Quantum Chemicals Research Support for Clean Energy Project from IBM. Powered by crowdsourcing, the IBM-run supercomputer World Community Grid enabled the Harvard Clean Energy Project to conduct the most comprehensive quantum chemistry research ever. The research contains insights into millions of new organic compounds, some of which could be developed as low-cost and high-efficiency cells. Presenting information as open source, Harvard paves the way for scientists to continue research in this field.
The search for more versatile and cost-effective materials in solar power has accelerated as Harvard launches its free database of 2,3 million organic, carbon compounds it finds suitable for converting solar energy into electricity. Using the World Community Grid, a virtual supercomputer managed by IBM, where hundreds of thousands of volunteers from all over the world donate the computing power of their computers, the Clean Energy project thus visualizes molecules. Harvard's Clean Energy project is believed to be the most comprehensive study of quantum chemicals ever done.
Now scientists can use Harvard's (www.molecularspace.org) resource to continue their most promising research. This resource can be used to continue the development of electricity-generating devices such as solar cells, new materials and organic semiconductors. About 1.000 of the molecular structures characterized in Harvard research have the potential to convert 11 percent or more of captured sunlight into electricity, and 35.000 molecular structures have the potential to yield 10 percent or more. While most of the organic cells discovered so far are able to convert only 4-5 percent of sunlight into electricity, this efficiency rate can rise to 15 percent with solar energy materials using silicon. However, the production costs of using silicon remain relatively high.
On the other hand, organic solar cells offer more options than traditional materials like silicon. For example, carbon-based materials can be produced on a large scale and at the same cost as the technology currently used to manufacture plastic bags, thus offering advantages for remote and underdeveloped societies. Various organic solar cells can be used as coating, paint or spray paint on roofs, windows and walls, or they can be light and thin enough to be applied to portable devices.
The opening of the Harvard CEPDB database to the public and scientific community reflects the belief in collaboration at the heart of research, reinforced by the computing power available to institutions and individuals through the World Community Grid. World Community Grid's contribution to the Clean Energy Project to date is equivalent to 17,000 years of scientific calculations by a single personal computer.
The Clean Energy Project, financially supported by the US Department of Energy, is the latest example of the projects implemented and presented to the public thanks to World Community Grid. Another is the Human Proteome Folding project led by New York University Comparative Functional Genomics. As part of this project, he published structural insights into thousands of proteins, allowing scientists to understand the functions of proteins and ultimately develop treatments.
WILL OPEN THE WAY TO NEW PROJECTS
Created and managed by IBM, the World Community Grid provides scientists with critical computing power. Today, hundreds of thousands of volunteers around the world donate their computing power while their computers are on but not in use, harnessing that power to help advance promising humanitarian research projects. The results obtained with this method in critical health research such as cancer, malaria and AIDS have proven that World Community Grid has significant potential to make significant progress in many projects that can contribute to the world in the future.
Over 80 million computers, used by organizations in 600.000 countries and over 2,3 users, have powered World Community Grid projects over the past nine years. As a result, the world's fastest virtual supercomputers were obtained and scientific studies were carried forward hundreds of years. At least 2013 projects have been or will be completed within the scope of World Community Grid in 22. Since its inception, the project has provided researchers with over 750.000 years of computing density at zero cost. World Community Grid runs on the Berkeley Open Infrastructure for Network Computing (BOINC) platform developed at the University of California and is supported by the National Science Foundation. This software, which works on computers with Windows, Mac or Linux operating systems, is installed on computers and participation in selected projects is ensured.
The World Community Grid program is available to anyone with a personal computer or server in Turkey and is free of charge. http://www.worldcommunitygrid.org can be downloaded from. In 2009, the Community Volunteers Foundation became WCG's first partner in Turkey. In 2012, Young Guru Academy (YGA) became one of the partners of WCG.
Source : ntvmsnbc
📩 12/08/2013 10:39
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