Search

This paper discusses the design of a net-zero single-family house in Chattanooga, Tennessee, which was proposed for the 2022 Solar Decathlon Design Challenge entry. The site was in a 100-year flood zone and registered as a national and local historic district. The interdisciplinary team consisted of University of Tennessee Chattanooga (UTC) students from the interior architecture and engineering departments who embraced the challenges of the local climate and the restrictions of the historic district guidelines. This entry, Moc House, focused on the integration of passive design and active HVAC systems including photovoltaic systems in the process. In responding to recent housing market changes in Chattanooga due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a young professional couple in their 30s who have two children was identified as the target market which guided the space planning. Market analysis, including ROI, was conducted in addition to construction cost calculations. Building materials were selected to enhance the durability and resilience of the house structure. Finally, energy analysis was conducted to check the project’s Home Energy Rating using Ekotrope and found it less than zero.

Little is known regarding Korean preschooler dietary phytochemical index (DPIs). We used the 24 h recall data of 1196 participants aged 3–5 years from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey to study the association between dietary food intake and obesity prevalence. The amount of dietary intake by food group was compared according to sex and DPI quartile. Multivariable-adjusted odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using logistic regression models. The average total DPI and energy from phytochemical food groups were not significantly different according to sex, although boys had a higher total daily food intake. Different inclinations between DPI quartiles and amount of intake were observed in the food groups; specifically, beans showed a higher intake difference between Q1 and Q4 for boys than in the other food groups. The highest DPI quartile had a significantly lower obesity prevalence than the lowest DPI quartile in all models for boys only when obesity prevalence by weight percentile was analyzed (Model 3, OR: 0.287, 95% CI: 0.095–0.868, p for trend < 0.05). Our results suggest a high DPI could help prevent obesity in preschoolers.

Graphene produced by different methods can present varying physicochemical properties and quality, resulting in a wide range of applications. The implementation of a novel method to synthesize graphene requires characterizations to determine the relevant physicochemical and functional properties for its tailored application. We present a novel method for multilayer graphene synthesis using atmospheric carbon dioxide with characterization. Synthesis begins with carbon dioxide sequestered from air by monoethanolamine dissolution and released into an enclosed vessel. Magnesium is ignited in the presence of the concentrated carbon dioxide, resulting in the formation of graphene flakes. These flakes are separated and enhanced by washing with hydrochloric acid and exfoliation by ammonium sulfate, which is then cycled through a tumble blender and filtrated. Raman spectroscopic characterization, FTIR spectroscopic characterization, XPS spectroscopic characterization, SEM imaging, and TEM imaging indicated that the graphene has fifteen layers with some remnant oxygen-possessing and nitrogen-possessing functional groups. The multilayer graphene flake possessed particle sizes ranging from 2 µm to 80 µm in diameter. BET analysis measured the surface area of the multilayer graphene particles as 330 m

Summary Saturated steam (>121°C and >205 kPa) is widely used in the medical sterilization process known as autoclaving. However, solar-driven steam generation at such high temperature and pressure requires expensive optical concentrators. We demonstrate a passive solar thermal device mostly built from low-cost off-the-shelf components capable of delivering saturated and pressurized steam to drive sterilization cycles even under hazy and partly cloudy weather. Enabled by an optimized ultra-transparent silica aerogel, the device utilizes an efficient thermal concentration strategy to locally increase the heat flux and temperature obviating the need for active optical concentrators. With almost 2× higher energy efficiency (47%) than those previously reported at 100°C, the device demonstrated successful sterilization in a field test performed in Mumbai, India. In addition to enabling passive sterilization, this work promises the development of solar thermal energy systems for saturated steam generation in energy conversion, storage, and transport applications.

Atmospheric water vapor extraction through adsorption to highly porous materials holds promise for its incorporation into broader technologies, including potable water generation. These technologies require breakthroughs in synthesis and design. Here, we demonstrate a composite of zeolite 13X sorbent for high adsorption capacity infiltrated with a light-weight three-dimensional graphene binder, which effectively networks a substrate structure into the sorbent. The composites described maintained fidelity when passing through the pore structure. This was accomplished by the utilization of a sacrificial polymer for safeguarding channel networking during sorbent infiltration of the binder for the extension of substrate networking. The performance measures for adsorbate loadings and thermal flux are evaluated with additional measurements taken for considering compactions of sorbent/substrates. Graphene/Zeolite 13X with preserved channeling demonstrated specific heat flux at 7664 W/kg, while samples without preserved channeling measured 4206 W/kg. A 0.6 g/cm3 compaction resulted in a 412% and a 368% improvement in mass transport while compaction at 1.2 g/cm3 resulted in a 333% and a 290% improvement in mass transport.

