Posters presented at the October 16, 2006 Deans' Forum on Energy Security and Sustainability

Efficiency and Conservation

2: Integrating Planning, Design, Construction, Operation, and Maintenance for Sustainable Energy Systems

Energy production generally involves complex systems that must be operated in a safe reliable manner. The reason for safety is obvious, while reliability may be mainly considered to be in the best interest of the producer. Actually reliable efficient energy production is in the best interest of society. Maintenance of complex energy systems is critical for reliable efficient operation, and impacts ultimately the sustainability of such systems. Monitoring deterioration in order to effectively maintain complex systems is optimally achieved only if planning, design, construction, operation and maintenance are integrated synergistically. An effort to develop an educational and research program that will equip young women and men to meet the challenges associated with existing fossil and nuclear energy power plants as well as new power plants will be described.

John Duke, jcduke@vt.edu, 231-6063, Dept: Engineering Science and Mechanics, Mail code: 0219, Affiliation: faculty

12: Low Energy Processable and Recyclable Supramolecular Structures via Multiple Hydrogen Bonding

Supramolecular polymers involving hydrogen bonding interactions have been shown to produce higher effective molecular weight at room temperature than non-functional analogs.(1,2) This leads to improved properties at room temperature and lower melt viscosity compared to non-functional polymers with similar properties due to the thermoreversibility of hydrogen bonded supramolecular systems.(3) The decreased melt viscosity is critical to low energy processing strategies for these supramolecular polymers. The strength of hydrogen bonding interactions are tuned via other external variables such as moisture, pH and dielectric constant, leading to novel responsive materials. In current work we have synthesized nucleobase functional block copolymers containing adenine and thymine functionality, which exhibit molecular recognition and hydrogen bonding properties. As in DNA, these complementary bases heterodimerize (A-T), with association constants near 100 M-1. Solution rheology measurements have demonstrated this association via more than 3-fold increases in solution viscosity for blends of adenine and thymine functional polymers in low dielectric constant solvents such as chloroform. The hydrogen bonding interactions were also observed in the solid state, using techniques such as dynamic mechanical analysis, which indicated an increase in the softening temperature of the hard phase for A-T blends, due to the added strength that the hydrogen bonding groups conferred. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) has enabled studies of the surface morphology of these hydrogen bonding block copolymers, revealing novel surface textures obtained upon blending of complementary block copolymers. The addition of small molecule complementary hydrogen bonding guests to the block copolymers utilizes the molecular recognition properties of the block copolymers. This allows controlled placement of selected guest molecules into specific domains in the block copolymer, thereby changing the properties of the material, enabling numerous applications. References 1. Mather, B.D.; Lizotte, J.R.; Long, T.E. Macromolecules 2004, 37, 9331. 2. Yamauchi, K.; Lizotte, J.R.; Hercules, D.M.; Vergne, M.J.; Long, T.E. J Am Chem Soc 2002, 124, 8599. 3. Yamauchi, K.; Kanomata, A.; Inoue, T.; Long, T.E. Macromolecules 2004, 37, 3519-22.

Timothy Long, telong@vt.edu, 540-231-2480, Dept: Chemistry, Mail code: 0344, Affiliation: faculty

Brian Mather, bmather@vt.edu, 540-250-5191, Dept: Chemistry, Mail code: 0212, Affiliation: graduate student

Margaux Baker, margauxb@umich.edu, Affiliation: undergrad

Frederick Beyer, flbeyer@arl.army.mil, Affiliation: faculty

30: Energy Use Practices of Virginia Households

Little research about consumer energy use has been conducted since the last energy crisis is the 1980s. The purpose of this study was to assess the current energy usage practices and energy concerns of moderate to low income households in Virginia. A survey asking questions about energy usage, conservation practices, and the impact of energy costs was distributed at Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) and Smart Choices Nutrition Education Program (SCNEP) meetings in the six program districts in Virginia. A total of 943 respondents from 55 Virginia counties completed the one page survey. Slightly more respondents lived in city/town locations as opposed to rural areas. Most of the respondents were female with a monthly household income between $500 and $2,000 per month. The households were almost equally divided between renters and owners. A majority of the respondents indicated they practiced such energy saving measures as turning off lights, turning down the heat at night, checking for air infiltration areas, and turning off the television when no one was watching. They also tried to find information on how to save energy in their home. Although a majority felt energy costs were a problem for the family, only a small percentage needed to borrow money to pay energy bills or cut back on essentials. Despite a large percentage of the respondents indicated they were not interested in more information on how to save energy, only half of the respondents checked for energy efficiency when purchasing products, and over half did not make use of fluorescent lighting. When asked about their family’s effort to save energy, very few indicated they were making more effort compared to 5 years ago. This study was conducted in the late spring/early summer of 2005. Although this research took place before hurricane Katrina had such an impact on energy prices, consumers had already experienced large increases in energy prices during the previous year. Because little research has explored consumer energy practices over the past decade, the findings of this study will help educators and policy makers better understand the impact of energy on low to moderate income households and shape energy programs to best meet their needs.

