The solar-powered marine unmanned surface vehicle(USV) developed by the USV team of the Institute of Atmospheric Physics is a rugged, long-duration, and autonomous navigation vessel designed for the collection of long...The solar-powered marine unmanned surface vehicle(USV) developed by the USV team of the Institute of Atmospheric Physics is a rugged, long-duration, and autonomous navigation vessel designed for the collection of longrange, continuous, real-time, meteorological and oceanographic measurements, especially under extreme sea conditions(sea state 6–7). These solar-powered USVs completed a long-term continuous navigation observation test over 26 days.During this time, they coordinated double-USV observations and actively navigated into the path of Typhoon Sinlaku(2020) before collecting data very close to its center during the 2020 USV South China Sea Typhoon Observation Experiment. Detailed high temporal resolution(1 min) real-time observations collected by the USV on the typhoon were used for operational typhoon forecasting and warning for the first time. As a mobile meteorological and oceanographic observation station capable of reliable, automated deployment, data collection, and transmission, such solar-powered USVs can replace traditional observation platforms to provide valuable real-time data for research, forecasting, and early warnings for potential marine meteorological disasters.展开更多
Solar-powered aircraft have attracted great attention owing to their potential for longendurance flight and wide application prospects.Due to the particularity of energy system,flight strategy optimization is a signif...Solar-powered aircraft have attracted great attention owing to their potential for longendurance flight and wide application prospects.Due to the particularity of energy system,flight strategy optimization is a significant way to enhance the flight performance for solar-powered aircraft.In this study,a flight strategy optimization model for high-altitude long-endurance solar-powered aircraft was proposed.This model consists of three-dimensional kinematic model,aerodynamic model,energy collection model,energy store model and energy loss model.To solve the nonlinear optimal control problem with process constraints and terminal constraints,Gauss pseudo-spectral method was employed to discretize the state equations and constraint equations.Then a typical mission flying from given initial point to given final point within a time interval was considered.Results indicate that proper changes of the attitude angle contribute to increasing the energy gained by photovoltaic cells.Utilization of gravitational potential energy can partly take the role of battery pack.Integrating these two measures,the optimized flight strategy can improve the final state of charge compared with current constant-altitude constant-velocity strategy.The optimized strategy brings more profits on condition of lower sunlight intensity and shorter daytime.展开更多
This paper describes the general optimization design method of Solar-Powered Unmanned Aerial Vehicle which priority considering propulsion system planning. Based on the traditional solar powered aircraft design method...This paper describes the general optimization design method of Solar-Powered Unmanned Aerial Vehicle which priority considering propulsion system planning. Based on the traditional solar powered aircraft design method, the propulsion system top-level target parameters which affect the path planning are integrated into the general optimization design. According to the typical mission requirements of Solar-Powered Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, considering the design variables such as wing area, aspect ratio, design mission date and so on, the general optimization is carried out with the minimum aircraft weight as the optimization objective. The influence of wing area and aspect ratio on the optimal design results is analyzed and compared with the traditional design method. The results show that the general design method of Solar-Powered Unmanned Aerial Vehicle for priority considering propulsion system can greatly reduce the electricity demand of energy storage battery, greatly reduce the aircraft weight of Solar-Powered Unmanned Aerial Vehicle.展开更多
Solar-powered desalination is a promising way to resolve the worldwide water crisis for its low con- sumption and simple facility. Considering the fragility and aggregations of traditional materials, which may decreas...Solar-powered desalination is a promising way to resolve the worldwide water crisis for its low con- sumption and simple facility. Considering the fragility and aggregations of traditional materials, which may decrease efficiency, we herein introduce a robust tungsten carbide (WC) nanoarray film as a stable and efficient photothermal material, whose absorption is over 97.5% throughout almost the whole solar spectrum range (220–2200 nm) due to nanoarray structure and thus enhanced localized surface plasmon resonance. Besides, for the first time, we modified the film with sandwich wettability. It accelerates evap- oration by reducing water’s reflection of light, enlarging hydrophobic-hydrophilic boundaries, and depressing heat dissipation. Combining high absorption with unique wettability, the WC nanoarray film offers high solar-to-vapor efficiency of 90.8% and produces drinking water at the rate of (1.06 ± 0.10) kg m^(-2)h^(-1)from man-made seawater and (0.98 ± 0.18) kg m^(-2)h^(-1)from heavy metal sewage under one sun (AM 1.5) while 98% performance remains after 1 h×100 times’ reutilization.展开更多
