Centre for Energy Technology

Innovative technologies in heat, power and fuels for industry transformation.

Clean, reliable, affordable energy.

At Adelaide University’s Centre for Energy Technology (CET), we liaise with industry partners and build research teams to develop innovative solutions for sustainable fuels, minerals processing and power.

Our goal is to help accelerate society’s transition to carbon neutrality. We collaborate with leading industry, government agencies and other research organisations to move us closer to this goal, drawing on our research capacity in sustainable power, fuels, networks and minerals.

CET works with industry to reduce emissions now, by retrofitting innovative technologies to existing systems, and is also developing new carbon neutral and carbon negative technologies to replace existing heat, power and fuel production systems.

In this way, CET’s research has an immediate impact on CO2 emissions while we transition to sustainable, affordable clean energy solutions.

Explore our research

We deliver innovative technologies for sustainable, secure and affordable energy. Our goal is to help accelerate society's transition to carbon neutrality.

Engage with us

At CET, we like to break down the barriers between academic research and industry adoption. We invite you to collaborate with us.

Explore the Centre for Energy Technology

Research capabilities Research capabilities
Research impact Research impact
Our people Our people
Our partners Our partners

Our research targets innovative technologies with strong potential to lower the cost of CO2 mitigation in the near- to mid-term, in partnership with industry.

We have a strong track record in this area, having developed twelve thermal energy technologies to commercial implementation - including the Olympic torch and stadium flames for the Sydney, Athens and Rio Games and a low-NOx kiln burner.

We use a range of technologies in state-of-the-art facilities to address four main research challenges: sustainable secure power, sustainable fuels, sustainable minerals, and sustainable networks and grids.

Research themes

Solar thermal

Solar thermal research, including the ARENA solar thermal in the Bayer Alumina process project and our contributions to $87 million Australian Solar Thermal Research Initiative (ASTRI)

Solar photocatalysis

Developing photocatalysts and reactors for hydrogen and other solar fuels production.

Two phase flow

Two phase flow research, in which we aim to improve our understanding of the interaction between particles and the surrounding fluid.

Sooting flames

Sooting flames research, in which we explore the interdependency of parameters controlling soot evolution in flames.

Biomass to energy

Biomass to Energy research focussing on waste valorisation.

Wind, wave and tidal power

Wind, wave and tidal power research, focusing on optimising components in wind and wave turbines.

Chemical looping

Chemical looping research, which aims to reduce emissions in fuel combustion and oxygen production.

Low carbon materials

Research, in which we are developing novel technologies to produce industrial materials such as oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen, ammonia, power and water using low carbon alternative methods. With these technologies we aim to increase the viability of resource recovery and value addition to commodities that are presently wasted.

Laser diagnostics

Laser diagnostics research for industrial processes.

Energy materials

Energy materials research, including developing high-performance catalysts to increase the efficiency of fuel cells, water-splitting cells and batteries.

Our track record

12 thermal energy technologies developed to commercial implementation

115 academics, researchers and PhD students

CET members operate across the disciplines of engineering, sciences, business and economics working to meet these challenges

170 papers published each year in leading international journals

2 patents registered each year, on average

Technologies

CET has developed a wide range of low carbon technologies to help industry transition to a clean energy future. We’re developing technology to achieve four main goals: sustainable secure power, sustainable affordable fuels, sustainable minerals processing, and sustainable networks and grids.

We work closely with industry to make sure that all our technologies are economically viable as well as technically sound – techno-economic assessments are conducted on all our technologies through the development process.

Heliostat wind loads: Work to expand upon existing knowledge of Heliostat Wind Loads for Concentrating Solar Power.
Hybrid solar technologies: Hybrid Solar Technologies, including Hybrid Solar Thermal Chemical Looping Combustion, the Hybrid Solar Dual Bed and the Hybrid Solar Receiver Combustor.
MILD combustion: Reducing greenhouse emissions is a high priority for industry and CET is responding by investigating alternative fuels and combustion technologies.
Solar Expanding-Vortex Particle Receiver-Reactor (SEVR): CET has patented a novel concept of a solar vortex receiver-reactor for concentrated solar thermal application.
Solar-aided power generation: CET is working to integrate solar thermal energy into coal-fired power plants to increase their efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Torrefaction: A biomass to fuel technology used to create energy dense biomass, which can then be used as a fuel source.
Solar gasification: Using biomass to meet the need for sustainable transportation fuels.
Hydrothermal liquefaction: Biocrude oil production from biosolids from wastewater treatment and waste biomass.
Solar photocatalysis: A breakthrough technique, developed at CET, combines two ideal virtues – carbon neutral solar energy harvesting and storage as well as reduction of atmospheric CO2.
Solar thermal for mineral processing: Sustainable Minerals Processing using solar thermal technology, including the $15M ARENA Solar Thermal for Alumina Project.
Energy storage solutions: Energy storage solutions, including those being developed under the $5.3 Million ARENA Australian Energy Storage Knowledge Bank Project.
Electric Power Systems Group: The University’s Electric Power Systems Group consults to the power industry in modelling plant and control systems, analysis of the transmission network, system design and integration of renewables into the network.

Members of the CET are internationally recognised for their leading research into clean energy technologies and practices that reduce emissions, increase energy efficiency and decrease the cost of energy.

With a wide range of facilities spanning laboratory to pilot-scale, our team of researchers are dedicated to creating a culture of research excellence and delivering significant breakthroughs in the development of innovative technologies for a clean energy future. We welcome prospective researchers to join us.

Management Committee

Founding Centre Director: Professor Gus Nathan
Acting Director, Centre for Energy Technology
Professor Greg Metha
Professor Veronica Soebarto
Dr Woei Saw
Dr Alfonoso Chinnici
Professor Frank Neumann
Professor Kannan Govinden

The CET is one of South Australia’s fastest-growing research groups working to transition our society to renewable energy. It is a platform that brings together smart, creative researchers with forward-thinking industry leaders.

Partner with us

CET offers several opportunities to partner, from one-time contract research to projects and long-term partnerships. Our team are strategic, coordinated and well-connected.

Our business model is to attract great quality companies that want to increase their energy efficiency and to assemble teams to solve their challenges. We’ll connect you to the right people, to solve your needs in a seamless process. You get access to our experts, publications and data and facilities.

If you are considering partnering with us, contact us to see where our synergies lie. Talk to us if you are interested in joining, contributing to, or hearing about, one of our existing major projects.

We’ve been collaborating and engaging with industry and government over the last decade. We coordinate and manage our research capability through strategic research programs under the guidance of an industry Advisory Board of leading industry specialists drawn from across the country.

Previous partners include:

DLR
CSIRO
ASTRI
The University of Queensland
Future Fuels CRC
Heavy Industry Low-carbon Transition (HILT) CRC

Contact us

Centre for Energy Technology

Location
Centre for Energy Technology
Adelaide University
City Campus East, Adelaide SA 5000

Phone: +61 8 8313 2559

Email: cet@adelaide.edu.au