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flexible solar

New material for 'bendable' solar cells

EVANSTON, Ill. (UPI) -- A new material for solar cells -- atransparent conductor made of carbon nanotubes -- could revolutionizethe way solar power is harvested, U.S. scientists say.

The material could be an affordable and flexible alternative tocurrent technology, which is mechanically brittle and reliant on arelatively rare mineral, a release by Northwestern University saidTuesday.

Northwestern researchers said the material's mechanical flexibilitycould allow solar cells to be integrated into fabrics and clothing,creating portable energy for everything from personal electronics tomilitary operations.

Solar cells require a transparent conductor layer that allows light topass into the cell and electricity to pass out, so the conductor mustbe both electrically conductive and optically transparent. Indium tinoxide, the material predominantly in use currently, is mechanicallybrittle and relies on the relatively rare and expensive elementindium.

The Northwestern team has created an alternative to indium tin oxideusing single-walled carbon nanotubes, tiny, hollow cylinders of carbonjust one nanometer in diameter.

Because carbon nanotubes are flexible they could lead to newapplications in solar cells such as military tents incorporating theflexible solar cells into tent material to provide power directly forsoldiers in the field, or the cells could be integrated into clothing,backpacks or purses for wearable electronics.

"With this mechanically flexible technology, it's much easier toimagine integrating solar technology into everyday life, rather thancarrying around a large, inflexible solar cell," materials scientistMark C. Hersam said.

 

Copyright 2011 by United Press International

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New material could 'soak' up radioactivity

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (UPI) -- A new material shows promise for trappingand removing pollutants in water, especially heavy metals andradioactive waste, U.S. researchers say.

Present techniques are very effective for removing minerals such ascalcium and magnesium, which occur as positively charged ions in"hard" water, but many heavy metals and other inorganic pollutantsform negatively charged ions in water and are much more difficult toremove, researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz, said.

Now UCSC chemists have developed a material that can soak upnegatively charged pollutants from water, a university releasereported Tuesday.

The new material could be used to treat polluted water through an ionexchange process similar to water softening, they said.

The researchers are focusing on the use of the material, dubbedSLUG-26, to trap the radioactive metal technetium, a major concern forlong-term disposal of radioactive waste.

Technetium, produced in nuclear reactors, has a half-life of 212,000years and can leach out of solid waste, making groundwatercontamination a serious concern.

"It's a problem because of its environmental mobility, so they neednew ways to trap it," chemistry Professor Scott Oliver said.

"Whether or not [SLUG-26] can be used in the real world is still to beseen, but so far it looks very promising," Oliver said.

 

Copyright 2011 by United Press International

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Hollecrest & Associates Inc  -"Turnaround Consultants"  .

Sunridge Lodge   "Back to Eden"  Quality 24/7 care
261 Oakhill Drive, Brantford  backtoeden.ontario@gmail.com
"Building elder peer communities that are cozy,caring and comfortable" -
 
Brant Positive Action Group  "a positive community affirmative action group"

promoting goodwill and timely cost effective creative solutions to enhance the competitive well being of Brant, Brantford and Six Nations