Modular Solar-Powered Aircraft(M-SPA)is a kind of High-Altitude Long-Endurance(HALE)aircraft which exploits the mission advantage of swarm UAV and the HALE advantage of large aspect-ratio SPA.M-SPA’s separated mode a...Modular Solar-Powered Aircraft(M-SPA)is a kind of High-Altitude Long-Endurance(HALE)aircraft which exploits the mission advantage of swarm UAV and the HALE advantage of large aspect-ratio SPA.M-SPA’s separated mode and combined mode give it the potential to maximize the mission efficiency with limited solar energy.In this paper,firstly,oriented by the mission of maximizing the cruise area,the overall design of the M-SPA is modeled,including the energy model,the aerodynamic model and the flight environment settings.Secondly,by analyzing the energy consumption of the flight modes,we design a multi-phase flight mission strategy.Then,a 24-hour three-dimensional(3D)flight profile of the M-SPA is optimized,including the sub-SPA cooperative path planning in the separation mode.Finally,inspired by the Traveling Salesman Problem(TSP),an improved Ant Colony Algorithm(ACA)is exploited to find the optimal path for each sub-SPA,which is further developed into a dynamic separation and combination scheme for the M-SPA.The simulation results show that the mission performance of the M-SPA outperforms that of the conventional SPA,and explicitly,the mission coverage of the M-SPA is slightly less than a linear increase under comparable simulation conditions.展开更多
The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate an integrated optimization scheme for a solar-powered drone structure.Consider a primary beam in the wing of large aspect ratio,where 100 lithium batteries are assembled.In ...The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate an integrated optimization scheme for a solar-powered drone structure.Consider a primary beam in the wing of large aspect ratio,where 100 lithium batteries are assembled.In the proposed integrated optimization,the batteries are considered here as parts of the load-carrying structure.The corresponding mechanical behaviors are simulated in the structural design and described with super-elements.The batteries layout and the structural topology are then introduced as mixed design variables and optimized simultaneously to achieve an accordant load-carrying path.Geometrical nonlinearity is considered due to the large deformation.Different periodic structural configurations are tested in the optimization in order to meet the structural manufacturing and assembly convenience.The optimized designs are rebuilt and tested in different load cases.Maintaining the same structural weight,the global mechanical performances are improved greatly compared with the initial design.展开更多
According to the typical variable heat source of solar energy and the unsteady adsorption process of adsorption chiller,the research of cyclic transient characteristics of the solar-powered adsorption cooling system i...According to the typical variable heat source of solar energy and the unsteady adsorption process of adsorption chiller,the research of cyclic transient characteristics of the solar-powered adsorption cooling system is presented in this work.A mathematic model of the whole system including the model of adsorption chiller,which reveals the transient operation process of the solar-powered adsorption cooling system,is developed and verified by experimental data.On the basis of the simulated results,the transient characteristics and the overall performance of the system,not only in the traditional open cycle mode but also in closed cycle mode,are both analyzed theoretically.Furthermore,the influence of parameters matching of components configuration and operation process on the cyclic characteristics of the system,such as the solar collector area,the water tank capacity and the chiller startup temperature,are discussed.The research in this work may play a very important role in optimizing the system cyclic process and improving the system adaptability especially under the condition of variable heat source.展开更多
Solar-powered interfacial evaporation is an energy-efficient solution for water scarcity.It requires solar absorbers to facilitate upward water transport and limit the heat to the surface for efficient evaporation.Fur...Solar-powered interfacial evaporation is an energy-efficient solution for water scarcity.It requires solar absorbers to facilitate upward water transport and limit the heat to the surface for efficient evaporation.Furthermore,downward salt ion transport is also desired to prevent salt accumulation.However,achieving simultaneously fast water uptake,downward salt transport,and heat localization is challenging due to highly coupled water,mass,and thermal transport.Here,we develop a structurally graded aerogel inspired by tree transport systems to collectively optimize water,salt,and thermal transport.The arched aerogel features root-like,fan-shaped microchannels for rapid water uptake and downward salt diffusion,and horizontally aligned pores near the surface for heat localization through maximizing solar absorption and minimizing conductive heat loss.These structural characteristics gave rise to consistent evaporation rates of 2.09 kg m^(-2) h^(-1) under one-sun illumination in a 3.5 wt%NaCl solution for 7 days without degradation.Even in a high-salinity solution of 20 wt%NaCl,the evaporation rates maintained stable at 1.94 kg m^(-2) h^(-1) for 8 h without salt crystal formation.This work offers a novel microstructural design to address the complex interplay of water,salt,and thermal transport.展开更多
