Intelligent Radiative Materials

An opportunity to boost energy efficiency in homes and buildings exists through the design of functional radiative properties in glass and other building materials. Current surface materials ignore or take first-order approaches to complicated spectral behavior, leading to sub-optimal properties. The sensitivity of material properties to microscale surface structuring creates a design challenge that has precluded this technology development, however the availability of high-performance computing hardware combined with sophisticated optimization algorithms now permits the engineering of such materials. PC Krause and Associates, Inc. (PCKA) and The University of Texas (UT) will target two candidate applications with high potential for environmental and commercial impact: variable emissivity materials, and reduced emissivity glass. Both of these target applications offers independent paths to energy efficiency, along with clear routes to commercialization. Variable emissivity materials will directly reduce energy costs in diurnal climates. Likewise, the reduction of infrared emission from glass windows would address one of the costliest thermal losses in buildings of all sizes.