Harvesting ambient energy to power the future 🌱
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Harvesting ambient energy to power the future 🌱
Five major approaches to energy harvesting include photovoltaics; triboelectrics; piezoelectrics radiofrequency energy harvesting; and thermoelectrics...
Hello everyone!
The month of May was marked by an ambitious project: Roadmap on Energy Harvesting Materials. Professor Pecunia recently led a team of 116 internationally recognized scientists to create a comprehensive database or “roadmap” to guide global efforts to convert ambient energy into clean power. The Roadmap on Energy Harvesting Materials was published in the Journal of Physics Materials.
This is also a milestone for Dracula Technologies, which launches the LAYER® Solutions division to facilitate the transition to organic photovoltaic (OPV) technology for indoor IoT applications. The division will create, and license fully functional products powered by Dracula's innovative OPV LAYER technology, which not only eliminates the need for batteries but also reduces environmental impact and lowers costs.
I wish you a good reading!
Dracula Team
📚 Great reads - Scientific articles
Scalable-produced 3D elastic thermoelectric network for body heat harvesting
With the rapid development of “Internet of Things” technology, the popularity of flexible electronics has risen enormously. As a result, the global flexible electronics market was valued at USD ~28 billion in 2020 and that is expected to reach USD ~ 56 billion by 2026. However, the convenience and endurance of the most common flexible electronics are hindered by their power sources which need to be able to operate continuously. Read more…
Flexible solar cells based on foldable silicon wafers with blunted edges
Silicon is the most abundant semiconducting element in Earth’s crust; it is made into wafers to manufacture approximately 95% of the solar cells in the current photovoltaic market. However, these cells are brittle and crack under bending stress, which limits their large-scale use for flexible applications. At present, thin-film solar cells made from amorphous silicon, Cu(In,Ga)Se2, CdTe, organics and perovskites exhibit flexibility but their use is limited because of their low power conversion efficiency (PCE), release of toxic materials into the environment, inferior performance in the case of large areas and unstable operating conditions… Read more…
Harvesting ambient energy to power the future
Harvesting the ambient energy created by humans and natural processes is beneficial for the environment, and aids in meeting net-zero greenhouse gas reduction targets. Capturing and converting ambient energy from light, heat and radiowaves—like those from Wi-Fi and cell phones—into electricity has huge potential to power the future.
Simon Fraser University (SFU) professor of sustainable energy engineering (SEE) Vincenzo Pecunia is developing materials that convert ambient and waste energy into electricity. His multidisciplinary Sustainable Optoelectronics Research Groupconducts research at the intersection of electronics engineering, materials science and physics. They study the properties of environmentally friendly, printable materials—like organic semiconductors—used in a variety of electronic and smart devices. They also investigate the application of these materials to create the next generation of solar cells and electronics… Read more…
Piezoelectric hybrid organic-inorganic perovskites (HOIPs) have emerged as promising materials for the development of self-powered electronic devices. These hybrid systems generally have low elastic moduli and are also intrinsically brittle, limiting their applications in mechanical-to-electrical energy conversion. Here, we report the synthesis of TMCM-CdCl3/PDMS (TMCM, trimethylchloromethyl ammonium; Cl, chloride; PDMS, polydimethylsiloxane) composites with high piezoelectricity. The TMCM-CdCl3 micro-rods can adhere with PDMS chains via the C–H···Cl interactions, leading to effective absorption of strain and corresponding efficient conversion to electric polarization… Read more…
Performance optimization of a modified Wells turbine for wave energy conversion
The Wells axial turbine is one of the most prevalent wave energy conversion turbines. The current study addresses the optimization of the power produced by a Wells turbine utilizing a response surface optimization approach based on computational fluid dynamics (CFD). The response surface optimization library in the ANSYS software was used in this study. The tip treatment strategy was utilized to improve the performance of the Wells turbine. Four tip groove design parameters were used as input parameters in the optimization process. The main objective of the optimization process was to maximize the modified Wells turbine torque coefficient at a flow coefficient (φ).… Read more…
📚 Great reads : Energy Harvesting and IoT Market opportunities
The Growth Potential of Nuclear Small Modular Reactors
To meet net zero obligations and bolster their energy security, stakeholders around the globe are re-evaluating the composition of their energy mixes, with interest in nuclear energy seeing a revival after two decades of stagnation. Small modular reactors (SMRs), which shrink the size of nuclear power plants and move as much of their construction as possible onto assembly lines, have the potential to solve the problems that led to this downturn in the first place… Read more…
SMR Market to Meet 2% Of Total Electricity Demand by 2043
Small modular reactors (SMRs) promise cheaper nuclear energy, supplying zero-carbon grid baseload and enabling new use cases for nuclear reactors. By shrinking the size of nuclear reactors compared to conventional large nuclear reactors, much of the construction is transferred to factory assembly lines, cutting capital costs and making nuclear power cost-competitive with renewables in many applications. SMRs offer a new tool in the fight for decarbonization and energy security, leveraging proven technologies… Read more…
Dracula Technologies Launches LAYER® Solutions Division
Dracula Technologies has launched the LAYER Solutions division to facilitate the transition to organic photovoltaic (OPV) technology for indoor IoT applications. The division will create, and license fully functional products powered by Dracula's innovative OPV LAYER technology, which not only eliminates the need for batteries but also reduces environmental impact and lowers costs.
