US Patent 8075792 - Metal nanoparticle etchant for silicon surfaces

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/8075792.html

One way to improve the efficiency of silicon solar cells is to minimize the reflectivity of silicon surfaces. This patent from the Alliance for Sustainable Energy teaches a way to use gold or silver nanoparticles in an etching solution to roughen silicon surfaces and improve the efficiency of silicon solar cells. Claim 1 reads:

1. A method of texturing a silicon surface, comprising:

positioning a substrate with a silicon surface in a vessel;

filling the vessel with a volume of an etching solution that covers the silicon surface of the substrate, wherein the etching solution comprises a catalytic nanomaterial and a oxidant-etchant solution comprising an etching agent and a silicon oxidizing agent; and

etching the silicon surface by agitating the etching solution in the vessel.

US Patent 7448441 - CNT microchannel heat exchanger

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7448441.html

This patent from Alliance for Sustainable Energy LLC teaches a lightweight carbon nanotube heat exchanger suitable for miniature fuel cells. Claim 1 reads:

1. A carbon nanotube heat-exchange system, comprising:

a microchannel structure having an inlet end and an outlet end, the inlet end providing a cooling fluid into said microchannel structure and the outlet end discharging the cooling fluid from said microchannel structure;

at least one flow path defined in said microchannel structure, said at least one flow path fluidically connecting the inlet end to the outlet end of said microchannel structure; and

a carbon nanotube structure provided in thermal contact with said microchannel structure, said carbon nanotube structure receiving heat from the cooling fluid in said microchannel structure and dissipating the heat into an external medium that is external to the carbon nanotube heat-exchange system.