what Mother Nature provided and took matters into our own hands.
—Materials science is also playing a significant role in solar power by helping companies manipulate chemical bonds to bump the rate of photonic energy capture in a given solar cell. Limiting photovoltaic cell construction to naturally occurring materials would have long ago eliminated solar power as an economically viable alternative.
—Seattle-based Modumetal is producing nanolaminate alloys that will soon replace conventional metals and composites in many applications. The company’s new materials are stronger and lighter than steel, run longer and hotter than nickel alloys, and are more corrosion resistant and cost less than stainless.
The big issue seems to be making sure that new materials get the proper funding to develop. Fortunately, the federal government understands the role that materials advancements will play in determining our future economic growth and has decided to invest capital in companies and research teams with the best ideas in this space. VCs (like OVP) are also clearly on board, and are adding materials startups (like EnerG2) to their portfolios.
Another significant issue is education. To make the hard sciences the underpinning of the new energy economy will require more than just capital for entrepreneurs and business executives. It will also require a new generation of trained scientists.
It’s fascinating what a difference a decade makes. During the heyday of the information technology revolution, everyone seemed to be looking for the dot-com or enterprise software company that could produce untold riches. Today, we need organic chemistry and materials science majors to mine the periodic table for the right compounds that will both leave society richer and generate new levels economic growth. Looking back, we’ve obviously redefined what it means to live in a material world.