Eni and MIT Sign Energy Research Partnership Advanced Solar Program Planned
Posted on February 26, 2008 – 9:00 pm | by oilandgaspress.com
The centrepiece of this collaboration will be the Solar Frontiers Research Program which will focus on the development of advanced solar technologies.
San Donato Milanese (Milan), 26 February 2008 – Eni and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (”MIT”) signed today in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the agreement for a major energy research partnership, in the presence of MIT Chairman Susan Hockfield and Eni CEO Paolo Scaroni.
The centrepiece of this collaboration will be the Solar Frontiers Research Program which will focus on the development of advanced solar technologies. Through this agreement Eni also becomes a Founding Member of the MIT Energy Initiative (MITEI), supporting a portfolio of diverse energy research projects at the Institute.
Total funding for the partnership will be $50 million over five years. Of that amount, $25 million will establish the Eni-MITEI Solar Frontiers Research Program. The remainder will support Eni’s founding membership in MITEI.
The Eni-MITEI Solar Frontiers Research Program will focus on six areas:
nano-structured thin film photovoltaics: this is an advanced approach for overcoming the current technical and cost limitations of conventional solar cells, using very thin layers of innovative materials in devices engineered to the nanoscale
luminescent solar concentrators: this study will investigate materials able to modify the properties of light shining on solar devices, for improved absorption
self-assembling photovoltaic materials: this study will address the realization of materials inspired by processes found in nature, such as the growth of hard shells in many sea species. The aim is to create self-assembling materials which do not require expensive processing equipment
water splitting: using solar energy to split water molecules into their basic components – hydrogen and oxygen – is a process used by plants, and a very good way of storing solar energy. A number of approaches will be examined to reproduce the process with high efficiency and low cost goals
materials for solar energy capture and storage: this project will focus on the realization of a computational model which will enable the selection of the best materials for solar energy conversion devices
maximizing the return on investment for solar thermal plants: the objective of this project is to investigate new solutions for the design of thermal solar power plants
As a Founding Member of MITEI, Eni will also support a range of other research projects at the Institute spanning the energy spectrum from traditional oil and gas to methane hydrates to global change to transportation options. This portfolio will include a large research project in multi-scale reservoir science for enhanced oil recovery.
The company will also support MITEI’s Energy Research Seed Fund program to fund novel energy research concepts which will be generated from an annual campus-wide solicitation. In addition, Eni will support ten “Eni-MIT Energy Fellows” at the Institute for each year of its five-year commitment and, as part of its Founding Member research portfolio, the research in evaluation methodologies for the commercial potential of energy start-ups and innovative energy technologies.
MIT has an Institute-wide initiative designed to help transform the global energy system to meet the challenges of the future. The MIT Energy Initiative includes research, education, campus energy management and outreach activities, an interdisciplinary approach that covers all areas of energy supply and demand, security and environmental impact. For more information, please visit http://web.mit.edu/mitei/
Eni SpA is an industry leader in exploration, production, development and expansion of oil and natural gas, power generation and petroleum and petrochemical products, and is pursuing a broad range of innovative and emerging technologies related to those interests including research and development activities and scientific collaborations. For more information, please visit http://www.eni.it
Company Contacts:
Press Office: Phone +39 02.52031287 – +39 06.5982398
Switchboard : +39-0659821
ufficio.stampa@eni.it
segreteriasocietaria.azionisti@eni.it
investor.relations@eni.it
Website : www.eni.it
ISSUERS OF NEWS RELEASES AND NOT OILANDGASPRESS.COM ARE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ACCURACY OF THE CONTENT
www.oilandgaspress.com - The ‘one stop shop’ for global Oil and gas press releases!!!
You must be logged in to post a comment.