efficient and flexible solar absorbers and thermal emitters to advance renewable solar energy with storage.
Mid-infrared (MIR) detectors find extensive applications in chemical sensing, spectroscopy, communications, biomedical diagnosis, and space exploration. Alternative to semiconductor MIR photodiodes and bolometers, mechanical-resonator-based MIR detectors show advantages in higher sensitivity and lower noise at room temperature, especially toward longer wavelength infrared. Here, uncooled room-temperature MIR detectors based on lithium niobate surface acoustic wave phononic crystal (PnC) resonators integrated with wavelength-and-polarization-selective metasurface absorber arrays are demonstrated. The detection is based on the resonant frequency shift induced by the local temperature change due to MIR absorptions. The PnC resonator is configured in an oscillating mode, enabling active readout and low-frequency noise. The 1-GHz oscillator-based MIR detector shows a relative frequency deviation of 5.24 × 10 −10 Hz −1/2 at an integration time of 50 µs, leading to an incident noise equivalent power of 197 pW Hz −1/2 when input 6-µm MIR light is modulated at 1.8 kHz, and a large dynamic range of 10 7 in incident MIR power. The device architecture is compatible with the scalable manufacturing process and can be readily extended to a broader spectral range by tailoring the absorbing wavelengths of metasurface absorbers.
Since the synthesis of a liquid hydrocarbon fuel from coal by Franz Fischer and Hans Tropsch in 1923, there has been cyclic interest in developing this fuel for military and commercial applications. In recent years the U.S. Department of Defense has taken interest in producing a unified battlespace fuel using the Fischer Tropsch (FT) process for a variety of reasons including cost, quality, and logistics. In the past year there has been a particular emphasis on moving quickly to demonstrate that an FT fuel can be used in the form of a blend with conventional petroleum-derived jet fuel. The initial objective is to employ this semi-synthetic fuel with blend ratios as high as 50 percent FT with longer range goals to use even high blend ratios and ultimately a fully synthetic jet fuel. A significant concern associated with the use of a semi-synthetic jet fuel with high FT blend ratios is the effect these low aromatic fuels will have on fuel-wetted polymeric materials, most notably seals and sealants. These materials typically swell and soften to some degree when exposed to jet fuel and the aromatic content of these fuels contribute to this effect. Semi-synthetic jet fuels with very low aromatic contents may cause seals and sealants to shrink and harden leading to acute or chronic failure. Unfortunately, most of the material qualification tests are more concerned with excessive swelling than shrinkage and there is little guidance offered as to an acceptable level of shrinkage or other changes in physical properties related to low aromatic content. Given the pressing need for guidance data, a program was developed to rapidly survey the volume swell of selected fuel-wetted materials in a range of conventional and semi-synthetic jet fuels and through a statistical analysis to make a determination as to whether there was a basis to be concerned about using fuels with FT blend ratios as high as 50 percent. Concurrent with this analysis data was obtained as to the composition of the fuel absorbed in fuel-wetted materials through the use of GC-MS analysis of swollen samples as well as other supporting data. In this presentation the authors will present a summary of the results of the volume swell and fuel absorbed by selected O-rings and sealants as well as a description of the measurement protocols developed for this program.