CFM Seminar

Our Guest Speakers are Gabriel Marcus and LIndsey Gray, Department of Physics. This is a two-handed seminar and they will speak on the “Center of Nanotechnology updates: Seebeck ion pump and solar collector”.

Here are the introductions to their talks:

Gabriel Marcus – Chalcogenide-based thermoelectrics rely on the Seebeck effect to directly convert temperature gradients into electric voltages, and they have been used extensively as energy harvesters. In recent years, these materials have been investigated for another potential application: Seebeck-mediated ion transport. Here, I will introduce some aspects of a combined carrier-ionic Seebeck effect as well as data obtained from experiments carried out at the WFU Nanotech Center using molybdenum disulfide (MoS₂) as a thermoelectric ion pump. Based on results from measurements of voltage and osmolarity changes across heated MoS₂ membranes, we believe we have found an effective and inexpensive method of transporting ions via temperature gradients. Novel types of desalination and rechargeable battery technologies that incorporate MoS₂ as a thermoelectric ion transporter will be discussed as well.

Lindsey Gray – The second half of the talk is based on a hybrid photovoltaic thermal collector. The photovoltaic absorbs radiation in the visible wavelength region while the thermal system consists of an infrared absorbing thermal fluid, which contains an ultraviolet downshifting dye. Through the use of a 3D curved architecture, we have shown that under solar simulation our design is able to generate more electrical energy than a planar Si PV of the same performance. In addition to the increased electrical performance there is 35 W/m2 of thermal energy generated which otherwise would damage the quality of the PV over time, a common issue with planar traditional PVs. The part of our talk will conclude with the increased thermal performance of the system due to the downshifting dye.