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Full-Text Articles in Engineering
Retraining Investment For Alberta’S Oil And Gas Workers For Green Jobs In The Solar Industry, Theresa K. Meyer, Carol Hunsberger, Joshua M. Pearce
Retraining Investment For Alberta’S Oil And Gas Workers For Green Jobs In The Solar Industry, Theresa K. Meyer, Carol Hunsberger, Joshua M. Pearce
Michigan Tech Publications, Part 2
If oil sands are to be eliminated from the energy market to protect the global environment, human health and long-term economic welfare, a significant number of workers will be displaced in the transition to renewable energy technologies. This study outlines a cost-effective and convenient path for oil and gas workers in Alberta to be retrained in the burgeoning solar photovoltaic (PV) industry. Many oil and gas workers would be able to transfer fields with no additional training required. This study examines retraining options for the remainder of workers using the most closely matching skill equivalent PV job to minimize retraining …
Can Grid-Tied Solar Photovoltaics Lead To Residential Heating Electrification? A Techno-Economic Case Study In The Midwestern U.S., Nelson Sommerfeldt, Joshua M. Pearce
Can Grid-Tied Solar Photovoltaics Lead To Residential Heating Electrification? A Techno-Economic Case Study In The Midwestern U.S., Nelson Sommerfeldt, Joshua M. Pearce
Michigan Tech Publications
This study aims to quantify the techno-economic potential of using solar photovoltaics (PV) to support heat pumps (HP) towards the replacement of natural gas heating in a representative North American residence from a house owner's point of view. For this purpose, simulations are performed on: (1) a residential natural gas-based heating system and grid electricity, (2) a residential natural gas-based heating system with PV to serve the electric load, (3) a residential HP system with grid electricity, and (4) a residential HP+PV system. Detailed descriptions are provided along with a comprehensive sensitivity analysis for identifying specific boundary conditions that enable …
Economics Of Grid-Tied Solar Photovoltaic Systems Coupled To Heat Pumps: The Case Of Northern Climates Of The U.S. And Canada, Joshua M. Pearce, Nelson Sommerfeldt
Economics Of Grid-Tied Solar Photovoltaic Systems Coupled To Heat Pumps: The Case Of Northern Climates Of The U.S. And Canada, Joshua M. Pearce, Nelson Sommerfeldt
Michigan Tech Publications
Solar photovoltaic (PV) technology is now a profitable method to decarbonize the grid, but if catastrophic climate change is to be avoided, emissions from transportation and heating must also decarbonize. One approach to renewable heating is leveraging improvements in PV with heat pumps (HPs). To determine the potential for PV+HP systems in northern areas of North America, this study performs numerical simulations and economic analysis using the same loads and climate, but with local electricity and natural gas rates for Sault Ste. Marie, in both Canada and U.S. Ground-mounted, fixed-tilt, grid-tied PV systems are sized to match 100% of electric …
Could 79 People Solarize The U.S. Electric Grid?, Joshua M. Pearce, Emily Prehoda
Could 79 People Solarize The U.S. Electric Grid?, Joshua M. Pearce, Emily Prehoda
Department of Materials Science and Engineering Publications
Although wealth inequality has many established negatives, this study investigates a potential positive, unprecedented wealth concentration makes it possible for solutions to large and seemingly intractable problems to be deployed by convincing a relatively small number of individuals to invest. In order to probe this potential outcome of inequality, this study quantifies the number of people necessary to radically reduce the greenhouse gas emissions responsible for global climate destabilization from the U.S. electric grid, which is one of the largest sources of emissions. Specifically, this study determined that 1544 GW of solar photovoltaic (PV) technology must be deployed to eliminate …
Self-Sufficiency Of 3-D Printers: Utilizing Stand-Alone Solar Photovoltaic Power Systems, Khalid Yousuf Khan, Lucia Gauchia, Joshua M. Pearce
Self-Sufficiency Of 3-D Printers: Utilizing Stand-Alone Solar Photovoltaic Power Systems, Khalid Yousuf Khan, Lucia Gauchia, Joshua M. Pearce
Department of Materials Science and Engineering Publications
A self-replicating rapid prototyper (RepRap) is a type of 3-D printer capable of printing many of its own components in addition to a wide assortment of products from high-value scientific or medical tools to household products and toys. There is some evidence that these printers could provide low-cost distributed manufacturing in underprivileged rural areas. For the most isolated communities without access to the electric grid, a low-cost alternative energy is needed. Solar energy can be harvested through a stand-alone photovoltaic (PV) power system specifically designed to match the needs of the RepRap. The voltage and current requirement for the printer …
Design Optimization Of Polymer Heat Exchanger For Automated Household-Scale Solar Water Pasteurizer, David C. Denkenberger, Joshua M. Pearce
Design Optimization Of Polymer Heat Exchanger For Automated Household-Scale Solar Water Pasteurizer, David C. Denkenberger, Joshua M. Pearce
Department of Materials Science and Engineering Publications
