NTU, NUS scientists receive $15m govt funds to develop clean energy and microgrids

Professor Chan Siew Hwa from NTU's Energy Research Institute. He is one of the grant recipients of the Energy Innovation Research Programme, a $140 million Government initiative aimed at promoting research and development in the energy sector. -
Professor Chan Siew Hwa from NTU's Energy Research Institute. He is one of the grant recipients of the Energy Innovation Research Programme, a $140 million Government initiative aimed at promoting research and development in the energy sector. -- PHOTO: ST FILE   

SINGAPORE - A total of $15 million in research grants has been awarded to scientists from the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and the National University of Singapore (NUS) to develop new clean energy sources and small-scale power grids.

The funding comes under the fourth grant call last year of the Energy Innovation Research Programme (EIRP), a $140 million Government initiative aimed at promoting research and development in the energy sector.

One of the grant recipients, Professor Chan Siew Hwa from NTU's Energy Research Institute (Eri@n), will be developing a way for low-temperature fuel cells to generate electricity from hydrogen contaminated with chlorine. It would use hydrogen produced as a by-product during chlorine production, 10 to 15 per cent of which is normally released into the atmosphere and wasted.

Another grant recipient, Associate Professor Sanjib Kumar Panda from NUS' Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, will be developing a hybrid diesel-solar power generating system that can provide electricity to remote parts of Southeast Asia.

In May, the EIRP launched three more grant calls in the areas of solar energy, smart grids and gas technologies.

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