Team Leader
Christi Madsen, PhD
Texas A&M University
Electrical and Computer Engineering
cmadsen@tamu.edu
Project Type
Research
Who Can Join
Faculty, Staff/Postdoctoral Scholars, Graduate Students, Masters Students, Undergraduate Students
Project Description
The overarching SHINE vision is to innovate new solutions for off-grid solar applications with a positive community and environmental impact and develop them to a prototype stage in collaboration with small businesses and organizations. Our current focus is on “Concentrating Solar for High Temperature Applications” such as materials processing and processing for recycling and upcycling, where the emphasis is solar energy conversion to heat (not directly to electricity like with photovoltaics). As a first system, we are using a “large” Fresnel lens to focus direct sunlight onto a receiver in the focal plane. Precise tracking of the sun position is required. A high temperature receiver will operate as a small “Solar Furnace.”
Team Needs
Team members with various skill sets, see below, are welcome.
– Electronic hardware and software using a more advanced microprocessor than the Arduino Uno, but similar programming with many sensors available commercially to easily interface with it.
– Mechanical and Thermal: help advance our sun position tracking for a Fresnel lens-based concentrator, integrate safety features into the system, and design a robust high temperature receiver
– Material processing: design of high temperature processes that benefit from the attributes of concentrated solar energy compared to traditional heating methods
– Community involvement as we get into various applications, Website and app development, data management and analysis, …
If you have prior experience in any of the following, it would be helpful but not required: Arduino or microprocessor programming, robotics, design and testing of printed circuit boards, or MATLAB programming. Prior work with high power optics and lasers would be helfpul.
Special Opportunities
– Learn new skills and knowledge working on an interdiscplinary/multidisciplinary team
– Hands-on experience, use of rapid prototyping tools and methods (e.g. 3D printing, laser cutting, etc)
– Impactful and early stage involvement
– Publication/Presentation – contribute to conference papers, journal articles, or technology showcases.