A promising approach to reducing the >870,000 deaths/year globally from unsafe water is flow-through solar water pasteurization systems (SWPs). Unfortunately, demonstrated systems have high capital costs, which limits access for the poor. The most expensive component of such systems is the heat exchanger (HX). Thus, this study focuses on cost optimization of HX designs for flow-through SWPs using high-effectiveness polymer microchannel HXs. The theoretical foundation for the cost optimization of a polymer microchannel HX is provided, and outputs are plotted in order to provide guidelines for designers to perform HX optimizations. These plots are used in two case studies: (1) …
Design Of Post-Consumer Modification Of Standard Solar Modules To Form Large-Area Building-Integrated Photovoltaic Roof Slates, Joshua M. Pearce, Jay Meldrum, Nolan Osborne
Design Of Post-Consumer Modification Of Standard Solar Modules To Form Large-Area Building-Integrated Photovoltaic Roof Slates, Joshua M. Pearce, Jay Meldrum, Nolan Osborne
Department of Materials Science and Engineering Publications
Building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) systems have improved aesthetics but generally cost far more than conventional PV systems because of small manufacturing scale. Thus, in the short and medium term, there is a need for a BIPV mounting system that utilizes conventional modules. Such a design is provided here with a novel modification of conventional photovoltaic (PV) modules to allow them to act as BIPV roofing slates. The open-source designs for the mechanical components necessary to provide the post-consumer conversion for a conventional PV module are provided, and prototypes are fabricated and installed on a mock roof system along with control modules …
General Design Procedures For Airport-Based Solar Photovoltaic Systems, Anurag Anurag, Jiemin Zhang, Jephias Gwamuri, Joshua M. Pearce
General Design Procedures For Airport-Based Solar Photovoltaic Systems, Anurag Anurag, Jiemin Zhang, Jephias Gwamuri, Joshua M. Pearce
Department of Materials Science and Engineering Publications
A source of large surface areas for solar photovoltaic (PV) farms that has been largely overlooked in the 13,000 United States of America (U.S.) airports. This paper hopes to enable PV deployments in most airports by providing an approach to overcome the three primary challenges identified by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA): (1) reflectivity and glare; (2) radar interference; and (3) physical penetration of airspace. First, these challenges and precautions that must be adhered to for safe PV projects deployment at airports are reviewed and summarized. Since one of the core concerns for PV and airport symbiosis is solar panel …
Energy Payback Time Of A Solar Photovoltaic Powered Waste Plastic Recyclebot System, Shan Zhong, Pratiksha Rakhe, Joshua M. Pearce
Energy Payback Time Of A Solar Photovoltaic Powered Waste Plastic Recyclebot System, Shan Zhong, Pratiksha Rakhe, Joshua M. Pearce
Department of Materials Science and Engineering Publications
The growth of both plastic consumption and prosumer 3-D printing are driving an interest in producing 3-D printer filaments from waste plastic. This study quantifies the embodied energy of a vertical DC solar photovoltaic (PV) powered recyclebot based on life cycle energy analysis and compares it to horizontal AC recyclebots, conventional recycling, and the production of a virgin 3-D printer filament. The energy payback time (EPBT) is calculated using the embodied energy of the materials making up the recyclebot itself and is found to be about five days for the extrusion of a poly lactic acid (PLA) filament or 2.5 …
Mos2 As A Co-Catalyst For Photocatalytic Hydrogen Production From Water, Bing Han, Yun Hang Hu
Mos2 As A Co-Catalyst For Photocatalytic Hydrogen Production From Water, Bing Han, Yun Hang Hu
Michigan Tech Publications
Solar-to-hydrogen conversion based on photocatalytic water splitting is a promising pathway for sustainable hydrogen production. The photocatalytic process requires highly active, inexpensive, and earth-abundant materials as photocatalysts. As a presentative layer-structured transition metal dichalcogenides, molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) is attracting intensive attention due to its unique electro and photo properties. In this article, we comprehensively review the recent research efforts of exploring MoS2 as a co-catalyst for photocatalytic hydrogen production from water, with emphasis on its combination with CdS, CdSe, graphene, carbon nitride, TiO2, and others. It is shown that MoS2–semiconductor composites are promising photocatalysts for hydrogen evolution from water under …
High-Efficiency Solar-Powered 3-D Printers For Sustainable Development, Jephias Gwamuri, Dhiogo Franco, Khalid Khan, Lucia Gauchia, Joshua M. Pearce
High-Efficiency Solar-Powered 3-D Printers For Sustainable Development, Jephias Gwamuri, Dhiogo Franco, Khalid Khan, Lucia Gauchia, Joshua M. Pearce
Michigan Tech Publications
The release of the open source 3-D printer known as the RepRap (a self-Replicating Rapid prototyper) resulted in the potential for distributed manufacturing of products for significantly lower costs than conventional manufacturing. This development, coupled with open source-appropriate technology (OSAT), has enabled the opportunity for 3-D printers to be used for sustainable development. In this context, OSAT provides the opportunity to modify and improve the physical designs of their printers and desired digitally-shared objects. However, these 3-D printers require electricity while more than a billion people still lack electricity. To enable the utilization of RepRaps in off-grid communities, solar photovoltaic …