Researchers from UNSW Sydney have just secured $4.9 million in Australian Research Council (ARC) funding for development of the ARC Training Centre for The Global Hydrogen Economy.
The UNSW project, which was awarded funding over five years, will engage Australia’s best researchers to develop hydrogen technologies and innovations to aid the world’s transition to renewable energies.
The announcement follows the recent launch of the Hydrogen Energy Research Centre at UNSW. The first of its kind university-industry partnership with Providence Asset Group (PAG) further supports the Federal Government’s National Hydrogen Strategy and the ambition for annual hydrogen exports to reach $10 billion by 2040.
Joint project leads for the new ARC Training Centre are Scientia Professor Rose Amal AC and Professor Kondo-Francois Aguey-Zinsou.
Professor Amal is a chemical engineer and the leader of the Particles and Catalysis Research Group. Previously she was also the Director of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Functional Nanomaterials (2010-2013). From 2012 to 2015 she was named in the Engineers Australia list of Australia’s Top 100 Most Influential Engineers. In 2014 she also became the first female engineer elected a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science.
Professor Aguey-Zinsou has over 12 years of research in the field of hydrogen technology. He is developing novel technologies for the effective conversion of CO2 into synthetic fuels and the effective utilisation of enzymes to catalyse hydrogen-based reaction in novel fuel cell systems. He has also published extensively in high ranking journals and has strong links with industry.
The two will bring together global research institutions, industry partners, government agencies and hydrogen start-ups to form a multi-disciplinary and international consortium.
The Centre’s focus on key themes includes: the production, storage, and utilisation of hydrogen; development of the right safety systems and controls; and commercialisation, public acceptance, and the skills industry will require in a hydrogen economy.
UNSW Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Research, Professor Nicholas Fisk said the new Centre will further enhance UNSW’s role in Australia’s plans to become a major player in the global hydrogen market.
“Australia is well-positioned to capitalise on the emerging global growth of hydrogen. However, to be competitive and produce at scale, we need cost-effective hydrogen technologies and capabilities for transitioning hydrogen into an array of industries,” Professor Fisk said.
“The project will have far-reaching and broad opportunities both to generate innovative approaches to exporting the product and to create a highly-skilled future workforce, all the while benefitting the environment and as a result, our climate.”
The new Centre is one of five projects to share $24 million in funding as announced by Minister for Education, Dan Tehan, this week.
In commenting on the funding announcement, Minister Tehan said: “Our Government is investing in research that will foster strategic partnerships between university-based researchers and industry organisations, to find practical solutions to challenges facing Australian industry.”
“We want universities to be even more entrepreneurial and engaged with industry. These training centres will drive Australian growth, innovation and competitiveness, improving the lives of everyday Australians, through drug design, and developing new opportunities for business, through the scale-up of hydrogen generation and its export,” he said.