Environmental Test Chamber Urgently Required to Develop and Calibrate Microfluidic and Thin-film Sensing and Energy Conversion and Storage Technologies

我们需要一个能够产生各种受控温度和湿度条件的顶级环境测试箱，以支持气体、可穿戴和冰/霜传感器以及能量转换和存储技术的研究项目。该试验箱的设计和功能符合我们所有的环境测试要求，包括在标准化和受控条件下的模拟环境测试，如极热、极冷或极潮湿。这些测试将帮助我们评估和预测传感器、太阳能电池和蓄电池在各种环境压力下的性能，以便它们能够适应实际条件下的应用。该试验箱的温度可低至-70 ℃，以模拟北极或严酷的冬季条件，用于气体传感器、冰/霜传感器和锂离子电池的测试。它可以产生高达+185 ℃的温度，对可穿戴电子设备和太阳能电池进行热冲击，以了解它们的退化机制，并找到延长其寿命的解决方案。该系统还允许将湿度控制在10%至98%之间，以测试湿热条件对太阳能电池和传感器工作性能的影响。该腔室包含一个大型内部工作空间，便于使用定制测试夹具，可以自动收集一系列光学和电气测量值。所有申请人将能够充分利用该室，因为其内置的智能系统允许通过计算机或移动终端24/7远程访问和控制设备。将收集和分析来自长期实验的大型数据集，以提高内部构建技术的性能和耐用性。该环境室将有助于开发高灵敏度传感器、坚固耐用的可穿戴电子产品、高效太阳能电池和耐用电池。此外，进入商会将为我们的学员提供先进的规划和实验设计，编程，耐用性评估，产品生命周期测试和大数据分析方面的市场技术和分析技能。由于商会将位于一个新的制造区，学员将成为多元化和多学科用户群的一部分，并得到采矿，航空，汽车，公用事业，机器人，自动化，材料制造和可再生能源行业合作伙伴的支持。基于我们强大的商业化记录，我们相信这些工业合作将在传感和能源存储/转换技术、消费产品和分拆公司方面带来长期创新。因此，高性能，大容量环境室的可用性不仅有利于学术研究，而且还将在加拿大技术部门创造就业机会和创新，促进强大而耐用的下一代传感和能量存储和转换技术。

We request a top-of-the-line Environmental Test Chamber that is capable of producing a variety of controlled temperature and humidity conditions to support research projects in gas, wearable and ice/frost sensors, and energy conversion and storage technologies. The design and functionality of the chamber have been selected to meet all of our environmental testing requirements including simulated environmental tests under standardized and controlled conditions such as extremely hot, cold, or humid. These tests will help us evaluate and predict the performance of sensors, solar cells, and batteries under various environmental stresses so that they can be adapted for applications in real-life conditions. The proposed chamber can reach temperatures as low as -70C to simulate Arctic or harsh winter conditions for the test of gas sensors, ice/frost sensors, and lithium-ion batteries. It can generate temperatures as high as +185C to thermally shock wearable electronics and solar cells to understand their degradation mechanisms and find solutions to extend their lifetime. The system further allows for humidity control from 10% to 98% to test the effect of damp-heat conditions on the operational performance of solar cells and sensors. The chamber contains a large internal workspace to facilitate the use of custom test fixtures that can be automated to collect a range of optical and electrical measurements. All applicants will be able to make full use of the chamber due to its built-in smart system that permits 24/7 remote access and control over the equipment via a computer or mobile device. Large datasets from long-term experiments will be collected and analyzed to improve the performance and durability of in-house built technologies. The environmental chamber will be instrumental in developing highly sensitive sensors, robust wearable electronics, highly efficient solar cells, and durable batteries. In addition, access to the chamber will provide our trainees with marketable technical and analytical skills in advanced planning and experimental design, programming, durability assessment, product life cycle testing, and big data analysis. Since the chamber will be located in a new manufacturing precinct, trainees will be part of a diverse and multidisciplinary user-group, supported by industry partners in mining, aviation, automotive, utilities, robotics, automation, materials manufacturing, and renewable energy. Based on our strong track record of commercialization, we are convinced that these industrial collaborations will lead to innovations in sensing and energy storage/conversion technologies, consumer products, and spin-off companies in the long term. The availability of a high-performance, large-capacity environmental chamber will, therefore, not only benefit academic research but also create jobs and innovations in the Canadian technology sector, promoting robust and durable next-generation sensing and energy storage and conversion technologies.