PIRE: Materials for Renewable Energy NaturE's Way (RENEW)

PIRE项目将解决当今清洁能源技术中使用的许多材料来自不可持续来源的全球挑战。虽然通常被认为是液体化石燃料的唯一替代品，但生物质物质在许多应用中可以作为非可持续建筑材料的替代品。PIRE：RENEW将使用基于生物的材料来创造可持续的替代品，并在高附加值，高性能应用中提高材料性能，从太阳能和风能设备开始。研究将探索分子间和界面相互作用在自组装和聚集中发挥关键作用的应用，在构建具有特殊性能的结构材料和纳米光电子学中。一个风的轨道将调查建筑叶片从生物基纳米复合材料，而太阳能轨道将探讨纤维素纳米晶须，细菌纤维素原纤维，和槐糖脂表面活性剂的结构与性能的关系。该计划将生产替代品，以改善功能，提供可再生能源，并减轻生产和处置对环境的影响。凯斯西储大学和纽约理工学院将领导必要的国际研究网络，以提供这些正在进行的材料解决方案，并教育未来的材料科学家和工程师。 合作伙伴包括宾夕法尼亚大学、罗切斯特理工学院和英国的大学，巴西、比利时和意大利。他们共同提供这一全球性问题所需的合成、加工、表征、理论和生命周期分析方面的专业知识。在他们的领导下，12名美国研究生和博士后以及国际同行将接受解决可持续发展问题的培训。更广泛的影响将包括适用于能源以外的材料创新（例如，消费品）和可持续材料网站。该项目由NSF的国际科学与工程办公室（OISE）通过PIRE资助。

This PIRE project will address the global challenge that many of the materials used in today's clean energy technologies come from unsustainable sources. While often thought of as only substitutes for liquid fossil fuels, biomass substances can serve as replacements for non-sustainable building blocks in many applications. PIRE: RENEW will use biological-based materials to create sustainable replacements and improve material performance in high value-added, high performance applications, beginning with solar and wind energy devices. Research will explore applications where intermolecular and interfacial interactions play a key role in self-assembly and aggregation, in building structural materials with exceptional properties, and in nanoscale optoelectronics. A wind track will investigate building blades from biobased nanocomposites, while a solar track will explore structure-property relationships of cellulose nanowhiskers, bacterial cellulose fibrils, and sophorolipid surfactants. The program will produce replacements that improve function, provide renewable sources, and mitigate environmental impact in production and disposal. Case Western Reserve University and the Polytechnic Institute of New York will lead the international research nexus necessary to provide these ongoing material solutions and to educate future materials scientists and engineers. Partnerships include the University of Pennsylvania, Rochester Institute of Technology, and universities in the U.K., Brazil, Belgium, and Italy. Together, they provide expertise in synthesis, processing, characterization, theory, and lifecycle analysis needed for this global problem. Under them, twelve U.S. graduate students and postdocs, alongside international peers, will be trained in sustainability problem solving. Broader impacts will include materials innovations applicable outside energy (e.g., consumer products) and a sustainable materials website. The project is funded by NSF's Office of International Science and Engineering (OISE) through the PIRE.