Renewable Energy Materials Research Science and Engineering Center

科罗拉多矿业学院可再生能源材料研究科学与工程中心专注于将对新兴可再生能源技术产生重大影响的变革性材料创新和教育方向。该中心由两个跨学科研究小组组成。第一个集中在利用纳米结构材料的独特性质来显著提高光伏设备的性能。特别强调了解和控制工程纳米结构中的缺陷结构和钝化，可以增强太阳辐射收集的独特量子力学现象，以及新的计算和表征方案，以提高对纳米结构光伏材料的基本理解。第二个跨学科研究小组探索用于可再生能源应用的先进复合膜。膜技术是许多能源利用过程的核心，而离子传输往往是一个薄弱环节。该小组的目标是通过协同结合具有显著不同离子传输特性的材料来制备新型离子导电材料，然后探索这些系统中离子传输背后的基本机制。该中心包括一个种子计划，旨在刺激创新方向，并将那些显示出希望的方法整合到中心研究组合中。最初的种子项目包括评估笼状结构作为潜在的储氢材料。中心的教育和外联活动直接让学生在很小的时候就接触到可再生能源的概念，并让他们在整个K-12教育期间以及进入大学和研究生院为在这一领域的潜在职业做好准备。活动包括：为本科生开发可再生能源辅修课程和为研究生开发可再生能源选修课序列，为本科生创建研究经验暑期方案，扩大现有的K-12外联方案，以解决可再生概念，以及扩大代表不足的群体在各级科学和工程领域的参与。通过与国家可再生能源实验室的科学家和工程师建立战略合作伙伴关系，这两个组织可以共享学生、研究助理、设备和设施。此外，该中心还与积极参与替代能源的公司和国际机构合作，特别是与新南威尔士大学和伦敦大学帝国理工学院合作。中心成员、合作伙伴组织和外部用户将从中心维护的广泛用户设施中获益。

The Renewable Energy Materials Research Science and Engineering Center at the Colorado School of Mines is focused on transformative materials innovation and educational directions that will significantly impact the emerging renewable energy technologies. The Center is organized around two interdisciplinary research groups. The first concentrates on harnessing unique properties of nanostructured materials to significantly enhance the performance of photovoltaic devices. Special emphasis is placed on understanding and controlling defect structure and passivation in engineered nanostructures, unique quantum mechanical phenomena that can enhance the collection of solar radiation, and novel computational and characterization schemes to improve fundamental understanding of nanostructured photovoltaic materials. The second interdisciplinary research group explores advanced composite membranes for renewable energy applications. Membrane technologies are central to many energy utilization processes, and ionic transport is often a weak link. This group aims to fabricate novel ion conducting materials by synergistically combining materials with dramatically different ionic transport characteristics and then explore the fundamental mechanisms behind ionic transport in these systems. The Center includes a seed program designed to stimulate innovative directions and to integrate into the center research portfolio those approaches that show promise. The initial seed project involves the evaluation of clathrate structures as potential materials for hydrogen storage. Center educational and outreach activities directly expose students to renewable energy concepts at a young age and prepare them, throughout their K-12 education and into college and graduate school, for potential careers in this field. Activities include: development of a renewable energy minor for undergraduate students and a renewable energy elective course sequence for graduate students, creation of a Research Experience for Undergraduates summer program, expansion of an existing program of K-12 outreach to address renewable concepts, and a broadening of the participation of under-represented groups in science and engineering at all levels. A strategic partnership with scientists and engineers at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory allows sharing of students, research associates, equipment and facilities between the two organizations. In addition, the Center collaborates with companies that are actively involved in alternative energy and with internationally institutions, particularly the University of New South Wales and Imperial College, University of London. Center members, partner organizations, and outside users will profit from a broad array of user facilities maintained by the center.