Vincent Oliveto, a doctoral student in nuclear engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, has received the Science, Mathematics, and Research for Transformation (SMART) Scholarship-for-Service Program, funded by the Department of Defense (DOD).

The program combines education and workforce development, allowing students to gain technical skills in STEM fields while also supporting the mission of DOD.

Oliveto is a member of Diana-Andra Borca-Tasciuc’s lab, a professor of mechanical, aerospace, and nuclear engineering at Rensselaer. His research focuses on enhancing the efficiency of luminescent solar concentrating (LSC) systems, a technology that converts sunlight into energy, similar to a traditional solar panel, but is integrated into buildings.

LSCs work by concentrating sunlight as it hits a glass pane and redirecting it to smaller solar cells on the outside frame of the glass. Oliveto is working to engineer new surface properties capable of decreasing the amount of light that is lost during that process.

Oliveto’s goal is to make LSCs a viable technology for future environmentally friendly buildings.