Joshua M. Pearce is an academic engineer at Western University and

Michigan Tech Michigan Technological University (Michigan Tech, MTU, or simply Tech) is a public research university in Houghton, Michigan, founded in 1885 as the Michigan Mining School, the first post-secondary institution in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. ...

known for his work on protocrystallinity,

photovoltaic technology A photovoltaic system, also PV system or solar power system, is an electric power system designed to supply usable solar power by means of photovoltaics. It consists of an arrangement of several components, including solar panels to absorb and c ...

open-source-appropriate technology Open-source appropriate technology (OSAT) is appropriate technology developed through the principles of the open-design movement. Appropriate technology is technology designed with special consideration to the environmental, ethical, cultural, soc ...

, and

open-source hardware Open-source hardware (OSH) consists of physical artifacts of technology designed and offered by the open-design movement. Both free and open-source software (FOSS) and open-source hardware are created by this open-source culture movement and a ...

including

RepRap The RepRap project started in England in 2005 as a University of Bath initiative to develop a low-cost 3D printer that can print most of its own components, but it is now made up of hundreds of collaborators worldwide. RepRap is short for rep''li ...

3D printers 3D printing or additive manufacturing is the construction of a three-dimensional object from a CAD model or a digital 3D model. It can be done in a variety of processes in which material is deposited, joined or solidified under computer co ...

. Dr. Pearce received his Ph.D. at

The Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvan ...

, where his work on protocrystallinity helped develop low-cost

amorphous silicon Amorphous silicon (a-Si) is the non-crystalline form of silicon used for solar cells and thin-film transistors in LCDs. Used as semiconductor material for a-Si solar cells, or thin-film silicon solar cells, it is deposited in thin films onto ...

solar photovoltaic A photovoltaic system, also PV system or solar power system, is an electric power system designed to supply usable solar power by means of photovoltaics. It consists of an arrangement of several components, including solar panels to absorb and c ...

technology. His solar research continues. For example, his research group published a

levelized cost of electricity The levelized cost of electricity (LCOE), or levelized cost of energy, is a measure of the average net present cost of electricity generation for a generator over its lifetime. It is used for investment planning and to compare different methods ...

study on solar energy showed solar electricity was economically competitive with fossil fuels over wide geographic regions. His research into BDRF modeling of reflectors showed potential solar systems output increases of 30%. However, he is also a vocal advocate of an

open-source Open source is source code that is made freely available for possible modification and redistribution. Products include permission to use the source code, design documents, or content of the product. The open-source model is a decentralized sof ...

approach to technical development. For his work related to open-source

nanotechnology Nanotechnology, also shortened to nanotech, is the use of matter on an atomic, molecular, and supramolecular scale for industrial purposes. The earliest, widespread description of nanotechnology referred to the particular technological goal o ...

Ars Technica ''Ars Technica'' is a website covering news and opinions in technology, science, politics, and society, created by Ken Fisher and Jon Stokes in 1998. It publishes news, reviews, and guides on issues such as computer hardware and software, sci ...

compared him to American

software freedom The free software movement is a social movement with the goal of obtaining and guaranteeing certain freedoms for software users, namely the freedoms to run the software, to study the software, to modify the software, and to share copies of the ...

activist

Richard Stallman Richard Matthew Stallman (; born March 16, 1953), also known by his initials, rms, is an American free software movement activist and programmer. He campaigns for software to be distributed in such a manner that its users have the freedom to ...

. He applied open-source 3-D printing and electronics to

scientific equipment A scientific instrument is a device or tool used for scientific purposes, including the study of both natural phenomena and theoretical research. History Historically, the definition of a scientific instrument has varied, based on usage, laws, an ...

design, where he has claimed both superior

innovation Innovation is the practical implementation of ideas that result in the introduction of new goods or services or improvement in offering goods or services. ISO TC 279 in the standard ISO 56000:2020 defines innovation as "a new or changed entity ...

and lower costs. Reviewing his book ''Open-Source Lab'', ''3-D Printing Industry'' wrote, "This is a manual that every scientist should read and it holds a message so powerful and disruptive that the

Anarchist Cookbook ''The Anarchist Cookbook'', first published in 1971, is a book containing instructions for the manufacture of explosives, rudimentary telecommunications phreaking devices, and related weapons, as well as instructions for the home manufacture ...

is a fairy tale in comparison." His research has shown that printing household items with a

is less costly and better for the environment than purchasing conventionally manufactured goods. Similarly, his group developed the

recyclebot A recyclebot (or RecycleBot) is an open-source hardware device for converting waste plastic into filament for open-source 3D printers like the RepRap. Making DIY 3D printer filament at home is both less costly and better for the environment tha ...

, a waste plastic extruder, which drops the cost of

3D printing filament 3D printing filament is the thermoplastic feedstock for fused deposition modeling 3D printers. There are many types of filament available with different properties. Filament comes in a range of diameters, most commonly 1.75 mm and 2.85 mm, with ...

from $35/kg to ten cents per kg while making recycling even more environmentally beneficial. In 2013 his group released an open-source 3D printer capable of printing in

steel Steel is an alloy made up of iron with added carbon to improve its strength and fracture resistance compared to other forms of iron. Many other elements may be present or added. Stainless steels that are corrosion- and oxidation-resistant ty ...

, which cost less than US$1,200. in order to encourage more rapid technological development according to ''

Scientific American ''Scientific American'', informally abbreviated ''SciAm'' or sometimes ''SA'', is an American popular science magazine. Many famous scientists, including Albert Einstein and Nikola Tesla, have contributed articles to it. In print since 1845, it i ...

''. This cost reduction was significant as the ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' reported commercial metal printers at the time cost over US$500,000. He further developed inexpensive methods such as

SODIS Solar water disinfection, in short SODIS, is a type of portable water purification that uses solar energy to make biologically-contaminated (e.g. bacteria, viruses, protozoa and worms) water safe to drink. Water contaminated with non-biological age ...

to disinfect drinking water in the

developing world A developing country is a sovereign state with a lesser developed industrial base and a lower Human Development Index (HDI) relative to other countries. However, this definition is not universally agreed upon. There is also no clear agreem ...

, using sunlight, water bottles, and salt. Recently, the ''MIT Sloan Management Review'' reported that Dr. Pearce has combined many of his research areas developing solar powered 3-D printers to drive

sustainable development Sustainable development is an organizing principle for meeting human development goals while also sustaining the ability of natural systems to provide the natural resources and ecosystem services on which the economy and society depend. The des ...

Bibliography

*''

Open-Source Lab (book) The ''Open-Source Lab: How to Build Your Own Hardware and Reduce Research Costs'' by Joshua M. Pearce was published in 2014 by Elsevier. The academic book is a guide, which details the development of free and open-source hardware primarily for ...

:How to Build Your Own Hardware and Reduce Research Costs'' (2014) * David Denkenberger and Joshua Pearce, ''Feeding Everyone No Matter What: Managing Food Security After Global Catastrophe'', Academic Press (2015).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pearce, Joshua M. Living people Michigan Technological University faculty Pennsylvania State University alumni American materials scientists Sustainability advocates 21st-century American writers Open-source hardware people Year of birth missing (living people)