The Big Picture: Transforming Power Research

Delft University of Technology opened its new Electrical Sustainable Power Lab on 1 October 2021. The lab, which replaced an older lab dedicated to high-voltage transmission experiments, is intended to take a holistic approach to designing new, sustainable electrical power systems in light of climate change. “The keyword of the lab is ‘system integration,’ ” says Miro Zeman, a professor of photovoltaic materials and devices at TU Delft. Researchers at the lab are not only interested in developing individual electrical components that can work with solar and wind sources but in ensuring that those individual components work efficiently and sustainably when put together. This particular image shows the lab’s high-voltage research area—the blue pylons are transformers. At the bottom right is a black cable being used in experiments to find alternatives to sulfur hexafluoride, a potent greenhouse gas that is commonly used as an electrical insulator. Behind the transformers— and protected from them by a Faraday cage—are additional labs devoted to developing switches and other electrical components.