Materials Science and Engineering Commons^™

Optimization Of P3ht-Pcbm Polymer Solar Cells Through Device Simulation And Manufacturing, James Boom

Computer Engineering

Given a good model and implementation of that model, computer simulation can be used to reduce the time and material costs of research. To this end I worked with other students to manufacture, test and simulate the single layer P3HT-PCBM solar cell. Using the data collected from this project, future work can then be done with the project's simulator to further optimize these types of solar cell devices.

Polyenvi, Stephen Beard, Josh Engel, Paul Fake, Diego Flores, Alvaro Nunez, Miguel Wong

Electrical Engineering

Poor indoor air quality is a problem that is recognized by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to cause health issues. In order to raise awareness of this problem, this document outlines the construction of a device that economically measures air quality through five metrics: dust, smoke, ozone, humidity, and temperature. The device integrates with a router to provide users access to information about their indoor air quality anywhere over the internet as well as local access to the data via an LCD mounted on the router. By increasing indoor air quality awareness, this device will aid users in making adjustments …

Limitations Of Poole–Frenkel Conduction In Bilayer Hfo2/Sio2 Mos Devices, Richard G. Southwick Iii, Justin Reed, Christopher Buu, Ross Butler, Gennadi Bersuker, William B. Knowlton

Materials Science and Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

The gate leakage current of metal–oxide– semiconductors (MOSs) composed of hafnium oxide (HfO₂) exhibits temperature dependence, which is usually attributed to the standard Poole–Frenkel (P–F) transport model. However, the reported magnitudes of the trap barrier height vary significantly. This paper explores the fundamental challenges associated with applying the P–F model to describe transport in HfO₂/SiO₂ bilayers in n/p MOS field-effect transistors composed of 3- and 5-nm HfO₂ on 1.1-nm SiO₂ dielectric stacks. The extracted P–F trap barrier height is shown to be dependent on several variables including the following: the temperature range, method …

Determining The Optimal Material For Coffee Packaging: Oxygen Transmission Rates And Ink Abrasion Resistance, Laura Kiyoi

Graphic Communication

No abstract provided.

Novel Micron- And Nano-Scale Energetic Materials For Advanced Gun Propulsion, Their Material Properties, And Their Effects On Ballistic Performance, Thelma Gatuz Manning

Dissertations

This dissertation focused on the investigation of novel materials that are both energetic and inert in their micron- and nano-scale crystalline form. The characterization of the materials properties and its effects on the ballistic performance when incorporated into a composite material were evaluated as a gun propellant for application in a future weapon system for the US Army. Some of these materials may find dual use in civilian applications. Applications in small and medium arms, artillery, tank, aircraft, and shipboard gun systems will all benefit from these advancements. Not only will gun system performance be improved for greater stand-off range …

Formation Of Screen-Printed Contacts On Multicrystalline Silicon (Mc-Si) Solar Cells, Vishal R. Mehta

Dissertations

Commercial multicrystalline silicon (me-Si) solar cells use screen-printing process for depositing both the Ag paste based gridded front and Al based back (whole area) metal contacts.. This thesis relates to experimental and theoretical studies of contact formation mechanisms in silicon solar cells. Temperature distribution studies during optical processing by. attached thermocouples to cells indicates that the maximum temperature reached under the front silver metal is less. than 800°C; this is lower than the eutectic point of Ag-Si (≈835°C). An analysis of the interaction of Ag particles and Si via the constituents of glass is given. This mechanism leaches metallic ions …

Multi-Component Boron Coatings On Low Carbon Steel Aisi 1018, Naruemon Suwattananont

Dissertations

Boronizing and metalizing are thermo-chemical surface hardening treatments in which boron and metal atoms diffuse into the metal substrate forming metallic boride layers, providing complex properties of B-Me-Fe system.

To study multi-component boron coatings on low carbon steel AISI 1018, the simultaneous powder pack method of boronizing and metalizing was selected to perform the coatings. One B-Fe system and eight boron-metal (B-Me-Fe) systems from transition metals group IVB (Ti, Zr, Hf), group VB (Nb, Ta), and group VIB (Cr, Mo, W) were studied. The system specimens were thermo-chemically treated at 950°C for 4 hours in a crucible containing powder mixture …

Interfacially Polymerized Thin Film Composite Membranes On Microporous Polypropylene Supports For Reverse Osmosis Desalination, Chao Li

Theses

The important technique of interfacial polymerization (IP) is used to fabricate thin film composite (TFC) membranes. In experiments here, microporous polypropylene (PP) flat film membranes were used as a support for fabricating TFC membranes for reverse osmosis by the IP technique. Substantial chemical, pH, and solvent resistance is provided by porous polypropylene membranes. Therefore, it is reasonable to choose porous polypropylene membranes as supports to fabricate TFC membranes for reverse osmosis.

