Patent • #US8681248B1. An electronic device includes a memory configured to receive data representing light intensity values from pixels in a focal plane array and a processor that analyzes the received data to determine which light values correspond to triggered pixels, where the triggered pixels are those pixels that meet a predefined...
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Smart Water and Heat Micro-network Hub (SWHMH)
Featured Opportunity • System integrates water resilience and energy efficiency to ensure uninterrupted water supply and heat sharing between appliances in residential and small commercial spaces Business Problem In residential and small commercial buildings, water supply and energy efficiency are not connected. Current systems are static and cannot adjust to seasonal changes that...
SmartLAMP
Featured Opportunity • Researchers at Sandia National Laboratories have developed a smartphone-controlled, battery-operated point-of-care diagnostic device that weighs under a pound, costs as little as $100 and can detect Zika and other vector-borne diseases rapidly and accurately. Current testing for mosquito-borne viruses requires a full laboratory that leaves patients waiting for days to...
Sodium electrochemical interfaces with NaSICON-type ceramics
Patent • #US11545723B2. The present invention is directed to the modification of sodium electrochemical interfaces to improve performance of NaSICON-type ceramics in a variety of electrochemical applications. Enhanced mating of the separator-sodium interface by means of engineered coatings or other surface modifications results in lower interfacial resistance and higher performance at increased...
SOFAST: Sandia Optical Fringe Analysis Slope Tool for Solar Mirror Characterization
Featured Opportunity • This technology is an automated system in which the reflection of a mirror, typically for solar applications, is characterized by the slope and slope errors. The system uses a video camera and a PC to create fringe patterns from the reflection of the mirror. These patterns can characterize and better...
Solar cell with back side contacts
Patent • #US8614395B1. A III-V solar cell is described herein that includes all back side contacts. Additionally, the positive and negative electrical contacts contact compound semiconductor layers of the solar cell other than the absorbing layer of the solar cell. That is, the positive and negative electrical contacts contact passivating layers of...
Solar Glare Hazard Analysis Tool (SGHAT)
Software • Sandia developed SGHAT v. 2.0, a web-based tool and methodology to evaluate potential glint/glare hazards associated with solar energy installations. The validated tool provides a quantified assessment of when and where glare will occur, as well as information about potential ocular impacts.
Solar Glare Hazard Analysis Tool (SGHAT)
Featured Opportunity • With growing numbers of solar energy systems being proposed and installed throughout the United States, the potential impact of glint and glare from photovoltaic modules, concentrating solar collectors, receivers, and other components is receiving increased attention as a potential hazard or distraction for pilots, air-traffic control personnel, motorists, and residents....
Solar mirror soiling and heliostat inspection from a mobile imaging system and mobile platform
Patent • #US11914374B1. A system or method for an imaging system is provided for inspecting a heliostat. The imaging system includes a platform and a camera mounted on the platform and a heliostat having a plurality of mirrored facets. The camera is positioned to acquire a first image that serves as a...
Solar photovoltaic reflective trough collection structure
Patent • #US9190546B1. A photovoltaic (PV) solar concentration structure having at least two troughs encapsulated in a rectangular parallelepiped optical plastic structure, with the troughs filled with an optical plastic material, the troughs each having a reflective internal surface and approximately parabolic geometry, and the troughs each including photovoltaic cells situated so...
Solar receivers and methods for capturing solar energy
Patent • #US11336224B2. Thermal receivers, systems, and methods are disclosed that efficiently capture concentrated solar energy into a plurality of heat absorption bodies for conversion into thermal energy. In an embodiment, the thermal receivers, systems, and methods enable simultaneous electricity conversion and thermal energy capture. The receiver design enables a high penetration...
Solar receivers and methods for capturing solar energy
Patent • #US10348241B1. Thermal receivers, systems, and methods are disclosed that efficiently capture concentrated solar energy into a plurality of heat absorption bodies for conversion into thermal energy. In an embodiment, the thermal receivers, systems, and methods enable simultaneous electricity conversion and thermal energy capture. The receiver design enables a high penetration...