JoAnn Emmel, jemmel@vt.edu, 231-9259, Dept: AHRM, Mail code: 0410, Affiliation: faculty

Irene Leech, ileech@vt.edu, 231-4191, Dept: AHRM, Mail code: 0410, Affiliation: faculty

33: A computational investigation of the process of mixing incompatible polymer blends for recycling plastics: a sustainable future.

Emulsions arise in a wide range of industrial applications. Recently, there has been considerable interest in the production of incompatible polymer blends because of the need for recycling plastics. Due to a fundamental lack of understanding, many of the industrial products are made by trial and error. Typically, one of the molten polymers disperses as droplets in the other, and larger drops break up into smaller ones, sometimes filling the suspending liquid with droplets of the same size. Experimental studies show that the drop rupturing phenomenon and the resulting microstruction is sensitive to the physical properties of the fluid pairs, and this in turn has direct bearing on the quality of the final blend. Most commercial immiscible blend production systems are too complicated to simulate with available methods, so that a reasonable starting point is to study the deformation and breakup behavior of a single droplet in a well-defined flow field. Thus, the dynamics of a liquid drop suspended in another fluid in channels and pipes are of fundamental importance. These processes, which yield daughter drops, are paradigms of theoretical investigations for immiscible polymer blends. Our work consists of physical modeling, mathematical analysis and direct numerical simulations for different liquid pairs such as viscous, viscoelastic and yield stress liquids. The models accommodate the effect of surfactants which can naturally occur as dirt along the interface separating the fluids, or are additives that are used to change the microstructure. The flow types we investigate include shear, oscillatory mixing and elongational flow. The goal of this research is to provide insight into understanding physical phenomena that complements experimental studies. Specific instances of this will be displayed. This project is in collaboration with experimental groups of M. Mackley (Chemical Engineering, Cambridge), S. Guido (Chemical Engineering, Naples), and the CFD groups of S. Zaleski (Paris VI), V. Cristini (Mathematics, UC-Irvine) and J. Li (BP Institute, Cambridge).

Yuriko Renardy, renardyy@math.vt.edu, 540-320-1573, Dept: Math, Mail code: 0123, Affiliation: faculty

38: Energy Related Research in MAD Center

The Multidisciplinary Analysis and Design Center for Advanced Vehicles was established in1994 to enhance the co-operation between Government Labs, Industry and Virginia Tech to design next generation of highly energy-efficient aerospace and other vehicles by employing emerging high-performance and experimental techniques. These emerging approaches made it possible that one can begin to design a vehicle as a complete system as opposed to individual components or working on just one area. The approach has succeeded beyond our expectations and we are considered as one of the premier research groups in the MAO area (Multi-disciplinary Analysis and Optimization). We have worked on such airplanes as the High-Speed Civil Transport, Strut-Braced Transonic Aircraft, and Blended-wing body aircraft. Recognizing the importance of uncertainty in many of the design variables, we have been working on uncertainty quantification using polynomial chaos and optimization of structures using reliability based methods. Furthermore, we have worked on innovative structural concepts such as unitized structures and light-weight adhesively bonded composite structures for the automobile industry and developing approaches (algorithms, wireless protocols, sensors) for structural health-monitoring (SHM) of radial tires. Structural Health Monitoring insures that components in a system are replaced at appropriate time leading to considerable efficiency. The vision here is the tire (or any component) would tell us when it is time to replace it. Finally, the center has been involved with the design of fiber-optics based miniaturized sensors such as a skin-friction gage to measure the skin-friction on an aircraft. By first understanding, and then minimizing, the drag due to skin-friction, one can design highly efficient aircraft and other vehicles. The research presented here will include the works of several Center members namely, W. H. Mason, Joseph A. Schetz, R. W. Walters, Layne Watson, D. Inman, and R. Batra.

