University of Deleware lands $52.9 million solar power grant

The University of Delaware has received a $52.9 million grant, believed to be the largest ever for solar research, for a project that within four years could make power from the sun as cost-effective as conventional methods of generating electricity.

Two solar researchers at UD will oversee up to $33.6 million in federal grants and $19.3 million in mostly private funds. The grant will make the university’s solar research program one of the best-funded nationwide, officials said.

UD is among the leading academic solar research centers in America. The school’s departmentof electrical and computer engineering, and the Institute for Energy Conversion are known in the solar industry for their innovations and for the high number of researchers they produce annually. Eleven institutions competed for the federal grant.

By STEVEN CHURCH
The News Journal

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