Here, we present the Northeast Asian Reference Database (NARD), including whole-genome sequencing data of 1779 individuals from Korea, Mongolia, Japan, China, and Hong Kong. NARD provides the genetic diversity of Korean (n = 850) and Mongolian (n = 384) ancestries that were not present in the 1000 Genomes Project Phase 3 (1KGP3). We combined and re-phased the genotypes from NARD and 1KGP3 to construct a union set of haplotypes. This approach established a robust imputation reference panel for Northeast Asians, which yields the greatest imputation accuracy of rare and low-frequency variants compared with the existing panels. NARD imputation panel is available at https://nard.macrogen.com/.

Heat at intermediate temperatures (120-220 °C) is in significant demand in both industrial and domestic sectors for applications such as water and space heating, steam generation, sterilization, and other industrial processes. Harnessing heat from solar energy at these temperatures, however, requires costly optical and mechanical components to concentrate the dilute solar flux and suppress heat losses. Thus, achieving high temperatures under unconcentrated sunlight remains a technological challenge as well as an opportunity for utilizing solar thermal energy. In this work, we demonstrate a solar receiver capable of reaching over 265 °C under ambient conditions without optical concentration. The high temperatures are achieved by leveraging an artificial greenhouse effect within an optimized monolithic silica aerogel to reduce heat losses while maintaining high solar transparency. This study demonstrates a viable path to promote cost-effective solar thermal energy at intermediate temperatures.

Background To implement standardized machine-processable clinical sequencing reports in an electronic health record (EHR) system, the International Organization for Standardization Technical Specification (ISO/TS) 20428 international standard was proposed for a structured template. However, there are no standard implementation guidelines for data items from the proposed standard at the clinical site and no guidelines or references for implementing gene sequencing data results for clinical use. This is a significant challenge for implementation and application of these standards at individual sites. Objective This study examines the field utilization of genetic test reports by designing the Health Level 7 (HL7) Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR) for genomic data elements based on the ISO/TS 20428 standard published as the standard for genomic test reports. The goal of this pilot is to facilitate the reporting and viewing of genomic data for clinical applications. FHIR Genomics resources predominantly focus on transmitting or representing sequencing data, which is of less clinical value. Methods In this study, we describe the practical implementation of ISO/TS 20428 using HL7 FHIR Genomics implementation guidance to efficiently deliver the required genomic sequencing results to clinicians through an EHR system. Results We successfully administered a structured genomic sequencing report in a tertiary hospital in Korea based on international standards. In total, 90 FHIR resources were used. Among 41 resources for the required fields, 26 were reused and 15 were extended. For the optional fields, 28 were reused and 21 were extended. Conclusions To share and apply genomic sequencing data in both clinical practice and translational research, it is essential to identify the applicability of the standard-based information system in a practical setting. This prototyping work shows that reporting data from clinical genomics sequencing can be effectively implemented into an EHR system using the existing ISO/TS 20428 standard and FHIR resources.

The antioxidant toughening agent for the hydrocarbon based proton exchange polymer electrolyte membranes, cerium/organosiloxane polymer network (Ce/OSPN), is synthesized via sol-gel reaction. Ce/OSPN is introduced to the sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (SPEEK), a typical hydrocarbon type polymer electrolyte membrane, by formation of a semi-interpenetrating polymer network (semi-IPN) structure. As Ce/OSPN possesses superior properties to SPEEK in mechanical flexibility, proton conductivity, and oxidation stability than SPEEK, it resolves 3 inherent drawbacks of the pristine SPEEK membrane including (i) brittleness, (ii) low proton conductivity, and (iii) poor durability. Addition of 20 wt% Ce/OSPN (at Ce/silicon mol ratio = 0.10) enhances the elongation at break of the SPEEK membrane about twice. The power density of the MEA fabricated with the semi-IPN membrane is 208 mW cm−2, which is much higher than that of the pristine SPEEK membrane, 165 mW cm−2. The power density loss of the same semi-IPN membranes as determined by the Fenton's test is 4.8%, whereas those of pristine and semi-IPN membrane without cerium are 33.9% and 34.0%, respectively. This Ce/OSPN agent is expected to be applied to a variety of hydrocarbon based polymer electrolyte membranes.

