$4.5 million for Monash initiatives driving transition to sustainable energy

Monash: ARENA has announced more than $4.5 million in funding for 2 Monash University projects to develop materials for the global transition to a sustainable energy future.

The funding will go towards a $7 million facility at the Melbourne Centre for Nanofabrication to accelerate the development of new materials through both vacuum and printing processes.

The facility will significantly bolster Australia’s competitiveness in the development of next-generation solar cells, solar fuels, as well as batteries and other cutting-edge innovations.

The research will bring together advanced robotics, automation and artificial intelligence concepts to rapidly synthesise, deposit and test the properties of new generations of printable and ‘paint on’ energy materials.

Team leader Professor Udo Bach said, ‘Monash is a world leader in energy science and engineering. This facility will dramatically increase the rate of discovery in the energy materials space as Australia, and indeed other countries globally, prioritise a reduction in carbon emissions and a transition to sustainable energy sources.’

Ongoing research into perovskites – an emerging material for next generation solar cells – will be a major focus.