Goal 7: Affordable and Clean Energy
Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all
Related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
Research
CREATE ME2
The Materials for Electrochemical Energy Solutions (CREATE ME2) Program focuses on developing energy conversion and storage technologies essential for the delivery of a low-carbon energy system. Trainees develop expertise in these technologies via four platforms: large-scale batteries for storing intermittent renewable wind and solar electricity generation; innovative solid-state lithium batteries for automotive applications; fuel cells for efficient conversion of fuel to electricity for transport or combined heat and power; and processes that store energy by capturing carbon dioxide and converting it into a fuel.
Energy Engineering
As part of the Schulich School of Engineering’s research priorities, energy engineering researchers are looking into hybrid energy systems, assessing environmental impacts, sustainable energy sources and efficient energy-conversion techniques.
Teaching, learning and student experience
Mechanical Engineering students explore portable solar-powered charging stations for electric scooters
Electric scooters are a more energy-efficient means of transportation when compared to conventional gas vehicles, however, their current charging methods evoke environmental, economic and safety concerns. As part of the 2021 Engineering Design Fair, students worked with the scooter company Lime to design a solar-powered charging station for electric scooters that would be more convenient, cost-effective and safe – all while reducing carbon emissions.
Schulich School of Engineering’s minor in Energy and Environment
The Schulich School of Engineering’s minor in Energy and Environment is the first of its kind in Canada. This program teaches students how to assess, avoid and minimize environmental impacts of industrial energy operations. This optional minor is offered in collaboration with a variety of engineering majors.
Energy-efficiency on campus
UCalgary is committed to reducing overall energy consumption on campus. Through the Utility Reduction Program, older buildings on campus are retrofit with mechanical upgrades and energy-recovery systems to bring them up to more energy-efficient standards. UCalgary also has an Energy dashboard, where you can view energy usage in all buildings on the various campuses.
Campus and community impact
Campus
The Geothermal Energy Lab is a multidisciplinary collaboration between members of the departments of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering and Civil Engineering in the Schulich School of Engineering, the Department of Geoscience in the Faculty of Science and the Faculty of Law. Geothermal energy is heralded as a significant green energy source globally and has been identified as a potentially accessible source in Western Canada.
Local
Researchers at the Schulich School of Engineering are hoping to use the power of the sun to convert the straw plant material left behind from grass and grain agriculture into energy. This research is working on a new, environmentally friendly approach called “photobiorefinery,” which uses solar energy to break down biomass from plants, producing renewable fuels as opposed to petrochemicals.
National
UCalgary is leading a battery technology-development initiative called the Western Canada Battery Consortium (WCBC). The goal of WCBC is to work pan-institutionally to employ world-class battery technology research in advancing battery technology and supply chains in Canada, and to contribute to economic diversification.