Guangzhou Institute of Energy Conversion, Chinese Academy of Sciences (GIEC), was founded in 1978, of which the predecessor was known as Guangdong Geothermal Energy Research Laboratory. In 1998, the institute was determined as the base institute of high-tech research and development by CAS.

　　GIEC has been fully devoted into the R&D of new energy and renewable energy, such as biomass energy, solar energy, geothermal energy, ocean energy, natural gas hydrate and etc. Besides, energy conservation, environmental protection technologies and energy strategy research are also paid great attention in recent years.

　　In response to the needs of national energy strategic development, the institute sets up two important breakthrough targets in the period of 2011 to 2015. They are large scale & efficient biomass energy utilization and R&D of distributed renewable energy systems respectively. Moreover, natural gas hydrate exploitation and storage, large-scale power generation by using ocean and geothermal energy, solar functional materials, low-carbon development strategies, are also determined as the important incubation R&D areas.

　　There are several research platforms based in GIEC, which are as follows:

　　lGuangzhou Center for Gas Hydrate Research, CAS

　　lKey Laboratory of Renewable Energy, CAS

　　lInternational R & D Center of Renewable Energy, MoST

　　lNational Energy Research Center for Bio-fuels

　　lGuangdong Key Laboratory of New and Renewable Energy

　　lGuangdong Engineering and Technical Center of Biomass Energy

　　lGuangdong CDM Research and Service Center

　　By the end of 2012, there are 405 staffs including 130 senior researchers. As one of the approved academic degree granting organizations, GIEC has been qualified to offer PhD Program on Power Engineering & Engineering Thermophysics, and Master Programs on Fluid Machinery and Engineering, Engineering Thermophysics, Environmental Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Materials Physics and Chemistry, and Marine Geology. In addition, the institute also has one post-doctoral research station. There are 161 postgraduate students in total.

　　The institute has gained more than 100 major research accomplishments. Particularly, GIEC has won twice the second prize of the State Sciences and Technology Progress Award in the field of biomass gasification and waste treatment & resource utilization, respectively. Over 440 national invention patents have been authorized. Many of the accomplishments have been industrialized, yielding significant economic and social benefits.

　　Aiming at international focuses and national demands, the institute has been engaged in numerous cooperative and exchange programs with universities, institutions and companies from more than 20 nations and regions. About 150 academic exchanges and more than 20 cooperation projects are carried out each year.

　　Contact Information:

　　WU Fengyun, Foreign Affairs Coordinator in GIEC

　　Tel: 8620-87059561

　　Email: wufy@ms.giec.ac.cn

　　A Bird’s View of GIEC in 2013 (Image by GIEC)