A nanomaterials and energy storage expert at Trinity College Dublin’s Amber science centre has been awarded €2.5 million in funding to create a high-tech battery that can be camouflaged within any type of material.

Prof Valeria Nicolosi has been granted the funds to develop an innovative type of energy storage device under the European Research Council's Consolidator Grants scheme.

The five-year funding will support her “3D2DPrint” project, which focuses on creating an extremely long-lasting battery that can come in any shape or size or which can be camouflaged within materials such as clothing, smartphones, car dashboards and the body for example, in cardiac devices.

The funding will allow Prof Nicolosi and her team to establish a research group of six people – three senior scientists and three PhD candidates – to develop the batteries.

Fourth grant

This the fourth time she has received ERC funding for her research at Trinity, with a starting grant and two proof-of-concept grants devoted to the project over the past five years.

The project has previously received a total of €11 million in funding, including €4.3 million from the ERC.

“These grants allow us to take the next step with our research, whether it is the licensing of technology or starting up a new company,” Prof Nicolosi said.

The aim of the project is to develop a new energy storage technology using a combination of Prof Nicolosi’s two-dimensional nanomaterials and 3D printing processes.

Competitive

“This funding also reaffirms how competitive Ireland is as a place for research,” said Amber director Prof

Michael Morris

.

The advanced materials and bioengineering research centre is hosted by Trinity and funded by Science Foundation Ireland.