Rakesh K. Kapania, rkapania@vt.edu, 231-4881, Dept: Aerospace and Ocean Engineering, Mail code: 0203, Affiliation: faculty

41: Sustainability through Leadership

Environmental sustainability is an issue that the students of Virginia Tech can address through leadership in the following fields; Energy & Environment, Energy & Conservation, and Energy Buildings. The Environmental Sustainability group of the Virginia Tech Leadership Program is working to promote programs such as the Green Fee and the Campus Climate Challenge. Students can take the lead in energy and environmental issues, setting an example for others in the campus and town community. The university should invest in long-term energy efficiency and conservation programs such as the Talloires Declaration and LEED. These programs will allow the university to further invest in campus infrastructure such as energy buildings or green buildings. The long-term benefits of increased energy efficiency on campus far outweigh the up front costs. With all the current issues concerning the environment, it is crucial for the Virginia Tech leadership community to become involved and set an example that will change students’ perspectives on what the future can hold if we work to incorporate sustainability into our everyday lives. It is important to recognize that the students themselves can take on these issues and make changes at a local level that will have a global impact. The Environmental Sustainability group will work to inspire, motivate, and educate the Virginia Tech community on the issues of Energy & Environment, Energy & Conservation, and Energy Buildings so that we as a university and learning community can truly “invent the future.”

Caitlin Plunkett, cplunk04@vt.edu, (703) 498-8572, Affiliation: undergrad

Thomas Allen, tallen05@vt.edu, Affiliation: undergrad

Desiree Aaron, dcaaron@vt.edu, (757) 375-0662, Affiliation: undergrad

42: Retroactive Conversion of a Commercial Vehicle to Drive-by-Wire

In the automobile industry, rapid technological advances are constantly improving the sustainability of our transportation network. However, the vast majority of vehicles use outdated technology. It is important to recognize which new technologies can be retrofit to older cars and have a significant impact on sustainability. Our research specifically focuses on providing older cars with the proper equipment to use active cruise control (ACC). ACC is any speed and/or direction control system on a vehicle that automatically reacts to the environment. The benefits of such a system include engine performance matching to road conditions and smoother traffic flow. Predictive cruise control (PCC) is a particular form of ACC estimated to decrease CO2 emissions by 10% on highways1 by adapting driving to road grades. Studies on traffic jam behavior suggest that if anywhere from 10-20% of vehicles on the road are equipped with ACC, it would eliminate traffic jams caused by high volume traveling at high speeds2. The first step of retrofitting an older car with ACC is converting the vehicle to drive-by-wire. Drive-by-wire allows a processing unit to control the vehicle. The researchers set out to retrofit a 2004 Cadillac SRX with a robust drive-by-wire system. The conversion was successfully completed and the drive-by-wire components preformed excellently, with some systems performing better than the stock driving systems. The system was tested with a primitive ACC program. This research proves that the concept of retrofitting vehicles with robust drive-by-wire technology is possible. The practicality of the overall system will no doubt improve as future design revisions are completed. If this technology was readily available to the public coupled with a sensor and software package for ACC, it would reduce emissions and fuel consumption. The opportunity to make a significant improvement to the sustainability of our vehicles is close at hand.

Shawn Kimmel, skimmel@vt.edu, 703-509-0537, Affiliation: graduate student

45: Power Electronics, Energy, and Environment

Power Electronics is key enabling technology for every aspect of electric energy, including its generation from alternative resources, its transmission and distribution, as well as its consumption. Study shows a projected modest increase in adoption rate of power electronics for loads alone by 2010 will result in 2.3 billion barrels of crude oil savings per year, hugely impacting the energy sustainability and environment. In order to fully realize the potentials of power electronics, significant technical and economical challenges remain. Fundamental and applied research on power electronics technologies are required to improve performance, reliability, and cost-effectiveness. This poster will explain the relationships between power electronics, energy and environment. It will highlight research activities and achievements at Center for Power Electronics Systems (CPES) in many different application areas including high efficient load management (IT, lighting, variable speed motor drives), transportation (electric cars, airplanes, and ships), and renewable energy systems. CPES is a global leader in power electronics research and only NSF engineering research center at Virginia Tech. We have five partner universities with Virginia Tech as the lead institution, over 80 industry sponsors, 32 faculty members covering 6 disciplines, 10 research staff, and 146 research students. With annual research funding of $7M, we conduct multidisciplinary research in power electronics, ranging from materials, semiconductor devices, packaging, thermal, and sensors, to circuits, controls, and application systems. Since its inception in 1998, CPES has graduated 88 PhD and 147 MS students, published over 1500 technical papers, generated 40 patents, and developed 14 new courses.

