Solar Army: Incorporating real-time research into outreach efforts

Abstract

The Solar Army is the international outreach effort for the NSF- funded Center for Chem. Innovation Solar Fuels based at the California Institute of Technol. The CCI Solar Fuel research focuses on one of the "holy- grails" of 21st Century chem. - the efficient and economical conversion of solar energy into stored chem. fuel. CCI Solar investigators are targeting the crit. science underpinning the solar- driven decompn. of water into hydrogen and oxygen. The Solar Army utilizes three outreach kits to educate participants on solar energy conversion and provide students with an opportunity to participate in real- time research searching for solar water- splitting catalysts. In these research experiences, students create unique mixed- metal oxide combination, analyze their materials to det. the potential of the material for being a good catalyst, and report their findings to an online collaborative database. Student involvement has resulted in the discovery of a new material and many others worth investigating. To date, we have recruited hundreds of students at the high school and undergraduate levels to join our "Solar Army" and search for the "holy- grail" catalyst.

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