Solar and Thermal Energy Harvesting Textile Composites for Aerospace Applications.

摘要

The overall goal of the project was to design and demonstrate fiber- based energy harvesting devices that can convert light and heat to electricity, and be integrated into air vehicle structures. Specifically, in Year 1, we set out to design and demonstrate photovoltaic and thermoelectric devices on polymer fibers. In Years 2 and 3, we sought to improve the performance of individual energy converting fibers, as well as to develop models and device architectures that would produce significant gains when many fibers are aggregated. We have successfully demonstrated thermoelectric (TE) and photovoltaic (PV) fibers, achieved substantial improvements in the power conversion efficiency, and developed and validated ro-bust, predictive models for both OPV and TE fibers. Additionally, we developed optics-based approaches to tuning the sensitivity bands of photodetectors, and improving light in- coupling in solar cells and pho-todetectors. Encouraged by these advances, we have begun the design and construction of a novel appa-ratus for reel-to-reel coating and encapsulation of active devices on fibers, financed in large part by an AFOSR DURIP grant. We are also actively exploring options for creating a start-up company specializ-ing in multi-functional, energy conversion devices based on the technology developed during this project.