>Fred Wang, wangfred@vt.edu, 231-8915, Dept: Electrical and Computer Engineering, Mail code: 0179, Affiliation: faculty

Fred Lee, fclee@vt.edu, 231-7716, Dept: Electrical and Computer Engineering, Mail code: 0179, Affiliation: faculty

Dushan Boroyevich, dushan@vt.edu, 231-4381, Dept: Electrical and Computer Engineering, Mail code: 0179, Affiliation: faculty

Khai Ngo, kdtn@vt.edu, 231-2360, Dept: Electrical and Computer Engineering, Mail code: 0179, Affiliation: faculty

Hardus Odendaal, hardus@ieee.org, 231-6560, Dept: Electrical and Computer Engineering, Mail code: 0179, Affiliation: faculty

Ming Xu, mingxu@vt.edu, 231-2969, Dept: Electrical and Computer Engineering, Mail code: 0179, Affiliation: faculty

G.Q Lu, gqlu@vt.edu, 231-8686, Dept: Materials Science and Engineering 00, Mail code: 0237, Affiliation: faculty

Rolando Burgos, rolando@vt.edu, 231-1175, Dept: Electrical and Computer Engineering, Mail code: 0179, Affiliation: faculty

Shuo Wang, shwang6@vt.edu, 231-7497, Dept: Electrical and Computer Engineering, Mail code: 0179, Affiliation: faculty

54: Advanced Computational Methods for Modeling Energy Related Processes and Devices

The poster will describe the features and applications of GenIDLEST, a fluid flow and energy equation massively parallel solver. In addition to advanced turbulence modeling options based on Large-Eddy Simulations (LES) and Detached-Eddy Simulations (DES) coupled to the power of high performance computing, it has two-phase dispersed flow capability (particulates) and dynamic meshing capability for simulating energy harvesting structures and other relevant fluid-structure interaction problems. Past and potential applications will be highlighted in areas related to gas turbines, coal gasification and syngas utilization, novel surfaces for heat and mass transfer enhancement in heat exchangers, electronics cooling, and catalytic reactors, renewable energy systems based on wind, hydro and tidal energy, energy efficient vehicles using drag reduction technology, and air circulation and heat transfer in and from enclosures such as buildings, and electronic closets.

Danesh Tafti, dtafti@vt.edu, 231-9975, Dept: Mechanical Engineering, Mail code: 0238, Affiliation: faculty

Ali Rozati, rozati@vt.edu, 231-2349, Dept: Mechanical Engineering, Mail code: 0238, Affiliation: graduate student

Mohammad Elyyan, elyyan@vt.edu, 231-2349, Dept: Mechanical Engineering, Mail code: 0238, Affiliation: graduate student

Pradeep Gopalkrishnan, pradeepg@vt.edu, 231-2349, Dept: Mechanical Engineering, Mail code: 0238, Affiliation: graduate student

55: Microwave Processing: Opportunities in Energy Products and Conservation

Over the past 20 years, microwave processing has emerged as an alternative method for manufacturing a wide variety of materials. Some of the characteristics associated with microwave energy include rapid and uniform processing, selective heating based on intrinsic materials properties, precise and controlled heating, cost savings due to short process times and more focused energy, and equipment portability. Specific to energy research, in our laboratory at Virginia Tech we are using microwave energy for producing materials ranging from the nano (aerogels, sol-gels) to the macro scale (glasses, glass ceramics). Funded by the Department of Energy (DOE), microwave processing is being used for recycling precious metals from candidate fuel cell components as well as to treat the emissions resulting from the combustion/smelting process. We anticipate that precious metals will be a major limiting factor in the production of new catalyst materials and that recycling will become a requirement for continued manufacturing in addition to being more cost effective than mining materials from ores. The DOE also is funding the use of microwave energy as a more efficient method for densifying next-generation nuclear fuel pellets from what was once considered as spent fuel. In addition to generating energy from what is now viewed as a problematic waste material, new nuclear fuel technologies will aid in limiting nuclear material proliferation leading to a more secure global nuclear energy policy. In studies performed on materials processing, we and many of our colleagues world-wide are realizing that similar conventional processes may consume significantly more energy than the microwave techniques. Microwave energy can revolutionize the way we, as materials engineers and production managers, approach product manufacturing. While microwave energy alone will not be the answer to every technical barrier in materials processing, it can give us an alternative to the high energy consumption resistance heating techniques that are commonplace in industry.

Diane Folz, dfolz@mse.vt.edu, 540-231-2897, Dept: Materials Science and Engineering, Mail code: 0237, Affiliation: faculty

Sean McGinnis, smcginnis@vt.edu, 231-1446, Mail code: 0237, Affiliation: faculty

David Clark, dclark@mse.vt.edu, 231-6640, Mail code: 0237, Affiliation: faculty

Carlos Folgar, cfolgar@vt.edu, 231-2356, Mail code: 0237, Affiliation: graduate student

Morsi Mahmoud, momahmou@vt.edu, 231-2356, Mail code: 0237, Affiliation: graduate student

Patricia Mellodge, pmellodg@vt.edu, 231-2356, Mail code: 0237, Affiliation: graduate student

Michael Hunt, mhunt@vt.edu, 231-2356, Mail code: 0237, Affiliation: graduate student<

