Iniciativas
The Solar Energy Research Center, SERC Chile, was established in 2012 with the challenge of becoming a world leader in scientific research on Solar Energy, with a special emphasis on developing the potential of the Atacama Desert.
Thirteen years of research in solar energy.
It all began in 2011 when the Fondap program of the National Commission for Scientific and Technological Research, CONICYT (now the National Research and Development Agency, ANID), called for projects in six priority areas for the country's development, with the objective of promoting the development of scientific research centers of excellence and high impact in Chile that “address a problem of great relevance for the country and the formation or consolidation of research teams.”
The call invited to “build a solid knowledge base around solar energy that enhances the exceptional conditions of our country's northern zone in this field, through research on scientific, technical, and economic challenges, and the opportunities offered by solar technology for the national energy matrix. Actions that allow the establishment of the northern zone as a scientific node in global solar energy research are prioritized.”
SERC in Figures
We generate scientific evidence and technical documents that drive public policies and real industrial solutions.
SERC Chile today brings together more than 80 researchers
Based on that call, the Universidad de Chile (UCH) joined the Universidad de Tarapacá (UTA), the Universidad de Antofagasta (UA), the Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María (UTFSM), the Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez (UAI), the Universidad de Concepción (UDEC), and Fundación Chile (FCh) to apply for the creation of the Chilean Solar Energy Research Center (SERC Chile), with the clear purpose of becoming a leader in scientific research on solar energy, with a special emphasis on developing the high potential of the Atacama Desert in Chile. The competition was decided by Conicyt with the assistance of an international jury, and SERC Chile began its existence in December 2012.
SERC Chile Researchers
Solar power
Second stage
Following approval by an international committee, in September 2017, Conicyt ratified the funding for SERC Chile for another five years (2018-2022).
The challenge, however, is no longer the same.
The second stage of this center finds the country with a different level of solar energy development: there is high penetration, to the point that the installed capacity is greater than 2 GW; the State of Chile also created a roadmap to incorporate non-conventional renewable energies into the energy matrix, so today it is estimated that solar energy penetration can grow significantly by the year 2030.
The barriers of 2011 are no longer the same, and many of them have been overcome. But there are others: for example, storage remains a scientific and technological challenge. And the incorporation of solar energy into production processes is necessary to make Chile a sustainable country.
Strategic focuses
Massive integration of large-scale solar energy into the interconnected power system
Mining based on solar energy in Chile
Development and widespread adoption of small-scale solar solutions
Optimization and characterization of solar materials and resources under local conditions
Following this approach, and maintaining its mission to become a leader in the field, the new SERC Chile will focus on seven research areas: Solar water treatment; Power systems; Materials science and solar resource assessment; Energy storage; Power electronics and energy conversion; Sustainable development; and Control of systems and industrial processes.
The nearly 80 researchers who, as of January 2018, constitute the large team leading SERC Chile’s research are committed to working in these seven areas. They belong to eight institutions: Universidad de Tarapacá (UTA), Universidad de Antofagasta (UA), Universidad Técnica Federico Santa María (UTFSM), Universidad de Chile (UCH), Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez (UAI), Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile (PUC), Universidad de Concepción (UDEC), and Fraunhofer Chile.
Currently, SERC Chile is undergoing a transition process towards continuity through a project from the National Research and Development Agency (ANID) called “Bridge” for two years (2024 and 2025), in which the Universidad de Tarapacá (UTA) has withdrawn, while the remaining institutions continue to work collaboratively and inclusively with world-leading solar energy research centers to continue the national challenge of making Chile a solar nation.
An Institutional Network with National Reach
We integrate the capabilities of the country's leading universities into an unprecedented collaborative network.
