Global Research Partnership Centers
2008 Winner Profiles
National Taiwan University
Taipei, Taiwan
Established as the first university in Taiwan, National Taiwan University (NTU) over the last 75 years has grown to 11 colleges, 54 departments, 96 graduate schools, and many research centers. The number of students has reached more than 30,000, of whom about 17,000 are undergraduate students and 13,000 are graduate students. The university’s scholars produce nearly 10,000 papers annually. NTU’s comprehensive educational and research facilities and resources have been playing an essential role in Taiwan’s progress. The predecessor of National Taiwan University was Taihoku (Taipei) Imperial University of Japan, which was founded in 1928. After World War II and Taiwan’s retrocession to Chinese sovereignty, the Taiwan (ROC) government reorganized Taihoku University as National Taiwan University with six colleges.
View National Taiwan University's presentation at the GRP Symposium
Dr. Huang Bin-Juine
Dr. Huang Bin-Juine
Dr. Huang Bin-Juine, Principal Investigator of the Solar Energy Research Center (SERC), is director of the New Energy Center at National Taiwan University and a professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering. Professor Huang earned master’s degrees in mechanical and chemical engineering from Case Western Reserve University in the United States and received a doctorate from Odessa State Academy of Refrigeration in Odessa, Ukraine. Professor Huang has served as president of the Solar Energy Society of Taiwan and in many governmental positions.
Professor Huang has devoted research to a broad array of fields, including energy systems (solar, PV, geothermal, ocean thermal, wind, boiler, waste heat), cooling technology (absorption, ejector, desiccant, cryo-coolers, thermoelectric), solid-state lighting (LED), and control technology. His research tries to bridge the gap between academia and industry. He has developed more than 30 products with industry and published more than 200 academic papers and 150 technical reports and owns more than 60 worldwide patents.
His awards include: Outstanding Youth of the Year 1972, National Outstanding Engineering Professor Award (1991), Academician of Academy of Sciences of Technological Cybernetics of Ukraine (1995), Academician of International Academy of Refrigeration, Ukraine Branch (1996), Tong-Yuan Science and Technology Award (1996), Outstanding Researcher Award of National Science Council (2000), Science and Technology Award of China-Tech Foundation (2005), Solar and New Energy Contribution Award of Solar and New Energy Society of Taiwan (2005).
KAUST Center-in-Development Award: Solar Energy Research Center (SERC)
About 80% of the energy in the world is consumed within various buildings. Air conditioning and heating make up about 30-50% of the total building energy consumption, and indoor and outdoor lighting make up about 15-25%. Reducing energy consumption in cooling/heating systems and lighting can thus contribute a great deal to reducing global warming. Water supply is another equally important issue for the buildings. The utilization of solar energy in the cooling, heating, lighting, and water supply systems for buildings has become a very important subject in addressing the future oil shortages the world faces. Hence, advancing solar building technology for the future is the main theme of NTU’s Center-in-Development (CID) project, which is awarded by KAUST for the development of the Solar Energy Research Center. It intends to pursue a unique and leading solar building technology, which involves complex engineering systems and technologies that have the potential to incubate or spawn a new industry.
CID/NTU will be modeled on the New Energy Center of NTU, with emphasis on academic-supported development, system integration, innovation, and working together with industry to bridge the gap between university and industry. In order to achieve these goals, the education and training of talented students will focus equally on engineering experience and course studies. More than six companies are invited to join CID/NTU for various product developments and even business operation. The research topics of CID/NTU include ejector cooling/heating technology, advanced solar collectors for cooling and desalination, solar-assisted membrane desalination, dye-sensitized solar cells, solar-powered LED lighting, and indoor LED lighting.
CID/NTU will work with the teams from KAUST and Taiwan industries in the demonstration and field testing of solar-powered LED highway and indoor lighting, and solar cooling/heating and water supply systems in the buildings in Saudi Arabia. Because the applications in Saudi Arabia are in an entirely different environment (hot and dry), CID/NTU will face a big challenge in modifying all the related technologies.
Through this CID/NTU program, NTU acts as a research partner of KAUST. NTU will assist KAUST in setting up a solar energy research center through the transfer of the achievements established in CID/NTU projects. NTU will also provide educational service through faculty and student exchange programs in related research fields with KAUST.