MIT Gets $10 million to Catch Some Rays

The organizers of the Solar Decathlon, which we blogged about last year, have built a solar home in Second Life. Sure it's an advertising gimmick, but its also a reminder that in the real world, ubiquitous solar is still mainly a fantasy.

The brainiacs at the Massachussets Institute of Technology (MIT) are looking to take solar to meatspace with a new initiative called the Solar Revolution Project (SRP). A $10 million gift from the Chisonis Family Foundation will fund the effort to accelerate the viability of solar capture, conversion and storage technologies.

"Solar is thought of as an ultimate energy technology off in the distant future. The goal of SRP is to move this timeframe nearer to the present. The SRP will make solar a practical alternative, by committing a 10-year timeframe for establishing the new base of scientific knowledge it will take to draw a market-competitive energy supply from the sun," said Daniel Nocera, the Henry Dreyfus Professor of Energy and Professor of Chemistry at MIT, who will direct the SRP.

The plan is part of the institute's larger $100 million MIT Energy Initiative (MITEI), which has the goal of nothing less than overhauling the global energy system.

SRP will be less structured than your usual research program (what else would you expect from these piano-droppers?). The millions are unrestricted and programs will take a shotgun approach, spreading initial money to 30 5-year energy fellowships for students. These longer-term projects are designed to give MIT's photon-ographers the time needed to make breakthroughs. The student research is expected to delve into areas like new conversion materials and methods for using solar to produce hydrogen fuel.

"By investing in the people at MIT and giving them the freedom to take risks in the lab, we will enable them to be true game-changers—advancing the state of the art to a point where solar power is cheaper and more reliable than electricity from coal," Foundation benefactor Arunas Chesonis said in a statement.

Personally, I wouldn't mind giving MIT the entire Department of Energy renewables budget to play with, so I'm glad to hear they're getting a chance to jump start the solar movement.