Summary Solar energy offers a promising renewable energy source; however, it is expensive to store electricity from photovoltaics (PV), the most widely deployed solar electricity technology. Solar thermal energy technologies can be paired with inexpensive thermal storage, but are more expensive overall. We have developed a solar receiver that combines PV and solar thermal systems to efficiently convert solar radiation to electricity (to be used immediately) and thermal energy (to be stored and converted to electricity on demand). This paper describes the Hybrid Electric And Thermal Solar (HEATS) receiver and models its performance. An idealized model predicts high solar-to-electricity efficiency (35.2%) with high dispatchability (44.2% of electricity from thermal energy) at an operating temperature of 775 K. Modeling using measured performance values for HEATS subcomponents predicts 26.8% efficiency and 81% dispatchability with silicon PV and 28.5% efficiency and 76% dispatchability with gallium arsenide PV, both operating at 700 K.

The ability to control the relative humidity at which water uptake occurs in a given adsorbent is advantageous, making that material applicable to a variety of different applications. Here, we show that cation exchange in a metal-organic framework allows precise control over the humidity onset of the water uptake step. Controlled incorporation of cobalt in place of zinc produces open metal sites into the cubic triazolate framework MFU-4l, and thereby provides access to materials with uptake steps over a 30% relative humidity range. Notably, the MFU-4l framework has an extremely high water adsorption capacity of 1.05 g g-1, amongst the highest known for porous materials. The total water capacity is independent of the cobalt loading, showing that cation exchange is a viable route to increase the hydrophilicity of metal-organic frameworks without sacrificing capacity.

Solar heat helps harvest humidity Atmospheric humidity and droplets constitute a huge freshwater resource, especially at the low relative humidity (RH) levels typical of arid environments. Water can be adsorbed by microporous materials such as zeolites, but often, making these materials release the water requires too much energy to be practical. Kim et al. used a metal-organic framework (MOF) material that has a steep increase in water uptake over a narrow RH range to harvest water, using only ambient sunlight to heat the material. They obtained 2.8 liters of water per kilogram of MOF daily at 20% RH. Science , this issue p. 430

Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Mechanical Engineering, February 2017.

Using the step-growth polycondensation reaction, poly(arylene ether ketone) (PAEK) and activated poly(arylene ether ketone)-NHS intermediates (PAEK-N) were synthesized. PAEK-NHS intermediates with pyridinium groups (PAEK-PYR) were obtained by adding different amounts of PYR groups. The successful syntheses of PAEK, PAEK-N, and PAEK-PYR were confirmed by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Several important membrane properties (e.g., ionic exchange capacity (IEC), water uptake, anion conductivity, and thermal and mechanical stability) were investigated for their applications in alkaline fuel cells. Water uptake, swelling ratio, anion conductivity, and IEC increased with increasing PYR contents, while the mechanical properties decreased. Among a series of prepared membranes, the PAEK-PYR100 and PAEK-PYR125 membranes showed IEC and anion conductivity values that were higher than those of a commercial AHA membrane. Also, all of the prepared membranes were thermally stable up to 255 °C and show excellent chemical stability in alkaline conditions.

Climate control applications in the form of heating and cooling account for a significant portion of energy consumption in buildings and transportation. Consequently, improved efficiency of climate control systems can significantly reduce the energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. In particular, by leveraging intermittent or continuous sources of waste heat and solar energy, thermally-driven energy storage systems for climate control can play a crucial role. We demonstrate the concept of a thermophysical battery, which operates by storing thermal energy and subsequently releasing it to provide heating and cooling on demand. Taking advantage of the adsorption-desorption and evaporation-condensation mechanisms, the thermophysical battery can be a high-power density and rechargeable energy storage system. We investigated the thermophysical battery in detail to identify critical parameters governing its overall performance. A detailed computational analysis was used to predict its cyclic performance when exposed to different operating conditions and thermodynamic cycles. In addition, an experimental test bed was constructed using a contemporary adsorptive material, NaX-zeolite, to demonstrate this concept and deliver average heating and cooling powers of 900 W and 650 W, respectively. The maximum power densities and specific powers observed were 103 W/l and 65 W/kg for heating, and 78 W/l and 49 W/kg for cooling, respectively, making the thermophysical battery competitive with the state-of-the-art climate control systems that provide relatively lower power densities. Additionally, with further opportunities for development and innovation, especially in synthesizing novel adsorptive materials, the thermophysical battery can achieve significantly higher power densities. With its ability to function using thermal energy input while being compact and lightweight, the thermophysical battery offers an option to address the energy challenges associated with the rising demand for climate control.