Solar thermal receivers with multi-scale light trapping geometry and features
Patent • #US10935281B1. Solar receivers including a plurality of multi-scale solar absorbing surfaces arranged such that light or heat reflected from or emitted from one or more of the plurality of solar absorbing surfaces impinges one or more other solar absorbing surfaces of the solar receiver. The disclosed receivers increase the amount...
Solar thermal testing of ablators and composites
Patent • #US12436073B2. An apparatus for thermal ablation testing is provided. The apparatus comprises: a chamber; an optically transparent window in the chamber; a sample holder inside the chamber; a test sample in the sample holder; a number of bare-wire thermocouples connected to the test sample, wherein the thermocouples generate temperature data...
Solar Tracing Sensors for Maximum Solar Concentrator Efficiency
Featured Opportunity • Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) relies on thermodynamic processes to convert concentrated light into useful forms of energy. Accurate sun tracking enables higher concentration ratios and improved efficiency through higher temperature processes and lower losses. These tracking sensors utilize an improved approach to closed-loop feedback control and have demonstrated high accuracy...
Solar tracking system
Patent • #US9391557B2. Solar tracking systems, as well as methods of using such solar tracking systems, are disclosed. More particularly, embodiments of the solar tracking systems include lateral supports horizontally positioned between uprights to support photovoltaic modules. The lateral supports may be raised and lowered along the uprights or translated to cause...
Solar-battery integrated DC system
Patent • #US11916511B1. A DC bus is connected to a PV array, a battery or both, to power a grid connected inverter load on the bus. A system and method is described for controlling current flow on a DC bus regardless of the type of inverter. A converter receives a DC battery...
Solar-Thermal Ammonia Production
Featured Opportunity • A greener and more renewable pathway for ammonia production Ammonia (NH3) is an energy-dense chemical and vital component of fertilizer and other chemical commodities. NH3 is currently synthesized via the hydrocarbon intensive Haber-Bosch (H-B) process at high pressures of 150-300 bar and moderate temperatures of 350-500 °C. Hydrocarbons provide the...
Solar-Thermal Microfluidic Spinning Disc Reactor
Patent •
Solid State Ceramic Disc Membrane for Longer-Lasting Flow Batteries
Featured Opportunity • A solid-state ceramic disc membrane that increases the lifespan of aqueous-based system batteries by eliminating cross-over species and increasing conductivity Redox flow batteries (RFB) are an increasingly promising solution for large-scale energy storage applications. The unique architecture of RFBs stores the analyte and catholyte within individual containers, which allows for...
Solid state lighting devices and methods with rotary cooling structures
Patent • #US9599328B2. Solid state lighting devices and methods for heat dissipation with rotary cooling structures are described. An example solid state lighting device includes a solid state light source, a rotating heat transfer structure in thermal contact with the solid state light source, and a mounting assembly having a stationary portion....
Solid State Lithium Battery
Featured Opportunity • A higher power, solid-state thin film battery for breakthrough conductance and performance for on-package power in mass market electric vehicles (EVs) and electronic devices Arrhenius plot for the lithium-ion con- ductivity of La0.281 Li0.155 TaO3. An activation energy of 0.39 eV was measured for the LLTO film, enabling 15x higher...
Solid state synthesis of metal borohydrides
Patent • #US11267702B1. A method for obtaining solid-state metal borohydrides without toxic precursors and expensive solvents includes dry mixing of metal hydrides and metal polyhydro-closo-borate starting materials. High pressure and heating is also used in the method. These materials can be used for hydrogen storage, general reducing agents, organic synthesis, wastewater treatment,...
Solid-state information pattern discriminating switch
Patent • #US12063461B1. A maze-based switch generally having three functional blocks is disclosed. The first functional block handles communications by accepting an entered maze pattern from an external system controller and outputting the entered maze pattern (and optionally its directional complement) to the second functional block. The second functional block stores the...
Solid-state information pattern discriminating switch
Patent • #US11961348B1. A maze-based switch generally having three functional blocks is disclosed. The first functional block handles communications by accepting an entered maze pattern from an external system controller and outputting the entered maze pattern (and optionally its directional complement) to the second functional block. The second functional block stores the...
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