INTEC receives patent for innovation in rechargeable batteries, a breakthrough in nanotechnology for the global energy industry
SANTO DOMINGO. The Instituto Tecnológico de Santo Domingo (INTEC) got a new invention patent awarded by the creación of a technology for manufacture of rechargeable lithium-ion batteries, who improvement su efficiency until a 95%, what makes it more efficient and sustainable the manufacturing such as assessments de multiple teams who use this type of energy source.
It is a frontier innovation developed by physical y research professor Melvin Arias, with broad potential for impact on iglobal energy industry, in sectors such as mobile, electric cars and accumulators to enhance the renewable energy.
The National Intellectual Property Office (ONAPI) granted INTEC patent P-2019-0245 for the development of the "Positive particle electrode for secondary battery and its manufacturing method based on a nanofiber membrane structure", which offers a more efficient solution, than those investigated so far, to improve storage systems for rechargeable lithium, sodium or magnesium ion batteries and satisfies market requirements for a range of small, medium and large scale products and equipment.
Researchers Alina Mari De los Santos Torres, Lorenzo Caputi and Noel Alfonso Upía De la Rosa participated together with Professor Arias.
During the act of delivery of the patent, salvador ramos, director of Onapi, He pointed out that with this patent INTEC gives the country and Dominican society the product of the research work carried out by the university for years.
“Carrying out research is the work of an academy, doing science is necessarily doing research. You cannot do science if you do not research and if you do not seek innovations that can be linked to the development of the nation. When INTEC is dedicated to research, it makes great contributions to the country and to the world, ”said Ramos.
The patent was received by the Vice-rector for Research and Relations of INTEC, Víctor Gómez Valenzuela, who highlighted that the device and its manufacturing method are part of a family of intellectual property products developed almost ten years ago in the INTEC Nanotechnology Laboratory within the framework of a project financed by the National Fund for Innovation and Scientific Development and Technological (FONDOCyT) of the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology (MESCYT).
Gómez-Valenzuela affirmed that obtaining this patent places INTEC as the leading university in the production of intellectual property, with 11 patents in total.
"We are witnessing the closing of a cycle of value creation that begins in scientific activity, with a research project in an infrastructure of the highest international quality, led by an academic such as Dr. Melvin Arias, with a national and international team of collaborators, developing an active line of research, which has allowed the creation not only of this patent, but also the generation of knowledge through articles published in high-impact academic journals ”, emphasized Gómez-Valenzuela.
The Vice-Rector for Research and Linkage pointed out that the search for energy storage solutions is the "holy grail" of research in the sector, which in turn impacts large industries. "In fact, companies such as Toyota, Tesla, IBM among other giants worldwide, invest large resources in research to obtain batteries of greater duration and efficiency."
Researcher Melvin Arias, upon receiving the patent certificate, said that it represents a significant advance for the Dominican Republic. “This is not a random product or one that occurs randomly, but rather it is a process that has been developed at INTEC for more than ten years, with slow and systematic work that began in 2009, when the university embarked in a project to develop nanomaterials that could be used to replace the materials used in electronic storage devices ”, he revealed.
Arias noted that the energy storage capacity of these batteries far exceeds those of traditional batteries. Besides that they are more resistant to the increase in temperature.
He added that this patent has a solid foundation in pure science, but is research applied to the solution of local and global problems. In addition, during its development the team has produced various scientific articles or papers, which also positions the Dominican Republic in a prominent place for research in nanotechnology and physics.
Meanwhile, Luisa Castillo, Director of Inventions at Onapi, said that for the country and for INTEC the obtaining of this new patent is cause for celebration. “Patents guarantee scientific and technological advances, but they represent a powerful strategy for competitiveness and an intangible asset of great value for the countries. They also give recognition to inventors and serve as a stimulus for new researchers ”.
Heidi Sánchez, coordinator of the INTEC Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, through which the university submits national and international patents, was present at the patent delivery ceremony.
Greater number of patents granted in the country
INTEC is the local university that holds the largest number of registered patents with a total of nine registered in the Dominican Republic and two registered in the United States, it also made history by obtaining the first national patent granted to a university, granted in 2014 by the self-heating catalyst in internal combustion engines.
Of the total patents granted to INTEC, five are for utility models, one for Industrial design and three for invention.