Solar Energy Storage

With the urgent need to harvest and store solar energy, especially with the dramatic unexpected changes in oil prices, the design of new generation of solar energy storage systems has grown in importance. Besides diminishing the role of the oil, these systems provide green energy which would help reducing air pollution. Solar energy would be stored in different forms of energy; thermal, electric, hybrid thermal/electric, thermochemical, photochemical, and photocapacitors. The nature of solar energy, radiant thermal energy, magnifies the role and usage of thermal energy storage (TES) techniques. In this chapter, different techniques/technologies for solar thermal energy storage are introduced for both terrestrial and space applications. Enhancing the performance of these techniques using nanotechnology is introduced as well as using of advanced materials and structures. The chapter also introduces the main features of the other techniques for solar energy storage along with recent conducted research work. Economic and environment feasibility studies are also introduced.

Application of Electrophoretic Deposition for Interfacial Control of High-Performance SiC Fiber-Reinforced SiC Matrix (SiCf/SiC) Composites

This chapter reviews the novel fabrication process of continuous SiCf­/SiC composites based on electrophoretic deposition (EPD). EPD process is very effective for achieving relatively homogeneous carbon coating with the thickness of several tens to hundreds nanometers on SiC fibers. Carbon interface with the thickness of at least 100 nm formed by EPD acts effectively for inducing interfacial debonding and fiber pullout during fracture, and the SiCf­/SiC composites show excellent mechanical properties. From these results, it is demonstrated that the fabrication process based on EPD method is expected to be an effective way to control the interfaces of SiCf­/SiC composites and to obtain high-performance SiCf­/SiC composites.

Fabrication of Nanoelectrodes by Cutting Carbon Nanotubes Assembled by Di-Electrophoresis Based on Atomic Force Microscope

Presented is a new fabrication method for CNT (Carbon NanoTubes) nanoelectrode pairs by combining the DEP (Di-electrophoresis) and AFM (Atomic Force Microscope) lithography. The single CNT is driven and electrically connected with the microeletrodes by the DEP force,then cut into nanoeletrode pairs with AFM tip. The fabricated CNT nanoeletrode pairs can be used as probes to detect species in micro-environment and applied in electrochemical sensors.

Built-In Self Repair for Logic Structures

For several years, many authors have predicted that nano-scale integrated devices and circuits will have a rising sensitivity to both transient and permanent faults effects. Essentially, there seems to be an emerging demand for building highly dependable hardware / software systems from unreliable components. Most of the effort has so far gone into the detection and compensation of transient fault effects. More recently, also the possibility of repairing permanent faults, due to either production flaws or to wear-out effects after some time of operation in the field of application, needs further investigation. While built-in self test (BIST) and even self repair (BISR) for regular structures such as static memories (SRAMs) is well understood, concepts for in-system repair of irregular logic and interconnects are few and mainly based on field-programmable gate-arrays (FPGAs) as the basic implementation. In this chapter, the authors try to analyse different schemes of logic (self-) repair with respect to cost and limitations, using repair schemes that are not based on FPGAs. It can be shown that such schemes are feasible, but need lot of attention in terms of hidden single points of failure.

Nanostructured Metal Oxide Gas Sensor

This chapter provides a review of recent progress in gas sensor based on semiconducting metal oxide nanostructure. The response mechanism and development of various methods to enhancement of sensing properties receives the most attention. Theoretical models to explain the effects of morphology, additives, heterostructured composite and UV irradiation on response improvement were studied comprehensively. Investigations have indicated that 1D nanostructured metal oxide with unique geometry and physical properties display superior sensitivity to gas species. Also, the proposed conduction model in gas sensor based on 1D Metal oxide is discussed. Finally, the response mechanism of hierarchical and hollow nanostructures as novel sensing materials is addressed.