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 41627808)the Research Equipment Development Project of the Chinese Academy of Sciences+1 种基金the Petrel Meteorological Observation Experiment Project of the China Meteorological Administrationthe “Adaptive Improvement of New Observation Platform for Typhoon Observation (2018YFC1506401)” of the Ministry of Science and Technology。
文摘The solar-powered marine unmanned surface vehicle(USV) developed by the USV team of the Institute of Atmospheric Physics is a rugged, long-duration, and autonomous navigation vessel designed for the collection of longrange, continuous, real-time, meteorological and oceanographic measurements, especially under extreme sea conditions(sea state 6–7). These solar-powered USVs completed a long-term continuous navigation observation test over 26 days.During this time, they coordinated double-USV observations and actively navigated into the path of Typhoon Sinlaku(2020) before collecting data very close to its center during the 2020 USV South China Sea Typhoon Observation Experiment. Detailed high temporal resolution(1 min) real-time observations collected by the USV on the typhoon were used for operational typhoon forecasting and warning for the first time. As a mobile meteorological and oceanographic observation station capable of reliable, automated deployment, data collection, and transmission, such solar-powered USVs can replace traditional observation platforms to provide valuable real-time data for research, forecasting, and early warnings for potential marine meteorological disasters.
文摘Solar-powered aircraft have attracted great attention owing to their potential for longendurance flight and wide application prospects.Due to the particularity of energy system,flight strategy optimization is a significant way to enhance the flight performance for solar-powered aircraft.In this study,a flight strategy optimization model for high-altitude long-endurance solar-powered aircraft was proposed.This model consists of three-dimensional kinematic model,aerodynamic model,energy collection model,energy store model and energy loss model.To solve the nonlinear optimal control problem with process constraints and terminal constraints,Gauss pseudo-spectral method was employed to discretize the state equations and constraint equations.Then a typical mission flying from given initial point to given final point within a time interval was considered.Results indicate that proper changes of the attitude angle contribute to increasing the energy gained by photovoltaic cells.Utilization of gravitational potential energy can partly take the role of battery pack.Integrating these two measures,the optimized flight strategy can improve the final state of charge compared with current constant-altitude constant-velocity strategy.The optimized strategy brings more profits on condition of lower sunlight intensity and shorter daytime.
文摘This paper describes the general optimization design method of Solar-Powered Unmanned Aerial Vehicle which priority considering propulsion system planning. Based on the traditional solar powered aircraft design method, the propulsion system top-level target parameters which affect the path planning are integrated into the general optimization design. According to the typical mission requirements of Solar-Powered Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, considering the design variables such as wing area, aspect ratio, design mission date and so on, the general optimization is carried out with the minimum aircraft weight as the optimization objective. The influence of wing area and aspect ratio on the optimal design results is analyzed and compared with the traditional design method. The results show that the general design method of Solar-Powered Unmanned Aerial Vehicle for priority considering propulsion system can greatly reduce the electricity demand of energy storage battery, greatly reduce the aircraft weight of Solar-Powered Unmanned Aerial Vehicle.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(21676022)the National Key Research and Development Program of China(2016YFF0204402)+2 种基金the Program for Changjiang Scholars and Innovative Research Team in the University(IRT1205)the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universitiesthe Long-Term Subsidy Mechanism from the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Education of PRC
文摘Solar-powered desalination is a promising way to resolve the worldwide water crisis for its low con- sumption and simple facility. Considering the fragility and aggregations of traditional materials, which may decrease efficiency, we herein introduce a robust tungsten carbide (WC) nanoarray film as a stable and efficient photothermal material, whose absorption is over 97.5% throughout almost the whole solar spectrum range (220–2200 nm) due to nanoarray structure and thus enhanced localized surface plasmon resonance. Besides, for the first time, we modified the film with sandwich wettability. It accelerates evap- oration by reducing water’s reflection of light, enlarging hydrophobic-hydrophilic boundaries, and depressing heat dissipation. Combining high absorption with unique wettability, the WC nanoarray film offers high solar-to-vapor efficiency of 90.8% and produces drinking water at the rate of (1.06 ± 0.10) kg m^(-2)h^(-1)from man-made seawater and (0.98 ± 0.18) kg m^(-2)h^(-1)from heavy metal sewage under one sun (AM 1.5) while 98% performance remains after 1 h×100 times’ reutilization.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.61901448,61871401,12002340).
