Making a difference together

To fulfil our mission, we do not only have unique expertise at our disposal; we also have a superior research infrastructure: well-equipped experimenting facilities, a test field for wind turbines and a state-of-the art workshop where experimental installations, prototypes and high-tech components are designed and realised, both for ECN and for third parties.

Sustainable energy is vital to the world and offers opportunities for businesses

Core activities

ECN has identified six core activities for the period 2012-2015: These are areas in which we have observed opportunities that we will seize together with trade and industry, authorities and knowledge institutes.

• Solar energy
  Together with manufacturers of solar panels, manufacturing equipment and materials, ECN deploys the latest scientific insights in usable concepts for solar cells, modules and processes. The challenge is to lower the cost of solar energy and hence make it more widely applicable.
• Wind energy
  In this area, ECN focuses on substantially lowering the costs of offshore wind energy by improving the aerodynamics for rotor blades and wind farms and by enabling more efficient maintenance and control of turbines.
• Biomass
  ECN contributes to the bio-based economy, with focus on thermo-chemical conversion of biomass. Research areas include pre-treatment, gasification, gas cleaning and bio-refining.
• Energy efficiency
  ECN is working on making industrial processes more efficient, for example by means of heat pumps, separation technology and revolutionary chemical reactors.
• Environmental research
  ECN is expert at calculating and predicting the environmental effects and the social implications of new technologies. For this purpose, we develop new instruments and models.
• Policy advice
  A condition for large-scale deployment of new techniques is that citizens, businesses and governments agree on the preconditions. ECN has engineers, economists, social scientists and environmental experts who jointly work on strategic advice in collaboration with the technical units.