The Daily OrangePower on: SU professor and team work on solar energy technology
By Sierra Jiminez
Posted: 9/16/09, 1:54 PM EST Section: News
Shelves of beakers line the walls, dozens of samples stand waiting to be prepped for testing and caddies of pipettes sit on nearly every countertop. At first glance, Mathew Maye's laboratory looks like a typical lab.
But Maye's research group runs no ordinary science lab. On the fourth floor at the Center of Science and Technology in the Life Sciences Complex, Maye, an assistant professor in chemistry, and several Syracuse University undergraduate, and graduate, students are on the verge of discovering new technology and resources for capturing solar energy.
"We're using a little bit of a different chemistry than you will learn maybe in a general chemistry or an organic chemistry," Maye said. "Because we're using metals and different semi-metals, we have much different properties that we can play with instead of traditional chemistry properties."
These small pieces of metals - nanomaterials - can be used in things like solar cell technology, fuel cells and other energy-related devices. If the team is successful, their research could potentially play a large role in the pursuit for the nation's energy independence.
"We're trying to make these nanomaterials in very cheap, reproducible chemistry synthetic methods," Maye said.
But as with any scientific research, Maye said there are always obstacles in the system and limits to what types of research can be done on the SU campus.
Maye's primary research point - quantum dots - require detailed analysis that SU simply does not have the equipment for. However, a recent partnership between the university and Brookhaven National Laboratory in Upton, N.Y., will allow Maye and the rest of the research team to use Brookhaven's advanced technology to study these nanomaterials.
"We could certainly go ahead without the collaboration, but really it's beneficial for both ourselves to be able to understand our materials better, but also to introduce our materials to the researchers there," Maye said. "So maybe they can think about more creative things or different things to do with our materials than even we can think about."
But Maye's research group runs no ordinary science lab. On the fourth floor at the Center of Science and Technology in the Life Sciences Complex, Maye, an assistant professor in chemistry, and several Syracuse University undergraduate, and graduate, students are on the verge of discovering new technology and resources for capturing solar energy.
"We're using a little bit of a different chemistry than you will learn maybe in a general chemistry or an organic chemistry," Maye said. "Because we're using metals and different semi-metals, we have much different properties that we can play with instead of traditional chemistry properties."
These small pieces of metals - nanomaterials - can be used in things like solar cell technology, fuel cells and other energy-related devices. If the team is successful, their research could potentially play a large role in the pursuit for the nation's energy independence.
"We're trying to make these nanomaterials in very cheap, reproducible chemistry synthetic methods," Maye said.
But as with any scientific research, Maye said there are always obstacles in the system and limits to what types of research can be done on the SU campus.
Maye's primary research point - quantum dots - require detailed analysis that SU simply does not have the equipment for. However, a recent partnership between the university and Brookhaven National Laboratory in Upton, N.Y., will allow Maye and the rest of the research team to use Brookhaven's advanced technology to study these nanomaterials.
"We could certainly go ahead without the collaboration, but really it's beneficial for both ourselves to be able to understand our materials better, but also to introduce our materials to the researchers there," Maye said. "So maybe they can think about more creative things or different things to do with our materials than even we can think about."
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