文摘Modular Solar-Powered Aircraft(M-SPA)is a kind of High-Altitude Long-Endurance(HALE)aircraft which exploits the mission advantage of swarm UAV and the HALE advantage of large aspect-ratio SPA.M-SPA’s separated mode and combined mode give it the potential to maximize the mission efficiency with limited solar energy.In this paper,firstly,oriented by the mission of maximizing the cruise area,the overall design of the M-SPA is modeled,including the energy model,the aerodynamic model and the flight environment settings.Secondly,by analyzing the energy consumption of the flight modes,we design a multi-phase flight mission strategy.Then,a 24-hour three-dimensional(3D)flight profile of the M-SPA is optimized,including the sub-SPA cooperative path planning in the separation mode.Finally,inspired by the Traveling Salesman Problem(TSP),an improved Ant Colony Algorithm(ACA)is exploited to find the optimal path for each sub-SPA,which is further developed into a dynamic separation and combination scheme for the M-SPA.The simulation results show that the mission performance of the M-SPA outperforms that of the conventional SPA,and explicitly,the mission coverage of the M-SPA is slightly less than a linear increase under comparable simulation conditions.
基金This work is supported by Key Project of Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.51790171,51761145111,51735005)Natural Science Foundation of China for Excellent Young Scholars(No.11722219).
文摘The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate an integrated optimization scheme for a solar-powered drone structure.Consider a primary beam in the wing of large aspect ratio,where 100 lithium batteries are assembled.In the proposed integrated optimization,the batteries are considered here as parts of the load-carrying structure.The corresponding mechanical behaviors are simulated in the structural design and described with super-elements.The batteries layout and the structural topology are then introduced as mixed design variables and optimized simultaneously to achieve an accordant load-carrying path.Geometrical nonlinearity is considered due to the large deformation.Different periodic structural configurations are tested in the optimization in order to meet the structural manufacturing and assembly convenience.The optimized designs are rebuilt and tested in different load cases.Maintaining the same structural weight,the global mechanical performances are improved greatly compared with the initial design.
基金Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.50676060)
文摘According to the typical variable heat source of solar energy and the unsteady adsorption process of adsorption chiller,the research of cyclic transient characteristics of the solar-powered adsorption cooling system is presented in this work.A mathematic model of the whole system including the model of adsorption chiller,which reveals the transient operation process of the solar-powered adsorption cooling system,is developed and verified by experimental data.On the basis of the simulated results,the transient characteristics and the overall performance of the system,not only in the traditional open cycle mode but also in closed cycle mode,are both analyzed theoretically.Furthermore,the influence of parameters matching of components configuration and operation process on the cyclic characteristics of the system,such as the solar collector area,the water tank capacity and the chiller startup temperature,are discussed.The research in this work may play a very important role in optimizing the system cyclic process and improving the system adaptability especially under the condition of variable heat source.
基金financially supported by the Research Grants Council of Hong Kong SAR(16200720)Environment and Conservation Fund of Hong Kong SAR(Project No.21/2022)+2 种基金Young Scientists Fund of National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.52303106)Research Institute for Advanced Manufucturing(Project No.CD8R)the startup fund for new recruits of PolyU(Project Nos.P0038855 and P0038858)。
文摘Solar-powered interfacial evaporation is an energy-efficient solution for water scarcity.It requires solar absorbers to facilitate upward water transport and limit the heat to the surface for efficient evaporation.Furthermore,downward salt ion transport is also desired to prevent salt accumulation.However,achieving simultaneously fast water uptake,downward salt transport,and heat localization is challenging due to highly coupled water,mass,and thermal transport.Here,we develop a structurally graded aerogel inspired by tree transport systems to collectively optimize water,salt,and thermal transport.The arched aerogel features root-like,fan-shaped microchannels for rapid water uptake and downward salt diffusion,and horizontally aligned pores near the surface for heat localization through maximizing solar absorption and minimizing conductive heat loss.These structural characteristics gave rise to consistent evaporation rates of 2.09 kg m^(-2) h^(-1) under one-sun illumination in a 3.5 wt%NaCl solution for 7 days without degradation.Even in a high-salinity solution of 20 wt%NaCl,the evaporation rates maintained stable at 1.94 kg m^(-2) h^(-1) for 8 h without salt crystal formation.This work offers a novel microstructural design to address the complex interplay of water,salt,and thermal transport.
