INNOVATIVE SCIENCE COMPETITION – NOW OPEN!

Ignite your research journey!

The Call

CSIRO’s RESS FSP is calling students who will be in the final year of their undergraduate course in 2024 academic year!

We have teamed up with a number of universities around Australia to enable you to propose your own innovative idea related to energy storage, that would become your final year / honours / capstone research project.

The Challenge

With the relentless rise of renewable energy, the world is in need of new energy storage and management systems that can seamlessly integrate into our existing power grid or be used for standalone applications.

Today’s energy storage landscape reveals noticeable gaps. We urgently require small-scale storage solutions capable of lightning-fast charging and sustained, lengthy discharges, spanning hours or even days. At the same time, we also need large-scale energy storage, ready to discharge energy in a blink of an eye.

The Scope

The Research Areas relevant to this Competition include the following energy storage pathways:

• Novel electrochemical systems to deliver the next generation (ultra-high energy and power density) batteries of the future
• Concepts to enhance efficiency of thermal energy storage systems for low, medium and/or high-grade heat sources
• Pathways to utilise magnetism as an enabler of energy storage platforms
• Smarter and more sustainable mechanical energy storage processes
• Sustainable chemical forms of energy storage, above and beyond biofuels
• Biological, bio-catalysed or bio-inspired energy storage concepts
• Energy storage underpinned by quantum physics

Your proposal does not have to fit into these Research Areas but it needs to be in a discipline that CSIRO has the in-house capability to assess and provide project mentoring. If in doubt, please contact ewa.ginal-cumblidge@csiro.au to discuss it.

The Process

1. Come up with a brilliant energy storage idea.
2. Find a supervisor at your university.
3. Get confirmation that your idea, if successful, will be accepted as your final year/honours/research project.
4. Visit https://www.csiro.au/energy-storage-comp to download a proposal template and submit your application. Make sure that you do NOT include any confidential details in your submission.
5. Work on your winning project throughout 2024 academic year, in line with your university curriculum.
6. Present your final results to CSIRO panel at the end of the academic year.
7. Be in the running for one of three MSc or PhD scholarships funded by CSIRO.

CSIRO Contribution

1. Up to $10,000 project funding.
2. Access to cutting-edge research facilities and world-class research mentors.
3. Potential to be awarded a Masters or PhD scholarship to continue your project.

Important Dates