Arthrobots

This paper describes a class of robots—“arthrobots”— inspired, in part, by the musculoskeletal system of arthropods (spiders and insects, inter alia). An exoskeleton, constructed from thin organic polymeric tubes, provides lightweight structural support. Pneumatic joints modeled after the hydrostatic joints of spiders provide actuation and inherent mechanical compliance to external forces. An inflatable elastomeric tube (a “balloon”) enables active extension of a limb; an opposing elastic tendon enables passive retraction. A variety of robots constructed from these structural elements demonstrate i) crawling with one or two limbs, ii) walking with four or six limbs (including an insect-like triangular gait), iii) walking with eight limbs, or iv) floating and rowing on the surface of water. Arthrobots are simple to fabricate, inexpensive, light-weight, and able to operate safely in contact with humans.Chemistry and Chemical Biolog

Infrared and thermoelectric power generation in thin atomic layer deposited Nb-doped TiO 2

Infrared radiation is used to radiatively transfer heat to a nanometric power generator (NPG) device with a thermoelectric Nb-doped TiO2 film deposited by atomic layer deposition (ALD) as the active element, onto a borosilicate glass substrate. The linear rise of the produced voltage with respect to the temperature difference between the “hot” and “cold” junctions, typical of the Seebeck effect, is missing. The discovery of the violation of the Seebeck effect in NPG devices combined with the ability of ALD to tune thermoelectric thin film properties could be exploited to increase the efficiency of these devices for energy harvesting purposes.Peer reviewe

Infrared and thermoelectric power generation in thin atomic layer deposited Nb-doped TiO2 films

Infrared radiation is used to radiatively transfer heat to a nanometric power generator (NPG) device with a thermoelectric Nb-doped TiO2 film deposited by atomic layer deposition (ALD) as the active element, onto a borosilicate glass substrate. The linear rise of the produced voltage with respect to the temperature difference between the “hot” and “cold” junctions, typical of the Seebeck effect, is missing. The discovery of the violation of the Seebeck effect in NPG devices combined with the ability of ALD to tune thermoelectric thin film properties could be exploited to increase the efficiency of these devices for energy harvesting purposes.Peer reviewe

Carbon Nanotubes Derived from Yeast-Fermented Wheat Flour and Their Energy Storage Application

Worldwide growing commercial interests in applying carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in diverse applications, such as batteries, sensors, catalyst supports, thermal electronics, and high-strength composites, have dramatically expanded the demand for higher CNT production capacity. However, current CNT production is still dominated by relatively high-cost chemical vapor deposition (CVD) methods, which usually involve high temperatures, expensive catalysts, and substantial quantities of nonrenewable petroleum-derived carbon sources. Here, we report that highly dense carbon nanotubes can be derived from yeast-fermented wheat dough scaffolds via a simple, green, and sustainable activation process without using any additional catalysts or extra carbon sources. When the activated wheat dough/carbon nanotube (AWD/CNT) scaffold is used as a sulfur host to prepare cathode for lithium–sulfur (Li–S) battery, the assembled Li–S cell exhibited excellent cyclic performance, with a well-retained capacity of ∼450 mA h g^–1 even after 1500 cycles at a high charge/discharge rate of 1 C. A “self-catalysis” growth mechanism is proposed to explain the formation of the yeast-derived CNTs. Our new findings represent a paradigm shift in developing CNTs and provide a promising solution to obtain advanced renewable carbon materials from natural and abundant biomass materials for use in energy storage applications