Zero Suit Brian Wright Bryan Mayberry Davy Mugabo Sung Wook Yang Team 7

Overall Concept  The concept behind the Zero Suit combines the processes of harnessing solar and thermal energy for conversion to electrical energy for the charging of a personal device  The suit combines flexible solar panels and thermoelectric fabric for a combined electrical output that will be effective at any time of day.  The use case for our design is for military situations.  The Zero Suit is designed for military uniforms. It modifies the standard uniform and backpack to portable energy production units.

Initial Ideas  The Turbine  Military Hum – V incorporated solar and wind turbine technology  Power Shoe  A shoe or boot that combines piezo electric energy and kinetic energy that works while the individual walks  Kinetic Suit  Combines the thermoelectric fabric with kinetic energy movement devices

Weighted Solutions Matrix

Component 1: Solar Panel Backpack  The creation of the backpack is relatively simple. It is to take a standard pack and attach flexible solar panels to the outside pockets.  The panels will be connected to a small power converter/battery pack inside of the backpack for energy storage.  The desired charging device will then simply connect to the battery to receive electricity.

Flexible Solar Panels  Flexible Solar Panels are easily available due to advances in technology.  Large, mounted solar panels are very intricate in their production, similar to a computer chip, which translates to a lot of moving parts. The flexible solar panels differ in that they are produced by layering flexible silicon in the correct order to create the panel. This creates a large amount of flexibility and durability.  Can easily be attached to any type of fabric and are extremely lightweight. Around 1-2 pounds for the whole suit.  A 12V flexible solar panel produces anywhere from 5 to 50 Watts of power.

Flexible Solar Panels

 Flexible Solar panels can even endure being shot by firearms: 

Component 2: Solar/Thermal Suit  The second part of the system is to incorporate the power felt and solar panels onto a whole suit of clothing.  The two sources work in conjunction with each other to provide power to the user no matter the conditions outside.  Again this will have a battery pack that it can recharge that the user can swap batteries in and out of.

How it Works  “At the subatomic level, the charge carriers in the thermoelectric material (holes and electrons) can move around, just like gas molecules. When the material senses a temperature difference, the charge carriers at the warmer end move towards the colder end. This movement generates a net charge at the cold end, producing an electrostatic potential (voltage). Eventually, equilibrium is reached between the chemical potential for charge diffusion and the electrostatic repulsion due to the charge build-up.”

Thermoelectric Fabric

 The second half of the Zero Suit is the use of thermoelectric fabric in the military uniform.  The basic concept behind thermoelectric fabric is to capture thermal energy and convert it to electrical energy.  This is done by capturing the thermal energy released from your body into the atmosphere. If there is a greater temperature difference between the individuals internal body temperature and the environment, then more energy will be produced  Hence, the fabric is ideal at night and in cold climates

Thermoelectric Fabric Cont.  Thermoelectric fabric is composed of thousands of carbon nanotubes laced throughout polymer to capture the heat.  The conversion of energy is based upon the “Seekbeck Effect” which states that electrical voltage is produced by a temperature gradient across a material.  The energy will be harnessed through wires that can connect to the charger pack on the suit. This will create a combined energy source that be both higher in output and easily accessible.

Conclusion of the Zero Suit  The two components of the Zero Suit compliment each other perfectly with the solar panels having an optimum usage during the day and the thermoelectric fabric having an optimum usage at night time.  The flexible solar panels and the thermoelectric fabric are both incredibly lightweight making the Zero Suit highly portable and will not effect the efficiency or safety of the soldier in any way.  With the use of thermal and solar energy, a major step is taken in the positive direction for renewable energy. The utilization of natural resources is key for the future.

Sources  panels-2_Vk9W3_5784.jpg panels-2_Vk9W3_5784.jpg  felt-a-hot.html felt-a-hot.html  fabric-that-uses-body-heat-to-power-electronics/ fabric-that-uses-body-heat-to-power-electronics/  solar-cell.htm solar-cell.htm   fabric-that-uses-body-heat-to-power-electronics/ fabric-that-uses-body-heat-to-power-electronics/