Helmholtz and the NREL agree to collaborate on solar energy research

The Helmholtz Association and the US National Renewable Energy Laboratory signed an agreement today on 23 June 2011 to work together more closely in order to close gaps in solar energy research and accelerate the development of new technologies. The agreement was signed in Berlin by representatives of both organisations. Greg Delawie, Deputy Chief of Mission, Embassy of the United States and Thomas Rachel, Parliamentary State Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research were also present for the signing.

“Today two outstanding organisations have agreed to join forces and drive progress in the fields of photovoltaic and solar thermal energy research,” says Prof. Jürgen Mlynek, President of the Helmholtz Association. Solar energy is plentiful, but in order to convert it into electric power economically, photovoltaic cells and solar thermal energy modules need to become more efficient and cheaper to produce. In order to achieve this goal, researchers are pursuing new approaches with nanostructured materials and innovative module architecture.

The institutions within the Helmholtz Association that were involved in concluding the agreement are the German Aerospace Centre (DLR), Forschungszentrum Jülich and the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Material und Energie. Work at the HZB and Forschungszentrum Jülich focuses on new thin-layer materials for solar cells. Researchers at the DLR work on perfecting modules for the thermal utilisation of solar energy, which are already being applied commercially in large solar thermal power plants. Specialists at the DLR are also developing new kinds of thermal storage systems that can retain heat accumulated in the daytime for use at night, allowing electricity to be generated around the clock.

The MoU was signed by NREL Director Dan Arvizu, and leaders of three agencies within the German Helmholtz Association – the Research Center Julich (FZ Julich), the German Aerospace Center (DLR), and the Helmholtz Zentrum Berlin (HZB). “This agreement promises to advance the potential of the materials and technology that will form the basis of solar cells and solar fuels in the future,” NREL Director Arvizu said.

(Photo: From left to right: Prof. Dr. Bernd Rech, Leiter Abteilung Silizium-Photovoltaik, Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin, Prof. Dr. Anke Kaysser-Pyzalla, Wissenschaftliche Geschäftsführerin, Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin Dr. Ulrich Breuer, Geschäftsführer, Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin Dr. Dan Arvizu, Vorstandsvorsitzender NREL, Prof. Dr. Robert Pitz-Paal, Co-Direktor Solarforschung, Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR), Thomas Rachel, Parlamentarischer Staatssekretär, Prof. Dr. Harald Bolt, Vorstandsmitglied, Forschungszentrum Jülich, Prof. Dr. Jürgen Mlynek, Präsident der Helmholtz-Gemeinschaft, Greg Delawie, Gesandter der US-Botschaft, Prof. Dr. Uwe Rau, Leiter des Instituts für Energie- und Klimaforschung, Forschungszentrum Jülich)