Raghu Thridandapani, r4thrida@gmail.com, 23102356, Mail code: 0237, Affiliation: graduate student

Carlos Suchicital, ctas@vt.edu, Mail code: 0237, Affiliation: faculty

67: Multi-physics, Multi-scale Models: Low and High Temperature Fuel Cells

An objective of this work has been to develop comprehensive macroscopic and microscopic 2D and 3D models for high-temperature (Solid Oxide) and low-temperature (Proton Exchange Membrane) fuel cells. Modeling efforts include a wide range of 1D, 2D, and 3D macroscopic models for both PEMFC’s and SOFC’s ranging from single layer models (i.e. membrane and catalyst layer) to full cell models which take into account flow channel dynamics, water transport, reduced backing permeability due to water saturation, species diffusion through tortuous backing, and proton and electron transport throughout the fuel cell. Steady state macroscopic SOFC models have also been developed which account for mass, thermal, and charge transport in a planar SOFC. The SOFC model also includes electrochemical effects and the chemistry of internal fuel reforming. However, in order to overcome some of the inherent weakness of such macroscopic models in which the effects of the microstructure of the porous media on cell operation and performance is only taken into account by considering such media as homogeneous layers characterized by macroscopic, averaged parameters such as porosity and tortuosity, a series of steady-state microscopic continuum models of the cathode catalyst layer (active layer) of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell were developed. These models incorporate O2 species and ion transport while taking a discrete look at the placement of the carbon supported Pt particles within the electrode-catalyst layer. Another approach which is fully dynamic has been to use Kinetic Theory and the Boltzmann equation in combination with Lattice Boltzmann Methods in order to develop 2D and 3D models which deal with reactive gas mixtures, enabling the simulation of fluid flow in both PEMFC and SOFC catalyst layers.

Michael von Spakovsky, vonspako@vt.edu, 231-6684, Dept: Mechanical Engineering, Mail code: 0238, Affiliation: faculty

Mike Ellis, mwellis@vt.edu, 231-9102, Dept: Mechanical Engineering, Mail code: 0238, Affiliation: faculty

Douglas Nelson, doug.nelson@vt.edu, 231-4324, Dept: Mechanical Engineering, Affiliation: faculty

68: System/Component Modeling/Optimization for Fuel Cell System Synthesis/Design and Operational/Control

The focus of this work is the development of enabling design-for–the-environment tools for use in the synthesis/design and operational/control of PEMFC and SOFC technologies. The major tasks envisioned include i) developing fully transient nonlinear, general models of PEMFC and SOFC stacks and a variety of BOPS (balance-of-plant subsystems) components, ii) developing realistic load profile scenarios for various types of stationary and non-stationary applications for use in generating optimal control strategies for such systems; iii) implementing bottom-up and top-down approaches for the development of optimal control strategies; iv) including uncertainty considerations in the modeling and optimization process, and v) developing decomposition strategies for the large-scale dynamic optimization of system/component synthesis/design and operational control.

Michael von Spakovsky, vonspako@vt.edu, 231-6684, Dept: Mechanical Engineering, Mail code: 0238, Affiliation: faculty

Mike Ellis, mwellis@vt.edu, 231-9102, Dept: Mechanical Engineering, Mail code: 0238, Affiliation: faculty

Douglas Nelson, doug.nelson@vt.edu, 231-4324, Dept: Mechanical Engineering, Mail code: 0238, Affiliation: faculty

Donald Leo, donald.leo@darpa.mil, 571-218-4939, Dept: Mechanical Engineering, Mail code: 0238, Affiliation: faculty

69: Exergy Analysis and Large-Scale Optimization for the Development and Operation of High-performance Aircraft

This work entails the development and application of exergy analyses and various decomposition strategies for the integrated large-scale synthesis/design and operational analysis and optimization of high performance aircraft. Work to date has focused not only on the energy-based subsystems and components of such aircraft but on the inclusion of such non-energy based subsystems as the airframe. Applications include both supersonic and hypersonic vehicles as well as morphing aircraft. Optimal syntheses/designs are arrived at by flying the vehicles through complex missions which test the overall vehicles ability to optimally meet all the mission requirements. Exergy analyses are carried out with varying degrees of fidelity from that required for the high-fidelity application of CFD to the airframe aerodynamics to that required in the high- to medium-fidelity semi-empirical and first principle models of both the energy and non-energy based subsystems of the vehicles.