The LAYER Solutions division leverages Dracula Technologies' intellectual property and know-how to serve developers of low-power electronic devices throughout the product lifecycle and complements the company’s existing technological and industrial structure… Read more…
The roads we travel daily are exposed to several energy sources (mechanical load, solar radiation, heat, air movement, etc.), which can be exploited to make common systems and apparatus for roadways (i.e., lighting, video surveillance, and traffic monitoring systems) energetically autonomous. For decades, research groups have developed many technologies able to scavenge energy from the said sources related to roadways: electromagnetism, piezoelectric and triboelectric harvesters for the cars’ stress and vibrations, photovoltaic modules for sunlight, thermoelectric solutions and pyroelectric materials for heat and wind turbines optimized for low-speed winds, such as the ones produced by moving vehicles.… Read more…
💡 Learning Content
Batteries for Stationary Energy Storage: What Are the Business Models, Drivers and Barriers?
This webinar will cover:
Services provided by batteries for stationary energy storage in front-of-the-meter (FTM) and behind-the-meter (BTM) markets
Business models for battery storage system owners
Technology and market trends; chemistries, duration of storage, deployment volumes
Market drivers and barriers; regional renewable energy/storage targets and regulatory hurdles
Click here to review the webinar, download the powerpoint or the report.
LAYER® to power the next generation of indoor devices
📅 Events where you should go this month
We are sharing some nice events, webinars and videos.
June, 4-8 : 2023 IEEE Wireless Power Technology Conference and Expo (WPTCE)
Covers a wide range of topics related to wireless power technologies across the electromagnetic spectrum. In addition to high-quality technical sessions, the conference features keynote speeches, tutorials, workshops, student competition, and industry exhibitions... Learn More…
Green Energy - European sustainable energy harvesting, storage, and use
Nanomedicine – Nanomaterials to achieve innovation in healthcare
Semiconductors and new materials for future chips
Safe and Sustainable by Design & Environmental Nanosafety
European Flagships for an innovative Europe
Quantum Technologies – Europe’s major role
Advanced Materials and Manufacturing for a sustainable and resilient Europe
European Infrastructures – From fundamental science to industrial applications
June, 13-15 : 2023 IEEE International Conference on RFID (RFID)
This conference is the premiere venue for presentation of cutting-edge RFID research and applications. Learn More…June, 14-15: European Sustainable Energy Week 2023
EUSEW 2023 will include
a policy conference with 7 plenary and 60 policy sessions covering topics related to skills, energy efficiency, affordability and inclusion, renewables, and decarbonisation
the prestigious EUSEW Awards
the Energy Fair with more than 35 stands
the fourth edition of the European Youth Energy Day
June, 19-21 : 2023 27th International Conference Electronics
The conference scope covers all the aspects of electronics engineering and related research, including theory, instrumentation and all kinds of applications. Learn More…June, 26-28 : 2023 21st IEEE Interregional NEWCAS Conference (NEWCAS)
The IEEE Interregional NEWCAS Conference is the IEEE Regions 7-8 interregional flagship conference and networking forum for worldwide engineers and researchers in the field of circuits and systems. The conference offers a perfect opportunity to meet scientific and industrial experts, to listen, learn, and discuss the most recent scientific and industrial developments and advancements. It is a perfect opportunity for Ph.D. candidates to show the progress of their scientific work in front of the conference either as a lecture or poster presentation. Learn More…
If you want to get in touch with me or someone of my team: contact@dracula-technologies.com
Take care!
Dracula Team