The external and the pore surfaces of polypropylene flat film membrane were hydrophilized first by pre-wetting with acetone, then oxidized with chromic acid solution kept at 65°C. Next, the …

Preparation And Electrochemical Performance Of Three-Dimensional Porous Snco Alloy Electrode, Lian-Jie Xue, Ling Huang, Fu-Sheng Ke, Guo-Zhen Wei, Xiao-Mei Zheng, Jun-Tao Li, Xiao-Yong Fan, Shi-Gang Sun

Journal of Electrochemistry

Three-dimensional porous Cu film was prepared by electroless plating,and used as a current collector for preparation of three-dimensional structured SnCo alloy electrode,which was mainly prepared by an electrodeposition method,and composed of pure Sn and CoSn₂ phases. Electrochemical experimental results show that three-dimensional structured SnCo alloy electrode exhibits much better cycleability than planar SnCo alloy electrode,with first discharge capacity and charge capacity of 636. 3 and 528. 7 mAh·g^-1,respectively. After 70^th cycling,capacity retention is 83. 1% with 529. 5 mAh·g^-1. The lithiation process during first discharge was investigated by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy.

A High Performance Sulfur/Carbon Xerogel Composite In Lithium Sulfur Battery Application, Chong Wang, Jia-Jia Chen, Qiu-Jie She, Qian Zhang, Yi-Ning Shi, Ming-Sen Zheng, Quan-Feng Dong

Journal of Electrochemistry

Sulfur/carbon composite was synthesized by the thermal method with the carbon xerogel as the conductive framework. The property of composite was characterd by XRD and SEM. It shown that the composite with the particle size below 10 μm had the same morphology as the carbon xerogel and the sulfur was absorbed in the pores in non-crystalline. The discharge capacity of the composites were 1311 mAh/g and 1107. 1 mAh/g at 0. 1C and 0. 2 C rates,respetively. And a retention capacity was about 800 mAh/g after 30 cylcyes.

Nano/Micro-Structured Electrode Materials For Lithium-Ion Batteries, Yu-Guo Guo, Zhong-Li Wang, Xing-Long Wu, Wei-Ming Zhang, Li-Jun Wan

Journal of Electrochemistry

Nanostructured materials are currently of interest as high performance anodes and cathodes for rechargeable lithium-ion batteries because of their novel nano-size effects and significantly enhanced kinetics. This review paper describes some recent developments in this field,addressing the size effects,morphology effects,as well as the functions of carbon coating layers toward lithium storage. Several"kinetically stabilized"nano/microstructured electrode materials and high-rate electrode materials with mixed-conducting networks based on the work of the authors are highlighted for illustration.

Electrocatalytic Oxidation Of Hcooh At Au(Core)-Pd(Shell)-Pt(Cluster) Nanocubes, Qing-Ning Jiang, Huan Li, Ning Yang, Ping-Ping Fang, Feng-Ru Fan, Zhong-Qun Tian

Journal of Electrochemistry

Gold nanocubes were synthesized by a two-step seed-mediated growth method. The Aucore-Pdshell and Au_core-Pd_shell-Pt_cluster nanocubes with controllable shell thickness of Pd and cluster coverage of Pt were synthesized by simply changing the amount ratio of H₂PdCl₄ or H₂PtCl₆. The samples were characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM) , transmission electron microscopc (TEM) and cyclic voltammetry (CV). CV was then used to make a systematic study on the dependence of the electrocatalytic properties on the shell thickness of Au_core-Pd_shell and Pt coverage of Au_core-Pd …

High-Rate Cyclic Properties Of Hollow Carbon Hemisphere As Anode Materials For Lithium Ion Batteries, Guang-Hui Zhang, Zao-Xue Yan, Hong-Li Zou, Pei-Kang Shen

Journal of Electrochemistry

High surface area hollow carbon hemispheres (HCHs) covered with hard carbon layers have been synthesized by using polystyrene spheres (PSs) as templates under hydrothermal method combined with the intermittent microwave heating (IMH) method. The morphologies of the materials are characterized by SEM and TEM. The electrochemical properties of the HCHs are tested. Comparing with graphite and mesocarbon microbeads (MCMB) ,the HCHs show higher capacity and excellent cyclic life performance.

Preparation And Application Of Ti/Ceo2-F-Pbo2 Electrode In Electrochemical Degradation Of Organics, Xun-Hua Wang, Tie-Ming Zhang, Shao-Ping Tong, Chun-An Ma

Journal of Electrochemistry

The CeO₂-modified PbO₂ on Ti plate (Ti/CeO₂-F-PbO₂) was prepared by electrodeposition. The SEM and XRD analyses indicated that the CeO₂ particle could be beuniformly co-deposited in the film of PbO₂. The results of electrochemical test showed that the Ti/CeO₂-F-PbO₂ anode had higher potential (1.83 V. vs. SCE) for oxygen evolution (OE) than the Ti/F-PbO₂ anode (1.78 V,vs. SCE). The degradation of 4-chlorophenol was carried out to test electrocatalytic performance of this novel electrode, which indicated that Ti/CeO₂-F-PbO₂ anode had high COD removal rate …