BACKGROUND To implement standardized machine-processable clinical sequencing reports in an electronic health record (EHR) system, the International Organization for Standardization Technical Specification (ISO/TS) 20428 international standard was proposed for a structured template. However, there are no standard implementation guidelines for data items from the proposed standard at the clinical site and no guidelines or references for implementing gene sequencing data results for clinical use. This is a significant challenge for implementation and application of these standards at individual sites. OBJECTIVE This study examines the field utilization of genetic test reports by designing the Health Level 7 (HL7) Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR) for genomic data elements based on the ISO/TS 20428 standard published as the standard for genomic test reports. The goal of this pilot is to facilitate the reporting and viewing of genomic data for clinical applications. FHIR Genomics resources predominantly focus on transmitting or representing sequencing data, which is of less clinical value. METHODS In this study, we describe the practical implementation of ISO/TS 20428 using HL7 FHIR Genomics implementation guidance to efficiently deliver the required genomic sequencing results to clinicians through an EHR system. RESULTS We successfully administered a structured genomic sequencing report in a tertiary hospital in Korea based on international standards. In total, 90 FHIR resources were used. Among 41 resources for the required fields, 26 were reused and 15 were extended. For the optional fields, 28 were reused and 21 were extended. CONCLUSIONS To share and apply genomic sequencing data in both clinical practice and translational research, it is essential to identify the applicability of the standard-based information system in a practical setting. This prototyping work shows that reporting data from clinical genomics sequencing can be effectively implemented into an EHR system using the existing ISO/TS 20428 standard and FHIR resources.

Genotype imputation using the reference panel is a cost-effective strategy to fill millions of missing genotypes for the purpose of various genetic analyses. Here, we present the Northeast Asian Reference Database (NARD), including whole-genome sequencing data of 1,781 individuals from Korea, Mongolia, Japan, China, and Hong Kong. NARD provides the genetic diversities of Korean (n=850) and Mongolian (n=386) ancestries that were not present in the 1000 Genomes Project Phase 3 (1KGP3). We combined and re-phased the genotypes from NARD and 1KGP3 to construct a union set of haplotypes. This approach established a robust imputation reference panel for the Northeast Asian populations, which yields the greatest imputation accuracy of rare and low-frequency variants compared with the existing panels. Also, we illustrate that NARD can potentially improve disease variant discovery by reducing pathogenic candidates. Overall, this study provides a decent reference panel for the genetic studies in Northeast Asia.

Poly(arylene ether ketone) (PAEK) possessing carboxylic groups at the pendant position is synthesized, and the substitution degree of pendant carboxylic groups is controlled by adjusting the ratio of 4,4-bis(4-hydroxyphenyl)valeric acid and 2,2-bis(4-hydroxyphenyl)propane. Dual sulfonated 3,3-diphenylpropylamine (SDPA) is grafted onto PAEK as a proton-conducting moiety via the amidation reaction with carboxylic groups. The transparent and flexible membranes with different degrees of sulfonation are fabricated so that we can test and compare their structure and properties with a commercial Nafion ® 115 membrane for PEMFC applications. All prepared PAEK-SDPA membranes exhibit good oxidative and hydrolytic stability from Fenton's and high temperature water immersion test. SAXS analysis illustrates an excellent phase separation between the hydrophobic backbone and hydrophilic pendant groups, resulting in big ionic clusters. The proton conductivity was measured at different relative humidity, and its behavior was analyzed by hydration number of the membrane. Among a series of membranes, some samples (including B20V80-SDPA) show not only higher proton conductivity, but also higher integrated cell performance than those of Nafion ® 115 at 100% relative humidity, and thus we expect these to be good candidate membranes for proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs).

We present functionalized three-dimensional graphene as a promising thermal additive to increase the effective thermal conductivity of porous crystal adsorbents. Due to the percolation and high porosity of three-dimensional graphene, the thermal conductivity of the adsorbent-graphene composite was enhanced up to 500 % with a minimal reduction in adsorption capacity of approximately 2 %. The functionalization demonstrated to be an effective way to implement a hydrophobic carbon network with hydrophilic porous crystals. The functionalized three-dimensional graphene can be applicable to numerous types of porous crystals including zeolites and metal organic frameworks to overcome their intrinsic low thermal conductivity. This work provides insights for the development of binders for enhanced thermal performance of porous materials in various adsorption systems., United States. Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy

