Survey project - Identifying technical challenges and opportunities with interfacial materials in the cleantech sector
YKI’s SP Cleantech centre has initiated an intensive investigation of the surfaces critical to various cleantech technologies, mainly in Scandinavian businesses. The aim of the study is to identify technical opportunities for improving many critical surfaces across different applications in the Swedish cleantech sector. One of the main approaches will be through active contacts with CTOs and key technical players of Swedish Cleantech companies.
Critical surfaces identified in the study will be documented in a technical way that allows clusters of technologies to be grouped according to trends that emerge from the statistics. For example heat exchange surfaces is expected to be one class, solar thermal absorbers another, renewable materials another again etc. We will also cluster performance criteria according to interfacial classification – eg do surfaces suffer from fouling (ice build up, biofouling, non-biological fouling), do surfaces have the right surface chemistry, surface energies, surface morphologies etc, will changes in these enhance performance. Also we will look at surface modification potentials of surfaces, again with an eye to enhanced performances (lead times, system efficiencies etc).
The potential for the surfaces to accept coatings, chemical surface modifications, physical modifications and compositing with various technologies will also be summed up and clustered. This will comprise the first stage and be expected to be complete by then end of the second quarter of 2009. The methods will extend beyond the survey in the second phase where will be obtaining surface specifications, analytical measurements on typical surfaces in collaboration with interested companies. The outcome of the survey will influence the next three years research and spin off commercial work, so it will be given high priority.