Michael von Spakovsky, vonspako@vt.edu, 231-6684, Dept: Mechanical Engineering, Mail code: 0238, Affiliation: faculty

75: Harvesting Mechanical Energy of Vibrations

We have designed a two-terminal distributed network incorporating piezoceramic actuators and a passive network containing inductors, capacitors and resistors to harvest mechanical energy of vibrations by converting it into electrical energy that can be stored in batteries and/or capacitors for subsequent use. Our control subsystem is not based on the paradigm of sensing-evaluating-actuating, but is an integral part of the system thereby making it self-contained. We have demonstrated its capabilities by simulating vibrations of a simply supported beam.

Romesh Batra, rbatra@vt.edu, 231-6051, Dept: Engineering Science and Mechanics, Mail code: 0219, Affiliation: faculty

77: Center for Advanced Separation Technologies (CAST)

The Center for Advanced Separation Technologies (CAST) is a consortium of seven universities which include Virginia Tech (lead institution), West Virginia University, New Mexico Tech, University of Utah, Montana Tech, University of Nevada, Reno and the University of Kentucky. The CAST consortium was formed in 2001 to develop crosscutting separation technologies to produce clean coal and to upgrade other energy and mineral resources in an environmentally acceptable manner. The objective is consistent with the President’s energy policy and with the new energy bill authorizing federal funding for Advanced Separation Technologies research. CAST receives $3-4 million annual funding from the Department of Energy (DOE).

Roe-Hoan Yoon, ryoon@vt.edu, 231 7056, Dept: Mining and Minerals Engineering, Mail code: 0258, Affiliation: faculty

Gerald Luttrell, luttrell@vt.edu, 231 6314, Affiliation: faculty

Hull Christopher, hullc@vt.edu, 231 4179, Affiliation: faculty

79: Branched Polysulfone Ionomers as Potential Membranes for Ionic Polymer Transducers as Low Energy Devices

Electromechanical transduction is the phenomenon which couples an electrical potential applied across a conducting material with a resulting mechanical response. Ionic polymer transducers (IPT), flexible devices based on this coupling of physical domains, are composed of ion-conducting polymer membranes saturated with an ion-conducting diluent, an interpenetrating electrode layer, and an electrically conductive surface layer. IPTs attract attention in the area of alternative energy sources due to their ability to produce electrical current (i.e. μAmps) under repeated mechanical deformation. The magnitude of the current that IPTs generate lends itself to employment in long-term power harvesting and for powering low-energy devices. The variable size, very low weight, and flexibility of IPTs could allow for configurations incorporating them into vehicle tires, clothing, biomedical devices, and even wind power harvesting. Additional benefits of IPTs in such applications are the ability to provide sensing data through the generated current and/or to act as low-force actuators under an applied electrical potential. The majority of existing IPT technology and applications are based on the ion-conducting membrane NafionTM. The goal of my research is to synthetically develop a branched ionomer that is more compatible with existing ionic liquid[1] and electrode[2] technology, displays higher saturated modulus, shows longer lifetime under actuation, and attains higher ionic conductivity (i.e. resulting in greater energy density) than is presently achieved using NafionTM. The ionomer under investigation is synthesized from an oligomeric sulfonated polysulfone[3] (A2) and tris(4-fluorophenyl) phosphine oxide (B3). Incorporation of oligomeric A2 units in A2 + B3 reactions of other systems [4, 5] demonstrated a method to increase mechanical properties while also providing a highly-branched system with a high concentration of end-groups subject to further functionalization. Selection of the proper end-group chemistry may aid in tuning the surface and bulk properties for better compatibility with other IPT components. Overall this system presents an opportunity to observe how the introduction of controlled degrees of branching into an engineering grade ionomer affects the morphology, physical properties, and ability to perform as a transducer membrane in various low-energy and/or power harvesting applications. 1 Bennett, M.D., Leo, D.J. “Ionic liquids as stable solvents for ionic polymer transducers.” Sensors and Actuators A 2004, 115, 79-90. 2 Akle, B.J., Bennett, M.D., Leo, D.J. “High-strain ionomeric – ionic liquid composites via electrode tailoring.” J. ASME. 2004, 1-9. 3 Harrison, W., Hickner, M.A., Kim, Y.S., McGrath, J.E. “Poly(Arylene Ether Sulfone) Copolymers and Related Systems from Disulfonated Monomer Building Blocks: Synthesis, Characterization, and Performance – A Topical Review.” Fuel Cells 2005, 5, 201-212. 4 Lin, Q., Unal, S., Fornof, A.R., Yilgor, I., Long, T.E. “Highly Branched Poly(arylene ether)s via Oligomeric A2 + B3 Strategies.” Macr. Chem. Phys. 2006, 207, 576-586. 5 Unal, S., Yilgor, I., Yilgor, E., Sheth, J.P., Wilkes, G.L., Long, T.E. “A New Generation of Highly Branched Polymers: Hyperbranched, Segmented Poly(urethane urea) Elastomers.” Macromolecules 2004, 37, 7081-7084.