Water scarcity is a particularly severe challenge in arid and desert climates. While a substantial amount of water is present in the form of vapour in the atmosphere, harvesting this water by state-of-the-art dewing technology can be extremely energy intensive and impractical, particularly when the relative humidity (RH) is low (i.e., below ~40% RH). In contrast, atmospheric water generators that utilise sorbents enable capture of vapour at low RH conditions and can be driven by the abundant source of solar-thermal energy with higher efficiency. Here, we demonstrate an air-cooled sorbent-based atmospheric water harvesting device using the metal−organic framework (MOF)-801 [Zr6O4(OH)4(fumarate)6] operating in an exceptionally arid climate (10–40% RH) and sub-zero dew points (Tempe, Arizona, USA) with a thermal efficiency (solar input to water conversion) of ~14%. We predict that this device delivered over 0.25 L of water per kg of MOF for a single daily cycle., Harvesting water from the atmosphere is an important solution to water scarcity, but doing so in arid climates is highly challenging. Here, the authors develop a metal-organic framework-based water harvesting device that can deliver over 0.25 L of water per kg of adsorbent over a single cycle at relative humidities of 10–40% and at subzero dew points.

We present a systematic study of carbon nanomaterials with different geometries and thermal properties, including few-layer graphene (FLG), graphene oxide (GO), and functionalized carbon nanotubes (fCNT) as additives to enhance the thermal conductivity of microporous adsorbent materials. The dimensionality and intrinsic thermal conductivity of the additives were found to be critical for both maximizing the thermal conductivity enhancement, and minimizing the reduction in the adsorption capacity of the active materials. We demonstrated that two-dimensional (2D) FLG was the most effective thermal additive for zeolite (ZT) adsorbents due to its high thermal conductivity and preferential 2D geometry. Meanwhile, negligible enhancement was observed from one-dimensional (1D) additives such as fCNTs, which is consistent with the predictions from a modified effective medium analysis (EMA). Our work provides insights for the development of additives to enhance the thermal performance of porous materials in applications such as adsorption heat pumps, gas storage, and separation processes. Keywords: Thermal conductivity, Microporous adsorbent, Zeolite, Metal organic frameworks, Graphene, Graphene oxide, Carbon nanotube

Current technologies that provide climate control in the transportation sector are quite inefficient. In gasoline-powered vehicles, the use of air-conditioning is known to result in higher emissions of greenhouse gases and pollutants apart from decreasing the gas-mileage. On the other hand, for electric vehicles (EVs), a drain in the onboard electric battery due to the operation of heating and cooling system results in a substantial decrease in the driving range. As an alternative to the conventional climate control system, we are developing an adsorption-based thermal battery (ATB), which is capable of storing thermal energy, and delivering both heating and cooling on demand, while requiring minimal electric power supply. Analogous to an electrical battery, the ATB can be charged for reuse. Furthermore, it promises to be compact, lightweight, and deliver high performance, which is desirable for mobile applications. In this study, we describe the design and operation of the ATB-based climate control system. We present a general theoretical framework to determine the maximum achievable heating and cooling performance using the ATB. The framework is then applied to study the feasibility of ATB integration in EVs, wherein we analyze the use of NaX zeolite–water as the adsorbent–refrigerant pair. In order to deliver the necessary heating and cooling performance, exceeding 2.5 kW h thermal capacity for EVs, the analysis determines the optimal design and operating conditions. While the use of the ATB in EVs can potentially enhance its driving range, it can also be used for climate control in conventional gasoline vehicles, as well as residential and commercial buildings as a more efficient and environmentally-friendly alternative.

In their comment, Bui et al . argue that the approach we described in our report is vastly inferior in efficiency to alternative off-the-shelf technologies. Their conclusion is invalid, as they compare efficiencies in completely different operating conditions. Here, using heat transfer and thermodynamics principles, we show how Bui et al .’s conclusions about the efficiencies of off-the-shelf technologies are fundamentally flawed and inaccurate for the operating conditions described in our study.

The capture of water vapor at low relative humidity is desirable for producing potable water in desert regions and for heat transfer and storage. Here, we report a mesoporous metal–organic framework that captures 82% water by weight below 30% relative humidity. Under simulated desert conditions, the sorbent would deliver 0.82 gH2O gMOF–1, nearly double the quantity of fresh water compared to the previous best material. The material further demonstrates a cooling capacity of 400 kWh m–3 per cycle, also a record value for a sorbent capable of creating a 20 °C difference between ambient and output temperature. The water uptake in this sorbent is optimized: the pore diameter of our material is above the critical diameter for water capillary action, enabling water uptake at the limit of reversibility., A mesoporous metal−organic framework exhibits record uptake of water at low humidity, of importance in fresh water generation and heat pumps.

