7. Affordable and clean energy

A research team in the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering has found a way of storing thermal energy for up to 18 years. A specially designed molecule is used to store energy from the Sun’s rays and release it again in the form of heat when required. The researchers are now developing a window film that should be capable of taking the edge off the worst midday heat and instead distributing it evenly from morning to evening.

A major challenge is batteries for the ever-growing number of electric cars. The batteries contain metals and minerals that are valuable but difficult to extract. There is currently no cost-effective way of recycling lithium-ion batteries, but a research team in industrial materials recycling is developing a new energy-efficient method that should be able to extract copper, cobalt, nickel and lithium separately – at relatively low temperatures.

To enable sustainable energy solutions such as solar energy technology to be used on a large scale​ we need new, innovative business models. This is an observation made by researchers in the Department of Technology Management and Economics. They have looked at solutions from the United States, Japan and Germany to find viable models for the Swedish business sector. Examples of such solutions could be third-party ownership or technology leasing. 

The fuel cell has so far been too expensive to make a breakthrough as an energy and transport solution. A research team in the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering is developing new materials that can increase the efficiency and lower the cost of a fuel cell. 

The Energy Area of Advance coordinates both external and internal networks within the field of energy, conducts extensive research projects and communicates energy-related research. 

The Materials Science Area of Advance brings together and strengthens Chalmers’ materials research that has the potential to deliver new innovative solutions to energy challenges. 

Chalmers campus is used as living laboratory, where new energy solutions can be tested in an urban environment. Read more about this via Five star campus. 

You can find additional projects by searching the Chalmers research database research.chalmers.se/en.