UOIT opens Clean Energy Research Laboratory

The University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) officially opened its Clean Energy Research Laboratory (CERL) at its north Oshawa campus. CERL is home to the first lab-scale demonstration of a copper-chlorine cycle for thermochemical water splitting and nuclear hydrogen production.

The provincial government contributed $3 million to support the development of the laboratory and to help UOIT develop its capacity in hydrogen technology research. The CERL houses externally funded research projects valued at more than $5.5 million including $1.78 million from the Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation and $485,000 from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, among others.

As global oil reserves are reduced amidst rising demand for oil, major efforts around the world have focused on hydrogen as a next-generation fuel, since it does not emit greenhouse gases. A key challenge facing a future transition to a hydrogen economy is a sustainable, efficient method of producing hydrogen in large capacities. UOIT’s Dr. Greg Naterer, associate dean, Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science and Canada Research Chair in Advanced Energy Systems, is leading a consortium of more than 30 researchers representing eight universities across Ontario and internationally that is developing a copper-chlorine cycle for producing hydrogen from nuclear energy.
www.uoit.ca