Abu Dhabi – The Masdar Institute of Science and Technology,
an independent, research-driven graduate-level university focused on advanced
energy and sustainable technologies, today announced the launch of its new
Masdar Institute Solar Platform (MISP), a concentrating solar power (CSP)
research facility in Masdar City designed to advance innovative and
cutting-edge CSP technologies and play a central role in the recently launched
Masdar Solar Hub.
The inauguration of the MISP was
attended by Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, UAE Minister of State, Chairman of Masdar, and
Chairman of the Masdar Institute Board of Trustees Executive Committee. Jens
Eikaas, Norwegian Ambassador to the UAE, delivered opening remarks on the
importance of UAE-Norwegian research and development collaborations.
In a keynote speech, Masdar Institute’s
Dr. Steve Griffiths, Vice President for Research, highlighted the Institute’s
efforts to establish partnerships in public and private sectors to enhance
research and development of critical technology-based innovations in key UAE
industries.
The launch of the facility featured an
announcement by EnergyNest, a Norwegian thermal storage technology developer,
that it has validated at the facility its thermal energy storage (TES) pilot
that stores thermal energy up to 400 C, making it the first high-temperature
thermal energy storage system in the Middle East. This innovative new
technology, which uses a special concrete as storage media and a smart modular
configuration, has the potential to drop the costs of TES systems in CSP
facilities significantly.
The launch also featured an in-depth
panel session, which explored the opportunities and potential of the MISP and
the Masdar Solar Hub to accelerate the UAE’s growth in the solar energy
markets.
Dr. Behjat AlYousuf, Interim Provost,
Masdar Institute, said: "We are pleased to announce the official launch of
the Masdar Institute Solar Platform, which will provide pioneering solar power
companies, universities and our own faculty and students a place to research,
develop and test concentrating solar and thermal energy technologies. The
Masdar Institute Solar Platform will help to validate CSP and thermal energy
technologies at the pre-commercial level by providing the tools and expertise
required to test these systems at Masdar Institute’s unique solar beam-down
tower, which is the critical link required to translate next-generation CSP
systems into commercially viable products. The MISP will help to position the
UAE as a global hub for CSP technologies and a leader in the evolving energy
market."
Guests at the MISP launch enjoyed tours
of the platform, where a wide range of innovations are currently being tested
on-site, including new silicon mirrors that can better handle the UAE’s harsh
desert conditions and the storage of thermal energy for the production of power
using a novel single-tank storage system.
Using Masdar Institute’s one-of-a-kind
100 kW beam-down CSP facility, the aim of the Solar Platform is to build a
high-performance CSP research and demonstration infrastructure in the region.
This will provide the foundation for new product development, cooperation with
local and international companies and academic organizations, and the creation
of human capital highly trained in CSP and thermal energy storage (TES) systems
in Abu Dhabi -- efforts which directly support Abu Dhabi’s initiative to
provide 7% of its power generation capacity from renewable energy technologies
by 2020.
Dr. Christian Thiel, CEO, EnergyNest,
said: "The platform at Masdar Institute allows for a truly unique storage
technology to be demonstrated and showcased to the world. We are extremely
excited over the prospects of our new thermal storage technology for the region
- and we look forward to continuing research efforts and expanding our
collaboration activities with Masdar"
Dr. Nicolas Calvet, Chair of MISP and
Assistant Professor of Mechanical and Materials Engineering at Masdar Institute
said: "The MISP takes Masdar Institute’s novel beam-down CSP pilot plant
and transforms it into a unique research tool for development of TES systems
and CSP components."
The main purpose of the MISP is to
develop and leverage both human capital and solar resources to increase the
implementation and utilization of CSP in the UAE, which is considered a
promising source of solar power for large scale power generation.
"Right now, there is a big focus
on PV since costs have come down thanks to investment in research. CSP coupled
with TES is an alternative to PV that is capable of producing constant power 24
hours a day, making it well suited for system integration and overcoming the
storage challenges that PV currently faces," said Dr. Calvet.
The innovative R&D outcomes
produced by the MISP intend to lead to the creation of next-generation CSP and
TES technologies that are more affordable and efficient, making thermal solar
energy a more viable option for solar power generation in the UAE and around
the world, helping the UAE reach its innovative renewable energy ambitions.
No comments:
Post a Comment