| New solar energy research institute
to conduct world-class R&D Source: Channel NewsAsia - Friday, February 22, 2008 |
 SINGAPORE — Singapore has set up a National Research Institute
on Solar Energy, in line with its push to be a leading player in the clean
energy sector.Singapore hopes to be one of the frontrunners in solar energy research in Asia, as the global solar market is poised to more than triple to over US$100 billion by 2011. The institute was jointly established by the Economic Development Board (EDB) and the National University of Singapore (NUS) at an investment cost of S$130 million over five years. The institute will start operations in April and it will be headed by Professor Joachim Luther, a leading expert in solar energy applications and technology. Professor Luther is a former director of the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems — Europe’s largest solar energy R&D institute — and Professor of Physics at the University of Freiburg in Germany. He will head the Singapore institute on a two-year tenure. The institute will start with a staff of 25 researchers but the number is expected to grow to 90 by 2012. The institute will also provide opportunities for graduate students to participate in research projects. It plans to produce up to 50 PhD and 20 Masters students by 2012. The institute will conduct research in the production of silicon-based solar cells, and aims to create more effective photovoltaic devices that can convert light into electricity. It will work with the construction industry to develop energy-efficient buildings, such as having window panes to trap light for energy and solar-assisted air conditioning. — CNA/ir |