Andrew Duncan, ajduncan@vt.edu, 231-3826, Mail code: 0212, Affiliation: graduate student

Barbar Akle, bakle@vt.edu, Affiliation: faculty

Matthew Bennett, mabenne2@vt.edu, Affiliation: postdoc

Qin Lin, qlin@vt.edu, Affiliation: postdoc<

Rachael Hopp, rhopp@vt.edu, Affiliation: graduate student

Donald Leo, donleo@vt.edu, Affiliation: faculty<

Timothy Long, telong@vt.edu, Affiliation: faculty<

James McGrath, jmcgrath@vt.edu, Affiliation: faculty

80: Fuel Additive for Improved Fuel Efficiency

The effect of a proprietary additive on fuel efficiency of gasoline automobiles is described. Both static engine and chassis dynamometer tests show that the additive is capable of increasing fuel efficiency for both urban and highway driving as much as 25%. Data for both current models and older cars show that both can benefit from the use of the additive.

Joseph Merola, jmerola@vt.edu, 231-4510, Dept: Chemistry, Mail code: 0212, Affiliation: faculty

Michael Berg, bergm@vt.edu, 231-6837, Dept: Chemistry, Mail code: 0212, Affiliation: faculty

Nick Barker, nbarker@vt.edu, Dept: Chemistry, Mail code: 0212, Affiliation: undergrad

84: Green Supercomputing: Saving energy while enabling scientific discovery

Supercomputers are typically built to maximize performance. Soon such systems may require 100 megawatts of power, nearly the output of a small power plant (300 megawatts). This would supply 1.6 million 60-watt light bulbs; the lighting for a small city. At $100 per megawatt, peak operation of this supercomputer costs $85 million annually ($10,000/hour). Conservative estimates of 20% peak power consumption imply a lower, but not necessarily manageable $17 million annually ($2,000/hour). These estimates ignore the required additional cost (+40%) of dedicated cooling. In just two hours Japan’s Earth Simulator, one of the 10 most powerful supercomputers today, can produce enough BTU’s to heat an average 2000 square foot home in the Midwest all winter long. In fact, the Environment Canada IBM Supercomputer recycles the thermal energy it produces to heat a five-story building through outside temperatures as low as -15 degrees C (5 degrees F). Reducing the energy consumed and heat produced by distributed systems decreases cost and increases reliability. We present a prototype framework to profile/control, analyze and optimize the energy consumption of supercomputers. We exploit the inefficiencies characteristic of some parallel scientific applications, conserving energy without reducing performance significantly (<5%) and reducing energy costs (e.g. 25% overall energy savings).

Kirk Cameron, cameron@cs.vt.edu, 231-4238, Dept: Computer Science, Mail code: 0130, Affiliation: faculty

Rong Ge, ge@cs.vt.edu, Dept: Computer Science, Mail code: 0130, Affiliation: graduate student

Xizhou Feng, fengx@cs.vt.edu, Dept: Computer Science, Mail code: 0130, Affiliation: postdoc

85: Nitroxide Functional Block Copolymers for Advanced Polymeric Batteries

Lithium-ion batteries provide important power sources in small portable electronics. Currently, toxic and heavy supported metal oxides serve as cathode materials. Nitroxide containing polymers have demonstrated high performance as cathodes in lithium-ion batteries. These “organic radical batteries” exhibit rapid charging and discharging rates due to the rapid electron transfer processes responsible for oxidation of nitroxide groups to oxammonium cations. Due to the absence of mass transfer processes during this step (ion diffusion), the charging rates are high. Furthermore, the reversibility of the process results in long battery life. Recent efforts have centered on the synthesis of block copolymers containing pendant nitroxide functionality. These radical-containing block copolymers possess rubbery, low-Tg acrylic center blocks, providing elastic character. Thus, applications as flexible electrodes are envisioned. Furthermore, localization of the nitroxide groups to specific domains in the block copolymer matrix enable the development of cylindrical or lamellar nanostructures which could produce novel electrochemical behavior. Recent efforts have centered on the synthesis of N-tert-butyl-N-oxy-4-aminostyrene polymers with poly(n-butyl acrylate) rubber blocks. A novel difunctional alkoxyamine initiator that was developed in our laboratory was used to synthesize the triblock copolymers. We are currently using nitroxide mediated polymerization to prepare the block copolymer architectures. Due to the reactivity of the nitroxides in the polymerization methodology, we utilized silyl protecting groups to enable the synthesis of triblock copolymers. Subsequent deprotection with tetrabutylammonium fluoride and oxidation with silver oxide led to the formation of nanostructured nitroxide containing block copolymers. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) revealed the microphase separated nature of these systems. Characterization of the electrochemical properties of these materials is underway.

