Taiwan’s first organic solar cell research and testing laboratory was formally inaugurated at National Central University March 6.
“Energy and environmental protection are two major issues in our daily lives, and developing renewable energy sources, such as solar energy, is one of the paths to achieving sustainable development,” said project head Wu Chun-guey, director of NCU’s Research Center for New Generation Photovoltaics.
By combining domestic research resources, the new Advanced Laboratory of Accommodation and Research for Organic PhotoVoltiac (AROPV) is expected to help accelerate efforts by local academic teams to develop homegrown technologies and their commercial application.
Wu pointed out that there are many potential uses for organic solar cells as they possess several advantages in light transmittance, color modulation and flexibility, and are less costly and easier to produce, while having less of an impact on the environment.
The National Science Council, which helped fund the project, said the AROPV has already received certification in Japan, becoming the fourth international-level laboratory of its kind in the world after similar labs in the US, Germany and Japan.
