Day 1 :
Keynote Forum
Elias Siores
University of Bolton, UK
Keynote: Fibre structures for energy harvesting in wearables
Time : 10:00 - 10:40
Biography:
Elias Siores is the Provost and Director of Research and Innovation, Bolton University. Educated in the UK (BSc, MSC, MBA, PhD) and pursued his academic career in Australia (Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne) and Asia (Hong Kong, Dong Guan) before returning to Europe (UK) as a Marie Curie Fellow. He is also President, Board of Governors, TEI – Athens and Director of Innovation, FibrLec Ltd. His R&D work concentrated on advancing the science and technology in the field of automated Non-Destructive Testing and Evaluation including Ultrasound, Acoustic Emission, and Microwave Thermography. His recent R&D work focuses on Smart / Functional Materials and Systems development. In this area, he has developed Electromagnetic, Electrorheological, Photovoltaic and Piezoelectric Smart Materials based Energy Conversion Systems for Renewable Energy, Medical, Health Care and Wearable Devices. He has published over 300 publications including 8 Patents . He has been a member of editorial boards of international journals and a Fellow of IOM, TWI, IEAust, SAE and WTIA. He has served on Board of Directors of a number of research centres worldwide including UK, Australia, Singapore and Hong Kong, all associated with the Bio-Nano-Materials field. He is a member of the Parliamentary Scientific Committee and has received 15 international awards in his career for R&D and innovation achievements.
Abstract:
The piezoelectric effect in Poly(vinylidene fluoride), PVDF, has been utilised in the development of fibres and their integration into fabric structures for energy harvesting. A “3D spacer” technology based all-fibre piezoelectric fabrics as power generators and energy harvesters is presented. The knitted single-structure piezoelectric generator consists of high β-phase (~80%) piezoelectric PVDF monofilaments as the spacer yarn interconnected between silver (Ag) coated polyamide 66 multifilament yarn layers acting as electrodes. The novel and unique textile structure provides an output power density in the range of 1.10 - 5.10 μWcm-2 at applied impact pressures in the range of 0.02 - 0.10 MPa, providing significantly higher power outputs and efficiencies over the existing 2D woven and nonwoven piezoelectric structures. The method of producing high quality piezoelectric yarn and piezoelectric fabric provides an effective option for the development of high performance energy-harvesting textile structures for electronic devices that could be charged from ambient environment or by human movement. Furthermore, via the creation of hybrid photovoltaic films and fibres, energy can be captured from solar radiation and used where the mechanical impetus is absent. The high energy efficiency, mechanical durability and comfort of the soft, flexible and all-fibre based power generator is highly attractive for a variety of potential applications such as wearable electronic systems and energy harvesters charged from ambient environment or by human movement.
Keynote Forum
K M Liew
City University of Hong Kong
Keynote: Carbon nanotube reinforced functionally graded composites
Time : 10:40 - 11:20
Biography:
K M Liew is the Head of Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering and Chair Professor of Civil Engineering, City University of Hong Kong. He was a tenured Professor at Nanyang Technological University (Singapore) and the Founding Director of Nanyang Center for Supercomputing and Visualization. Over his academic career, he has published over 650 SCI journal articles. He is listed by the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI) as a Highly Cited Researcher in engineering. His publications have been cited over twenty thousand times and his current h-index is 56 (ISI) or 68 (Google Scholar).
Abstract:
It is widely accepted that carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are an advanced material possessing high strength and stiffness as well as a high aspect ratio and low density. Research findings have reported the remarkable physical and mechanical properties of CNTs, making them a strong candidate for the reinforcements in polymer composites. The axial Young's modulus of single-walled carbon nanotube arrays with diameters ranging from nanometer to meter scales. The mechanical properties of CNTs are superior to those of carbon fibers. In recent studies, CNTs have been designed to be uniaxially aligned in an axial direction following the functionally graded pattern, leading to a new class of composite material – that is, the CNT reinforced functionally graded composite material. This CNT-reinforced composite can be used in the form of beam, plate or shell structural components. Because of their use in a variety of structures, studies of their mechanical behavior, in terms of bending, buckling, vibration, large deformation, postbuckling and large amplitude vibration have received considerable attention. In this talk, the effects of various geometric and material parameters on the mechanical behavior of CNT reinforced functionally graded structures will be presented.