Two teams of researchers will explore the benefits of graphene as a light-propulsion material in solar sails, and as a smart coating in loop heat pipes for satellites. Both experiments will be performed in microgravity conditions, to simulate the extreme conditions in space. The solar sails will float in microgravity in a drop tower experiment, while the research team investigating heat pipes will experience weightlessness onboard a parabolic flight.
Ale Smith, Kevin Redding and Andrey Kanygin: Changing the way the nation generates and consumes energy is at the heart of a new NSF grant awarded to Arizona State University and Kevin Redding, professor in the School of Molecular Sciences and director of the Center for Bioenergy and Photosynthesis (CB&P).