The doctoral research project targets to understand the relevance of frugal and affordable energy innovations in sustainable energy transitions among low-income communities in emerging economies. The target technology is solar micro-grids in India. The various related sustainability challenges are studied as well as the role of distributed energy in the country's energy mix among rural energy users. Key methods include field trials, interviews, data analysis and sustainability and reliability assessments.

Team

The goals of the SPEVINDS project were: 1)Conducting fundamental research and 2) Generating industrial applications and prototyping. Basic research was conducted around the topic of how to pack and save spectral images most effectively, involving, for example, the types of files that need to be developed. A key aspect of the project is naturally how the basic research findings can be applied in practice and how they can be used to generate business

Team

Markku Hauta-Kasari, Juha Purmonen

We aim at elucidating how plants acquire and use information about their abiotic and biotic environment. Perception of visible and ultraviolet regions of the daylight spectrum and the acclimation responses triggered by these cues are the main focus of our current research. Understanding cross-acclimtaion mechanisms can be used to develop new environmentally-friendly crop management strategies based on environmental cues, such as the light spectrum and/or temperature, replacing applications of chemical growth regulators and of some pesticides. Another application is enhancement of post-harvest shelf life of cut flowers, and leafy vegetables.

Team

Pedro J. Aphalo, Sari Siipola, Fang Wang, Neha Rai, Yan Yan (HU); Åke Strid (ÖU), Gareth I. Jenkins (GU), Andreas Albert (HZM), Susanne Neugart (IGZ), Otmar Urban (CZG), Victor O. Sadras (SARDI), Tarja Lehto (UEF), Anders Lindfors (FMI).

This project, funded by the Academy of Finland (2013–2016), provided theoretically innovative and empirically new and valuable knowledge of the complex dynamics between governance and resistance in the context of the dominant, neoliberal development paradigm. It studied social and political struggles in three countries in South Asia – Nepal, Bangladesh and India – by examining social movements that fight against forced displacement and slum demolitions – all caused by development projects. The project engaged critically in the debate on neoliberal development by analyzing problems related to it, charting possibilities for addressing hem, and offering alternative visions for socially, culturally and politically more sustainable models of development.

Team

The windows developed in this project will prevent the heat from solar radiation from entering buildings, and instead convert that to usable energy. Thus, the need for air conditioning is drastically reduced without compromising daylight illumination. On the other hand, our widows will also increase the use of solar power by integrating the collectors directly into the facades of buildings.

Team

Jussi Toppari, Janne Simonen, Wolfgang Fritzsche, Frank Garwe, Vamsi Komarala, Eshwar Thouti, Johannes Skaar, Christopher Dirdal

The production of hydrogen by solar energy is an attractive technique to realize global renewable energy supply. The photoinduced water splitting into hydrogen and oxygen by the direct use of sunlight is an ideal, renewable method of hydrogen production that integrates solar energy collection and water electrolysis into a single photoelectrode. Although the concept is attractive to produce sustainable fuel, the suitable electrode material (performance, stability and low cost) is yet to be found.

Team

Nagarajan Subramaniyam (Finland), Markku Sopanen (Finland), Rajendra singh (India), Ashutosh Kumar (India)

Our work is related to the use of macroalgae as a renewable feedstock for the production of valuable chemicals and/or biofuels. Our goal is to select optimal processes in order to add value to marine biomass, which can lead the production of valuable chemicals and/or biofuels. In Finland we are focused on chemical treatments for algae, that mainly stand for deconstruction of the biomass matrix which can selectively separate carbohydrates, which consequently can be further processed for biofuels production. Chilean collaborators are mainly focused on biotechnological processes, on the development of new enzymes for degradation of algae carbohydrates and new microorganisms capable to ferment particular monomers into bioethanol.

Team

Ricardo Pezoa, Päivi Mäki-Arvela, Jyri-Pekka Mikkola

The objective of the proposed collaboration is to develop new molecules for organic photovoltaics, study their properties thoroughly in solutions and bulk solid state, and to prepare bulk heterojunction (BHJ) organic solar cell with enhanced efficiency. The main goals of the project are on: i) synthesis of new thienylvinylene oligomers and polymers for organic solar cells; ii) understanding of their photophysical and photoelectrical characteristics and their function in a photo-device, iii) assembly of the photoactive materials into prototype photo-cells to gain significant enhancement in organic solar cell efficiency and stability.

Team

Lijo George, Zafar Ahmed

This multinational research team wants to identify so far unknown (mystery) owl species recently seen and photographed in Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. Identification will use genetic sampling and voice recordings which will be compared with several museum skins and blood samples in the UK, US and The Netherlands in addition to owls in the number of university collections in South America. After the owls are correctly identified it is easier to secure their better conservation and to study the needs for biodiversity sustainablity in their vulnerable forest habitats.

Team

Dr. Elisa Bonaccorso, Mr. Juan Freile Ortiz and Mitch Lysinger