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Full-Text Articles in Materials Science and Engineering
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 …
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) …
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 …