Pressure retarded osmosis (PRO) is a novel membrane process to produce energy. PRO has the potential to convert the osmotic pressure difference between fresh water (i.e. river water) and seawater to electricity. Moreover, it can recover energy from highly concentrated brine in seawater desalination. Nevertheless, relatively little research has been undertaken for fundamental understanding of the PRO process. In this study, the characteristics of the PRO process were examined using a proof-of-concept device. Forward osmosis (FO), reverse osmosis (RO), and nanofiltration (NF) membranes were compared in terms of flux rate and concentration polarization ratio. The results indicated that the theoretical energy production by PRO depends on the membrane type as well as operating conditions (i.e. back pressure). The FO membrane had the highest energy efficiency while the NF membrane had the lowest efficiency. However, the energy production rate was low due to high internal concentration polarization (ICP) in the PRO membrane. This finding suggests that the control of the ICP is essential for practical application of PRO for energy production.
The feasibility of using a Ag(Cu) alloy film as a source/drain electrode for thin-film transistor (TFT) liquid-crystal displays has been investigated. The annealing of a Ag(Cu)/Si structure, for 30 min at 200 °C, produced a uniform Cu3Si layer at the Ag(Cu)–Si interface, as a result of the reaction of the segregated Cu with Si. This lowered the resistivity from 5.3 to 3.2 μΩ cm, which also led to improved adhesion properties. A hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) TFT was fabricated using a single layer of Ag (19 at. % Cu) alloy film as the source/drain metal. The subthreshold slope, mobility, and threshold voltage obtained from the fabricated a-Si:H TFT were 0.78 V/dec, 0.79 cm2/V s, and 2 V, respectively, revealing a reduction in the process steps, with excellent performance.
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