Polymer-Derived Ceramics (PDCs)

Polymer-derived ceramics (PDCs) represent a rather novel class of ceramics which can be synthesized via cross-linking and pyrolysis of suitable polymeric precursors. In the last decades, PDCs have been attaining increased attention due to their outstanding ultrahigh-temperature properties, such as stability with respect to decomposition and crystallization processes as well as resistance in oxidative and corrosive environments. Moreover, their creep resistance is excellent at temperatures far beyond 1000 °C. The properties of PDCs were shown to be strongly related to their microstructure (network topology) and phase composition, which are determined by the chemistry and molecular structure of the polymeric precursor used and by the conditions of the polymer-to-ceramic transformation. Within this chapter, synthesis approaches, the nano/microstructure, as well as the behavior of PDCs at ultrahigh temperatures and in harsh environments will be presented. The emphasis of the highlighted and discussed results will focus on the intimate relationship between the precursors (molecular structure/architecture) and the resulting PDCs (phase composition, nano/microstructure, and UHT properties).

Modeling of Quantum Key Distribution System for Secure Information Transfer

This chapter is an analysis of commercial quantum key distribution systems. Upon analysis, the generalized structure of QKDS with phase coding of a photon state is presented. The structure includes modules that immediately participate in the task of distribution and processing of quantum states. Phases of key sequence productions are studied. Expressions that allow the estimation of physical characteristics of optoelectronic components, as well as information processing algorithms impact to rate of key sequence production, are formed. Information security infrastructure can be utilized, for instance, to formulate requirements to maximize tolerable error level in quantum channel with a given rate of key sequence production.

The Biotic Logic of Quantum Processes and Quantum Computation

This chapter explores how the logic of physical and biological processes may be employed in the design and programing of computers. Quantum processes do not follow Boolean logic; the development of quantum computers requires the formulation of an appropriate logic. While in Boolean logic, entities are static, opposites exclude each other, and change is not creative, natural processes involve action, opposition, and creativity. Creativity is detected by changes in pattern, diversification, and novelty. Causally-generated creative patterns (Bios) are found in numerous processes at all levels of organization: recordings of presumed gravitational waves, the distribution of galaxies and quasars, population dynamics, cardiac rhythms, economic data, and music. Quantum processes show biotic patterns. Bios is generated by mathematical equations that involve action, bipolar opposition, and continuous transformation. These features are present in physical and human processes. They are abstracted by lattice, algebras, and topology, the three mother structures of mathematics, which may then be considered as dynamic logic. Quantum processes as described by the Schrödinger’s equation involve action, coexisting and interacting opposites, and the causal creation of novelty, diversity, complexity and low entropy. In addition to ‘economic’ (not entropy producing) reversible gates (the current goal in the design of quantum gates), irreversible, entropy generating, gates may contribute to quantum computation, because quantum measurements, as well as creation and decay, are irreversible processes.

Three Models for Ethical Governance of Nanotechnology and Position of EGAIS’ Ideas within the Field

Based on an analysis of the current literature on nanoethics, this paper proposes to identify three different models for ethical governance of nanotechnology, respectively called “conservative model,” “inquiry model” and “interpretative model.” The propositions of the EGAIS1 Research Project in terms of ethical governance of nanotechnology are related to the latter model.

Carbon Vacancy Ordered Non-Stoichiometric ZrC0.6

The starting nanopowders of non-stoichiometric zirconium carbide (ZrCx) were fabricated via milling Zr powders in toluene for different dwell times. The carbon content was determined to depend on the milling time and the used amount of toluene. The bulk non-stoichiometric ZrCx with different x were prepared by spark plasma sintering of the obtained ZrCx nanopowders. The microstructural features of a sintered ZrC0.6 sample were investigated via the measurements of XRD, TEM, and HRTEM. It was found that the carbon vacancies have an ordering arrangement in C sublattice, forming a Zr2C-type cubic superstructural phase with space group of . Moreover, it was observed that the superstructural phase exists in nano-domains with an average size of ~30 nm owing to the ordering length in nanoscale. During the heating treatment in air, it was recognized that the diffusion of oxygen atoms is significantly facilitated through the ordered carbon vacancies. For the heating treatment at low temperature (<300°C), the oxygen atoms diffuse easily into and occupy the ordered carbon vacancies, forming the oxy-carbide of ZrC0.6O0.4 with ordered oxygen atoms. At the heating temperature higher than 350°C an amorphous layer of ZrC0.6Oy>0.4 was identified to be formed due to the diffusion of superfluous oxygen atoms into Zr-tetrahedral centers. Inside the amorphous layer, the metastable tetragonal zirconia nanocrystals are recognized to be gradually developed.