A research team at National Taiwan University of Science and Technology (NTUST) has developed a thin membrane dubbed the “black magic carpet” that uses solar and wave energy to generate electricity and purify water.
The black magic carpet is a multifunctional super-thin graphene membrane developed by a team of researchers led by NTUST Graduate Institute of Applied Science and Technology professor Hung Wei-song (洪維松), the university said in a news release today.
The research was published in the international journal Advanced Function Materials.
Photo courtesy of the National Taiwan University of Science and Technology
It also won first place in the Taiwan division of last year’s Net Zero Tech International Contest, as well as an Excellence Award at last year’s Wah Lee Innovative Materials Competition organized by the Materials Research Society Taiwan.
The multifunctional graphene membrane can evaporate water with solar energy, generate electricity, degrade pollutants and clean itself, Hung said.
The team hopes the “black magic carpet” would be able to generate power, filter water and sense environmental changes, with potential applications in green energy and smart materials, he said.
“The thin membrane is like a towel that can breathe,” Hung said.
The top layer of the membrane absorbs the sun’s energy turning seawater into water vapor, while the lower layer generates electricity from waves, he said.
When exposed to sunlight, the membrane converts seawater into clean water through evaporation and desalination, Hung said.
Meanwhile, waves or wind trigger its piezoelectric structure to generate electricity, allowing it to supply both water and power in remote, offshore or drought-prone areas, he added.
The team has developed the technology into a modular design that is suitable for building mobile water-and-power systems in offshore islands or deserts with ample sunlight and nearby water, but limited electricity.
This approach emphasizes low-carbon manufacturing and low-energy operation, following net-zero trends and bringing the invention closer to real-world industrial applications.
SHORT-TERM OUTLOOK: The Chinese military would most likely focus on rebuilding its organization and leadership in the next few years, experts said Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) military purge has reduced the risks of a planned war against Taiwan, yet increased the danger of a conflict sparked by a miscalculation or accident, Taiwanese experts said yesterday. They made the comments at a seminar on the Fifth Plenary Session of the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) 20th Central Committee held by the research group Secure Taiwan Associate Corp (STA) in Taipei. The wholesale sacking of Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) officers and managers of the aerospace and defense industry is sure to set back Xi’s timetable to prepare the PLA to launch an invasion of Taiwan
BATTLE-TESTED: Czech companies’ drones, software and navigation systems have been tested in the Ukraine war, while other countries’ are lab-tested, a Czech ex-official said Czech manufacturers are interested in setting up drone assembly lines in Taiwan, former Czech Chamber of Deputies president Marketa Pekarova Adamova told a forum in Taipei yesterday. Adamova made the comments at the inauguration of the Global UAV Academy, an organization dedicated to international cooperation in drone supply chains, technological certification and pilot training. The Research Institute for Democracy, Society and Emerging Technology said the Czech Republic is the largest importer of Taiwanese drones and uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) components. Adamova, who transitioned to the defense industry after retiring from politics, said the Roman adage “si vis pacem, para bellum” — “If you
Former China Central Television (CCTV) talk show host Cheng Wanjun (程萬軍) yesterday sought political asylum in Taiwan, a day after arriving at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on a connecting flight from Thailand. In a video posted on X, Cheng said he was appealing to Taiwan to grant him temporary asylum on humanitarian grounds while he sought permanent resettlement in a third country. Cheng said he previously served as editor-in-chief of the journal Law and Life and hosted legal affairs programs on state-run CCTV. He said he ran afoul of Chinese authorities in 2019 after a video surfaced showing him discussing rulers whose actions
WORRIES PILE UP: The planned extension would generate nearly 10 million cubic meters of excavated soil, the disposal of which has not been explained, a former EPA official said Yilan County residents, backed by civic groups, on Wednesday filed an administrative lawsuit to overturn the environmental impact assessment (EIA) approval for the Yilan-bound high-speed rail (HSR) extension. They filed the lawsuit after the Executive Yuan on Sept. 11 rejected an administrative appeal. Former Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) deputy minister and lawyer Thomas Chan (詹順貴) said the project’s EIA review was one of the hastiest he had ever seen during his 30-year career in environmental law. Construction of the line would generate nearly 10 million cubic meters of excavated earth and rock, the disposal of which has not yet been explained to the
RSS