Failure Reaction Mechanism Of Internal Short-Circuit For Lithium-Ion Batteries, He Li, Shen-Jun Yu, Zhi-Kui Chen, Guang-Chuan Liang

Journal of Electrochemistry

In this work, the battery impact testing machine has been used to study the failure progress of internal short-circuit (ISC) for lithium ion batteries. The reaction mechanisms between cathode/anode and electrolyte in the battery at different temperatures were characterized by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The experimental results show that the ISC failure of the battery was mainly due to the reaction between cathode Li_0.5CoO₂ and electrolyte. The decomposition and oxygen evolution reactions of cathode occurred when the temperature reached a certain value. At the same time a fierce oxidation …

Influence Of Ions Dimension On The Electric Field Activation Of Micro-Crystallite Carbon, Gang-Wei Sun, Wen-Hua Song, Guo Cheng, Wen-Ming Qiao, Li-Cheng Ling

Journal of Electrochemistry

Micro-crystallite carbon (CC) was synthesized by KOH activation of carbonized petroleum coke precursors. The porous properties structure and crystallite structure were characterized by N₂ adsorption-desorption, X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements. The capacitive behavior of CC was investigated in the electrolyte of Et₄NBF₄/PC, Et₄NBF₄/AN, Bu₄NBF₄/PC and Bu₄NBF₄/AN, respectively. Results showed that the lower potential of electric field activation (EFA) was obtained in the solvent of AN than in PC, which was ascribed to the fact that smaller solvated ions dimension in AN facilitating the intercalation …

Hydrogen Evolution Reaction Activtity Of Ni-Ru-Ir Oxide Cathode Coating, Yin-Hui Fu, Xue-Ming Li, Wu-Lin Li, Jun Zhang

Journal of Electrochemistry

The Ni-Ru-Ir electrode coating was fabricated by thermal decomposition and oxidation. Electrochemical properties of Ni-Ru-Ir electrode coating and pure nickel cathode in the 30% NaOH solutions at 90 ℃(conditions of the industrial electrolysis) ,have been investigated by cyclic voltammetry,Tafel curves and chronoamperometry. The results show that the Ni-Ru-Ir oxide electrode coating exhibited high catalytic activity. At the current density of 0. 3 A·cm^-2,the lowest hydrogen evolution overpotential of Ni-Ru-Ir oxide electrode coating was about 300 mV lower than Ni. The roughness and excharge current density of Ni-Ru-Ir electrode coating were 32 and 4 times,respectively,larger than those of pure …

Prerapation And Supercapacitor Property Of Mesoporous Carbon Nanofibers, Yong-Wen Wang, Ming-Bo Zheng, Jian Cao, Jie-Ming Cao, Guang-Bin Ji, Jie Tao

Journal of Electrochemistry

Two different mesoporous carbon nanofibers with large mesopore or core-shell structure were prepared by using the resol/F127 mixture to fill the AAO template. The morphology and structural parameters of the samples were characterized by SEM,TEM,and N₂ adsorption-desorption analysis. The supercapacitive behaviors of the electrodes were tested by cyclic voltammetry and galvanostatic charge-discharge. The results show that the specific capacitances of mesoporous carbon nanofibers increased obviously and the fine supercapacitive performances were achieved at high scan rate or large current density.

Synthesis And Electrochemical Properties Of Li3V2(Po4)3/C Cathode Materials For Lithium Ion Battery, Li-Ying Liu, Hai-Yan Zhang, Lian Chen, Yu-Chun Zhai

Journal of Electrochemistry

Cathode material Li₃V₂(PO₄) ₃ /C for Lithium-ion battery was synthesized by combination of ball milling and baking. Physical and electrochemical performances of as-prepared materials were characterized through XRD,EIS and galvanostatic cell cycling. The results show that the products were monoclinic Li₃ V₂ (PO₄) ₃ with well-developed crystal structure. At 0. 1C,0. 25C and 0. 5C,the initial discharge capacities were 150. 6,134. 1 and 107. 1 mAh·g^-1 ,respectively. Capacity retention rates were 87. 3% after 130 cycles at 0. 25C and 87. 2% after 105 cycles at 0. 5C. Charge-discharge …

Nano-Sized Au On Nickel Foam As Cathode Of Alkaline Al-H2O2 Semi Fuel Cell, Shu-Li Chen, Bang-An Lu, Yao Liu, Gui-Ling Wang, Dian-Xue Cao

Journal of Electrochemistry

Nano-sized Au particles were deposited on a nickel foam substrate by a fast spontaneous deposition method using AuCl₃ as the source of Au. The effects of AuCl₃ concentration and deposition time on the size and distribution of Au particles,and the performance of the obtained Au/Ni electrode as the cathode of Al-H₂O₂ semi fuel cell were investigated. It was found that after the nickel foam was immersed in a 2 mmol·L^-1 AuCl₃ solution for 60 s,Au particles with diameters smaller than 100 nm were deposited on its surfaces and cover the surface completely. The …