Frontier IP, a specialist in commercializing intellectual property, has announced that its portfolio company GraphEnergyTech (Frontier IP holds a 23.97% equity stake in GraphEnergyTech) has entered into a collaboration with the Taiwan Perovskite Solar Corporation, Taiwan's prestigious Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI), and the University of Cambridge to drive development of perovskite solar technology.
This new project that the four organizations have formed will be called Graphene Electrode Technology for Perovskite Solar Cells (or "GETPSC") and it has secured a £884,129 (over US$1,115,000) grant from Innovate UK.
The four partners will work together to advance solar technology by developing commercial perovskite solar modules, based on Taiwan Perovskite Solar Corporation's technology, integrating GraphEnergyTech's graphene electrodes.
The electrodes will be based on the Company's proprietary technology to replace the metal electrodes currently used in most solar cells. Innovate UK's grant funding is split, with £591,250 assigned to GraphEnergyTech, and the remaining £292,879 to the University of Cambridge.
Graphene is more cost-effective and sustainable than metal electrodes and offers better chemical stability. In addition, the University of New South Wales has warned that the growth in solar installations globally threatens to exhaust known resources of silver, the most widely used metal for electrodes, by 2050.
Perovskite-based solar technologies match the efficiency of the silicon-solar cells which dominate the market today and have the potential to surpass them. However, they are more vulnerable to environmental degradation, because of the poor stability of metallic electrodes in relation to the perovskite solar material. GETPSC's main focus is to improve the reliability of the perovskite solar cells to make them more viable commercially by replacing unstable metal electrodes with graphene.
Perovskite solar technology also faces challenges in achieving cost-effective manufacturing at scale, and GETPSC will work with Taiwan's semiconductor manufacturing industry to help address this issue.
The Industrial Technology Research Institute has been credited with driving the growth of several industries and startups, including semiconductor giants UMC and TSMC.
The project's total value amounts to £1,137,522 (over US$1,435,000) in the UK and, in addition to the aforementioned grant, includes a GraphEnergyTech contribution of £253,393 (around US$320,000).
In 2024, GraphEnergyTech raised £1 million through an investment round led by Aramco Ventures, the corporate venturing arm of Aramco, the world's leading integrated energy company.
Additional potential applications for GraphEnergyTech's technology include printed electronics, batteries, super capacitors, LED lighting and displays.
The Company was co-founded by Professor Michael Grätzel of the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne ("EPFL"), inventor of the dye-sensitized solar cell, Professor Andrea Ferrari, founder and director of the University of Cambridge Graphene Centre, and Frontier IP.
Chen Lai-Ju, Taiwan Perovskite Solar Corp. Chairman, said: "We are eagerly anticipating the research and economic value that this project will bring. It will push the entire world one step closer to achieving zero-carbon emissions."
Dr. Thomas Baumeler, GraphEnergyTech's CEO, said: "We are thrilled to embark on this ambitious project which not only fosters international collaboration in renewable energy, but also aligns seamlessly with GraphEnergyTech's vision. The support from Innovate UK is instrumental in advancing our research and driving innovative solutions to market."
Frontier IP Chief Executive, Neil Crabb, said: "We are very excited about GraphEnergyTech's potential and the impact the Company could have on solar technology. The collaboration with leading Taiwanese organisations and the support from Innovate UK, provides strong validation for its technology and we are looking forward to the results of this project."
