Yesterday morning, November 13, Shell Brazil, FAPESP, Unicamp, UFSCar and USP signed an agreement that will enable the implementation of 15 new R&D projects within the Center for Innovation on New Energies (CINE). Over the next five years, the focus of CINE’s studies will be on improving technologies to produce energy using renewable sources and low-carbon processes. The goal is to make these technologies increasingly efficient, economical and sustainable.

“CINE researches technologies aligned with the needs of the market and the energy challenges of today’s world. And Shell is committed to innovation and the development of technological solutions to achieve the energy transition. In partnership with the most qualified institutions, we are building the foundations of this path that aims to transcend borders, in a center of international excellence”, comments Olivier Wambersie, General Manager of Technology and Innovation at Shell Brazil.

The new projects will be divided into four interconnected research divisions: Energy Generation, Advanced Energy Storage, Green Hydrogen and Computational Materials Design. Initially, the scientific team involved in the projects will be made up of researchers from 11 Brazilian teaching and research institutions.

In this phase, R$82.4 million will be invested, of which R$62.4 million will be financed by Shell, through the R&D&I (Research, Development and Innovation) clause of the Brazilian National Petroleum Agency (ANP). FAPESP will invest the remaining R$20 million.

“FAPESP is very pleased to renew its partnership with Shell and Unicamp in the Center for Innovation on New Energies. This is a key agenda for Brazil and São Paulo. There are several new themes in renewable energy generation and storage issues. We are certain that CINE will repeat the success it has had in previous years,” says Carlos Américo Pacheco, CEO of FAPESP’s Technical and Administrative Council.

According to Ana Flávia Nogueira, director of CINE and professor at Unicamp’s Institute of Chemistry, the greatest challenge of the energy transition is to generate alternatives to the use of fossil fuels.“It is impossible to talk about fuels of the future without thinking about developing renewable energies that gradually reduce the use of natural gas, oil and coal in the generation of heat and energy in industrial processes. To ensure the continuity of this process, it is crucial to implement large-scale energy storage solutions that meet demand even during periods of intermittency of renewable sources,” explains the director.

Ana Flávia adds: “Low-carbon hydrogen stands out as a versatile element, as it can be used both as a direct fuel and as a raw material for other molecules, when combined with CO₂ captured from other processes.”

Four new research areas

The four new divisions are: Energy Generation, Advanced Energy Storage, Green Hydrogen and Computational Material Design.

In Energy Generation, a solar energy project stands out, using an innovative material based on perovskite crystals, which is a cheaper raw material with a smaller carbon footprint in its manufacture, when compared to the silicon crystal panel that is widely used today. The researchers intend to create prototypes to test in representative environments.

The Advanced Energy Storage division improves electrical energy storage technologies, with better performance and affordable costs. The aim is to use these technologies to store energy when there is excess and supply it when there is demand, thus compensating for the intermittency of renewable energy sources.

The Green Hydrogen division will focus on identifying innovative materials that will help reduce the costs of key components of the electrolyzers, equipment responsible for generating green hydrogen by breaking down water molecules. Researchers are also looking for opportunities to improve the efficiency of these devices through advanced studies on the subject.

The Computational Materials Design area will use CINE’s computing and artificial intelligence (AI) tools to perform scenario feasibility analyses, assessing in advance the likelihood of success of some development paths for the other divisions, shortening the path to success for the technology under analysis.

About CINE

Founded by Shell Brasil and FAPESP in 2018, CINE is a Brazilian research and innovation center that has stood out, in Brazil and abroad, in the development of technologies that can accelerate the energy transition and help establish a low-carbon economy.

About Shell

Shell has been operating in Brazil for over 110 years and is an integrated energy company with a presence in Upstream, the New Natural Gas Market, Trading, Research & Development and the Development of Renewable Energy, with a business that sells on the free market and environmental products, Shell Energy Brazil. Here, fuel distribution is managed by the Raízen joint venture, which recently also acquired Shell Brazil’s lubricants business. The company works to meet the growing demand for energy in an economically, environmentally and socially responsible manner, evaluating trends and scenarios to respond to the challenge of the future of energy.

Annually, Shell invests approximately R$500 million in R&D, with 70% of the funds allocated to projects focused on decarbonization and efficiency in the offshore industry. Shell is currently the private company that invests the most in innovation in the sector in the country, second only to Petrobras, according to the ANP ranking.

About FAPESP

The São Paulo Research Foundation is one of the country’s leading agencies for the promotion of scientific and technological research. With an annual budget corresponding to 1% of the state’s total tax revenue, FAPESP is linked to the Secretariat of Science, Technology and Innovation of the State of São Paulo and supports research and technological development, as well as the training of researchers from São Paulo in Brazil and abroad.