AI Article Synopsis

  • The study introduces a novel device using vanadium dioxide (VO) that can adaptively switch between solar thermal energy collection during the day and radiative cooling at night, addressing energy and environmental challenges.
  • The device leverages the unique phase transition properties of VO to achieve a wide range of infrared emissivity, allowing continuous and efficient energy harvesting.
  • Potential applications for this technology include thermal management for spacecraft, infrared camouflage, and adaptive optical devices, highlighting its versatility beyond just energy harvesting.

Article Abstract

Extensive use of renewable and clean energy is one of the promising ways to solve energy/environmental problems and promote the sustainable development of our society. As inexhaustible energy sources, the photothermal (PT) and radiative cooling (RC) energy from the sun and outer space have recently attracted tremendous interest. However, these two kinds of energy utilization have distinctly opposite spectral properties, especially in the infrared range, making it extremely difficult to integrate these two energy harvesting modes within a fixed device for continuous energy collection. Thus, in the current study, we have proposed a spectrally self-adaptive broadband absorber/emitter (SSBA/E) based on vanadium dioxide (VO), a typical phase transition material, to achieve continuous energy harvesting via collecting solar thermal energy in PT mode during the day and obtaining cool energy in wide-band RC mode at night. Experimental results show that owing to the phase transition property of the VO layer, these two energy collection modes can be adaptively switched. Specifically, the VO-based device shows a broadband infrared emissivity modulation from 0.21 to 0.75 and low critical temperatures (58.4 and 49.2 °C) during the phase transition, leading to continuous energy harvesting with high efficiency. Due to the broadband infrared emission, the RC maximum power of the SSBA/E device was estimated to be 58 W m. The proposed VO smart coatings are also applicable for many other applications such as thermal management of spacecraft, infrared camouflage, or adaptive optical devices.

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http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acsnano.3c01755DOI Listing

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