Despite the growing use of carbon nanomaterials in commercial applications, very little is known about the fate of these nanomaterials once they are released into the environment. The carbon–carbon bonding of spherical sp2 hybridized fullerene (C60) forms a strong and resilient material that resists biodegradation. Moreover, C60 is widely reported to be bactericidal. Here however, we observe the changing properties of fullerene nanoparticle aggregates aged in the presence of microbes. C60 aggregates were observed to decrease in size with aging, while hydroxylation and photosensitized reactivity measured by the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) increased, suggesting that chemically and/or biologically-mediated activity is capable of partially transforming fullerene structure and reactivity in the environment. However, stable-isotope-labeling C60 aggregates incubated with microbial cultures from aged suspensions for 203 days did not produce significant labeled carbon dioxide, despite significant reduction in aggregate radius for biological samples. These results suggest that either the rate of biodegradation of these particles is too slow to quantify or that the biologically-enhanced transformation of these particles does not occur through microbial biodegradation to carbon dioxide.

Adsorption based heat-pumps have received significant interest owing to their promise of higher efficiencies and energy savings when coupled with waste heat and solar energy compared to conventional heating and cooling systems. While adsorption systems have been widely studied through computational analysis and experiments, general design guidelines to enhance their overall performance have not been proposed. In this work, we identified conditions suitable for the maximum utilization of the adsorbent to enhance the performance of both intermittent as well as continuously operating adsorption systems. A detailed computational model was developed based on a general framework governing adsorption dynamics in a single adsorption layer and pellet. We then validated the computational analysis using experiments with a model system of zeolite 13X-water for different operating conditions. A dimensional analysis was subsequently carried out to optimize adsorption performance for any desired operating condition, which is determined by the choice of adsorbent–vapor pair, adsorption duration, operational pressure, intercrystalline porosity, adsorbent crystal size, and intracrystalline vapor diffusivity. The scaling analysis identifies the critical dimensionless parameters and provides a simple guideline to determine the most suitable geometry for the adsorbent particles. Based on this selection criterion, the computational model was used to demonstrate maximum utilization of the adsorbent for any given operational condition. By considering a wide range of parametric variations for performance optimization, these results offer important insights for designing adsorption beds for heating and cooling systems.

This study aims to find a global pattern of the Triple Helix (TH) relationship among university, industry, and government sectors in scientific research, placing the discussion in a developmental context. Based on the dataset composed of SCI and SSCI-listed publications from around 130 countries, we investigated the participation share of each sector, the publication share by sector and sectoral combination, and the synergic effect of the TH relationship. Statistical analyses suggest the presence of a dividing pattern of the TH relationship between developed and developing countries: Developed countries had higher participation in the industry sector, more university-centered collaborations with the industry and government sectors, and a higher synergic effect of the TH relationship than developing countries. This tendency was found to occur irrespective of the science or social science field. These findings have implications for developing countries to promote the participation of the industry sector in scientific research and the effort of the government sector to facilitate university and industry linkage.

Solar thermal energy systems combined with low-cost thermal storage provide a sustainable, dispatchable source of renewable energy. One approach to increase the attractiveness of these systems is to use high-performing solar transparent, thermally insulating silica aerogel to significantly increase efficiency. Several past works have proposed using these ultra-nanoporous materials to reduce thermal losses in the receiver, but only recently have aerogels reached the high solar transparency necessary to be considered for concentrated solar applications (>97%). However, the durability and stability of optically transparent silica aerogels at the operating conditions of solar-thermal receivers has not been examined. Here, we investigate the high temperature stability of transparent silica aerogel for use in concentrated solar thermal energy applications. Transparent samples (visible transmission >95% at 4 mm thickness) were annealed for several months at 400, 600, and 800 °C to investigate the relative change in nanostructure, solar transparency, and effective thermal conductivity. Results showed that at 400 and 600 °C, the temperature-dependent changes reach a plateau within 30 days of continuous annealing, but at 800 °C, samples are structurally unstable. A simple receiver efficiency model was used to show stable performance at 400 and 600 °C temperatures, even after months of exposure. This work validates that transparent silica aerogels can be used in solar thermal receivers below 800 °C, yielding appreciable increases in efficiency for solar energy harvesting operation.