{"id":17704,"date":"2019-10-18T17:28:05","date_gmt":"2019-10-18T17:28:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/pegasus\/?p=17704&post_type=story"},"modified":"2023-11-20T20:23:47","modified_gmt":"2023-11-20T20:23:47","slug":"capacitech-cable-based-capacitor","status":"publish","type":"story","link":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/pegasus\/capacitech-cable-based-capacitor\/","title":{"rendered":"Energy Boost"},"content":{"rendered":"

Fall 2019 | By Elizabeth Gondar<\/em><\/p>\n

[lead]In today\u2019s age of technology, it\u2019s all about\u00a0being connected. Millions of miles of cables\u00a0and wires stretch across the globe providing\u00a0power to buildings, streetlights and even cars.\u00a0Most people barely give these cables a second\u00a0thought until the power goes out or the Wi-Fi\u00a0stops working, but UCF Associate Professor Jayan\u00a0Thomas couldn\u2019t get them out of his head.[\/lead]<\/p>\n

[photo id=”17935″ title=”Capacitech-cbc2-300×268″ width=”300px” align=”center” alt=”illustration of cable-based-capacitor embedded inside wire” css_class=”pull-right”]Cable-based-capacitor embedded inside wire.[\/photo]<\/p>\n

In 2014, he was working on inventing copper foils that\u00a0would act as supercapacitors \u2014 think of a battery that is\u00a0made to provide a large burst of power in a short amount\u00a0of time. Realizing that most cables are made out of the\u00a0same copper material he was working with, he wondered\u00a0if our everyday cables could double as energy storage\u00a0devices.<\/p>\n

Bringing this knowledge back to his research lab at\u00a0UCF, he invented the first cable-based capacitor. These thin, copper wires can transmit and store\u00a0energy \u2014 and he hopes they can make a big impact in\u00a0renewable energy and clean technology.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s the real pleasure for an inventor. You have\u00a0a scientific idea, you worked on that idea and made\u00a0it into a device, and then that device is used for a\u00a0commissioned product. That is what I\u2019m looking forward\u00a0to,\u201d Thomas says.<\/p>\n

However, cable-based capacitors attached to existing\u00a0wires could use their stored energy to provide that\u00a0extra boost needed, allowing the battery to continue\u00a0functioning at a steady rate and greatly reducing the\u00a0overall cost to replace parts.<\/p>\n

[photo id=”17952″ title=”Capacitech-ThomasSleppy-1200×800″ width=”100%” alt=”photograph of Joe Sleppy and Jayan Thomas”]Joe Sleppy \u201918\u00a0<\/strong>(left) and Jayan Thomas (right)[\/photo]<\/p>\n

Thomas recruited Joe Sleppy \u201918<\/strong> to start Capacitech\u00a0Energy and to help turn his invention into a commercial\u00a0product.<\/p>\n

Sleppy, an electrical engineering<\/a> student at the time,\u00a0already had business experience (starting his first\u00a0company when he was 16) and knew that without proper\u00a0funding, Capacitech could not move on to the next level.\u00a0By winning first place in UCF\u2019s 2016 Joust New Venture\u00a0Competition, they received the necessary funds to license\u00a0the intellectual property and begin the process of moving\u00a0to market.<\/p>\n

In 2018, a $225,000 grant from the National Science\u00a0Foundation helped Capacitech\u2019s team expand to include Isaiah Oladeji \u201999<\/strong> and to collaborate with Thomas\u2019 lab\u00a0to produce the commercial version of the cable-based\u00a0capacitor that Capacitech is selling today.<\/p>\n

As a result of the team\u2019s effort, Capacitech has been\u00a0recognized as one of the top 30 startups in the world\u00a0by InnoEnergy. Sleppy credits his time at UCF with\u00a0connecting him to the people and resources needed to\u00a0lead the business.<\/p>\n

\u201cEducation is more than just what you learn,\u201d Sleppy\u00a0says. \u201cIt\u2019s about who you meet through your coursework\u00a0and using the opportunities that present themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n

Capacitech recently built a manufacturing line in\u00a0Orlando to fill larger orders and is raising money to\u00a0further scale the company.<\/p>\n

[callout background=”#9DD9D7″ content_align=”left” affix=”false” css_class=”” inline_css=”margin-bottom:0;”]<\/p>\n

\n
\n

Who<\/span><\/h2>\n

Associate Professor Jayan\u00a0Thomas, Joe Sleppy \u201918<\/strong> and\u00a0Isaiah Oladeji \u201999<\/strong>
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

The Pitch<\/span><\/h2>\n

Building energy storage into\u00a0the infrastructure of the world\u00a0to prolong clean technology\u2019s\u00a0operating life while reducing\u00a0the overall costs of sustainable\u00a0technology.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

The Inspiration<\/span><\/h2>\n

Thomas was researching how\u00a0to make copper foils into\u00a0energy storage devices. \u201cBut I\u00a0was seeing wires everywhere\u00a0while I was on a walk around\u00a0my home. I realized that\u00a0these cables are mostly made\u00a0up of copper, so why don\u2019t\u00a0we convert this copper into\u00a0an energy storage device\u00a0instead?\u201d Thomas says.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Backers<\/span><\/h2>\n

Total funds:<\/strong>
\n$700,000+<\/span><\/p>\n

They include:<\/strong>
\nNational Science Foundation:\u00a0$225,000
\nNSF Innovation Corps: $50,000
\nStarter Studio: $25,000<\/span><\/p>\n

Where you can find it<\/span><\/h2>\n

CapacitechEnergy.com<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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