Dan Donahoe

When I was an entry-level engineer, most solar technology was still focused on creating hot water. For example, the then popular book by Jan Kreider titled Solar Heating and Cooling: Engineering, Practical Design, and Economics. That said, solar cells were introduced in space applications beginning in 1958, but that cell technology cells were meager power produces. Today solar cell technology (photovoltaics) is in the process of remarkably rapid evolution promising low cost, high efficiency, and low environmental impact. In this talk, I’ll review that technology evolution and the remarkable history of science behind these changes. This fantastic international effort begins in geology (advances employ the most common crystal structure occurring in earth), earliest electromagnetics, and miraculously clear thinking based on simple geometry. Past Nobel Prizes provide breadcrumbs of how mankind has reached this point. Although, our sustainable technology story is not yet finished. When naysayers rebuke technology as an answer to man’s challenges, we should remember the final Jacob Bronowski in his 1973 book titled The Ascent of Man: We are all afraid – for our confidence for the future, for the world. Yet every man, every civilization, has gone forward because of its engagement with what it has set itself to do.

By the way, our early solar cell equipped satellite, Vanguard, is still in orbit and is the longest orbiting object man has launched.

Biography:

Dan Donahoe has a BS in General Engineering and MS in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana- Champaign. He was honored with the Distinguished Alumni for the University of Illinois Granger College. He completed a PhD at the University of Maryland at College Park with a dissertation related to the topic of this presentation.

He has been a licensed professional engineer for over 40 years. Dan has served as IEEE Section Chair for the Utah Section and is currently Vice Chair of the ASME Utah Section and Chair of Utah AIAA. He received the US Air Force Meritorious Civilian Service Award, the Utah Engineers Council Engineer of the Year Award, the IEEE Electronics Packaging Society Distinguished Achievement Certificate for Professional Engagement and Service, an IEEE Region 6 Directors Award. Dan has served as General Chair of IEEE SusTech and IEEE Nanotechnology Materials and Devices Conferences.

Email:

Address:Utah, United States