Funding boost for renewables research

Awarded to researchers from the Advanced Technology Institute (ATI) at Surrey University through the UK-India Education and Research Initiative (UK-IERI), both programmes will involve close collaboration between universities in the UK and India, as well as with Tata Steel Research and Development UK.

The first project will bring together researchers from Surrey University and the University of Hyderabad, India, with collaborators from Tata Steel Research and Development UK to look into how to effectively capture and store solar energy using an approach dubbed ‘inorganics-in-organics’, in which composite materials work together to increase efficiency. Tata Steel will partner research with industry to provide technologies for improved energy generation and storage.

The second project will examine the use of zinc oxide nanomaterials in ultra-high sensitivity gas sensors.

According to Surrey University, these gas sensors can be used in environmental monitoring devices to deliver improved sensitivity and increased energy efficiency. They can also be used in breathalysers, or for sensing potentially explosive gas leaks in places such as hydrogen storage facilities.