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As the size of quantum information systems (QIS) increases with technology development, the required cooling power at temperatures below 100mK will increase beyond that which currently available with commercially available milliKelvin cooler technologies. Additionally, as the size of QIS increases the number of electrical signal leads that require heat sinking in the 1K-temperature range will also ...

In 2011, the US Department of Energy (DOE) launched the SunShot Initiative with the goal of making solar electricity cost-competitive with conventional power generation by 2020. Since 2011, research funded by the DOE has resulted in substantial progress toward meeting the aggressive SunShot performance and cost targets, but significant technical hurdles remain. In particular, the Gen3 CSP Roadmap ...

The goal of this work is to develop a new technology that can produce acetic acid in a single-step and do so at reduced temperature and ambient pressure. Current techniques to synthesize acetic acid require methanol and carbon dioxide, both of which are largely made from syngas produced from dry reforming of methane. However, high temperatures are needed to produce the syngas (of which a component ...

Vast amounts of impaired waters are produced in gas and oil wells. Energy-efficient desalination systems are needed to treat these waters to produce fresh water and concentrated brines. Mineral recovery systems can also yield valuable critical materials as byproducts. Savengy Technologies and University of Central Florida (UCF) will develop and commercialize an energy efficient system to treat sha ...

The DOE has identified a need for thin and durable proton conducting membranes that offer enhanced energy efficiency to power zero emission vehicles. Specifically, a cost effective hydrocarbon-based alternative to expensive commercial perfluorosulfonic acid ionomers are sought. Current hydrocarbon membranes do not meet the performance or durability needed in the conditions for transportation fuel ...

Perovskite-sensitized solar cells have demonstrated high conversion efficiencies however the stability of device is limited compared to common PV technologies. Moisture, UV irradiation, and high temperature triggered degradation limit their commercial viability; therefore, improved cell durability is necessary for perovskite solar cell market entry. In addition, the scale-up and optimization of th ...

Computer-aided Engineering software that apply the Finite Element Method to perform a multi-physics analysis have received widespread acceptance for traditional macro-scale material systems. Challenges persist in the modeling of complex coupled processes in environmental/thermal barrier coatings (E/TBCs) used to protect substrate material against the corrosive environment in the hot section parts ...

Ceramic matrix SiC-SiC composites are currently the leading candidate for Generation IV nuclear reactor fuel cladding and other structural components, due to their excellent thermal and chemical stability under extreme conditions. However, robustly joining SiC structures when exposed to such harsh operating conditions still presents a major roadblock. A novel bonding joint compound leveraging grap ...

Understanding the genomic basis of economically important plants for growth time, crop yield, responses to drought and disease resistance is of critical importance to sustaining and improving food supplies for humans and livestock, as well as insuring sufficient raw material availability for industries that depend on plant materials, such as biofuel manufacture. Current computational methods for a ...

Cherenkov radiation, caused by fast charged particles in a transparent medium, is widely used for charged particle identification. To date, gaseous, liquid, and solid radiators have been used as sources of Cherenkov radiation. Aerogels with low refractive index and high light transmittance, are highly desirable for Cherenkov detectors. Development and testing of aerogels with a refractive index as ...