Timothy Long, telong@vt.edu, 540-231-2480, Dept: Chemistry, Mail code: 0344, Affiliation: faculty

Brian Mather, bmather@vt.edu, 540-250-5191, Dept: Chemistry, Mail code: 0212, Affiliation: graduate student

Takeo Suga, Affiliation: graduate student

Hiroyuki Nishide, Affiliation: graduate student

86: Passive Thermal Residences: Case Studies

How can small buildings, without the assistance of mechanical systems, maintain thermal comfort for their occupants for longer portions of the year? This line of inquiry aims to explore methods of broadening the balance point, to include a range of temperatures, in the design of skin-load-dominated buildings. Specifically, the presentation includes built examples of residences, designed by the author, utilizing stack-effect cooling towers, shared shade, and cross ventilation for passive cooling; and innovative insulation strategies, direct gain, thermal mass, infiltration minimization, night insulation, and novel thermostat set point strategies. Particular attention will be paid to the often-overlooked support roles of thermal mass, tight construction, thermal resistance, siting, and aperture size. Mistakes, shortcomings, and lost opportunities in the design, construction, and operation of the buildings are included in order to explore problems associated with energy efficient residences. Most importantly, these passive thermal strategies are expressed architecturally and fashioned under the common umbrella of design in an effort to add a layer of meaning to the spaces they serve.

Michael Ermann, mermann@vt.edu, 540.231.1225, Dept: Architecture, Mail code: 0205, Affiliation: faculty

Joe Wheeler, joewheel@vt.edu, 540.231.7237, Dept: Architecture, Mail code: 0205, Affiliation: faculty

88: The Building of Tomorrow

Buildings are responsible for on the order of 40% of energy consumption in the United States, and nearly 68% of all electricity use . As such, they represent a significant impact on energy security as well as an opportunity to substantially improve sustainability. The 1.8 million residences and 170,000 commercial facilities built each year in the United States, along with the over 120 million existing commercial and residential facilities, represent a level of energy performance that is only a fraction of what is achievable by the Architecture / Engineering / Construction industry today. The diversity and complexity of our building systems increases the challenges in incorporating energy efficiency technologies into our built environment. The Myers-Lawson School of Construction is dedicated to transforming the industry toward creating high performance facilities and infrastructure systems that meet today’s needs without compromising the ability of future stakeholders to meet their own needs. Energy-related research, education, and outreach within the School focuses on: • Developing building system models that support a holistic approach on system design and control strategies • Investigating impacts of building systems among each other and use them to increase efficiency (heating, cooling, ventilation, lighting, daylighting, window and envelope systems) • Developing new materials and material systems to support energy efficient building systems and construction practices • Developing new, high performance facility technologies and practices • Understanding how new technologies are commercialized, diffused, and adopted by building stakeholders to improve the performance of their facilities • Developing new cost and performance models to better predict the costs and benefits of green building practices • Designing systems to support the integration of sustainability as an objective of public sector capital project decision making • Educating current and future design and construction professionals about how to implement sustainability in professional practice

Georg Reichard, reichard@vt.edu, 540-818-4603, Dept: Building Construction, Mail code: 0156, Affiliation: faculty

95: Green Computing for a Clean Tomorrow

The raw performance of our astrophysics code has improved by 2000-fold over the past decade due largely to improvements in supercomputing hardware technology. However, the performance per watt has only improved 300-fold and the performance per square foot only 65-fold. Clearly, we are building less and less efficient supercomputers, thus resulting in the construction of massive machine rooms, and even, entirely new buildings. Furthermore, as these supercomputers continue to follow " Moore's Law for Power Consumption," the reliability of these systems continues to plummet, as per Arrenhius' equation as applied to microelectronics. To address these problems, we constructed a super-efficient supercomputer dubbed Green Destiny, a 240-processor supercomputer that fit in a telephone booth (i.e., a footprint of five square feet) and sipped only 3.2 kilowatts of power (i.e., two hairdryers). Green Destiny provided reliable supercomputing cycles (i.e., no unscheduled downtime in its two-year lifetime) while sitting in an 85-degree Fahrenheit dusty warehouse, and it did so without any special facilities, i.e., no air conditioning, no humidification control, no air filtration, and no ventilation. However, Green Destiny was an architecture-specific solution that lacked generality, i.e., the ability to run on any type of processor architecture. Consequently, we evolved the Green Destiny idea into a more general software-based approach, specifically a power-aware approach that runs on commodity processors to save as much as 70% in energy consumption with minimal impact on performance.

Wu Feng, feng@cs.vt.edu, 540-231-1192, Dept: Computer Science, Mail code: 0106, Affiliation: faculty