EU project will apply drones and robots to boost the deployment of renewable energies.

Researchers at Dublin City University are involved in a European project to promote the development of renewable energies in the Atlantic area.

Accelerating performance of renewable energies

The DURABLE project, which is the first of its kind, aims to solve current challenges in the operation and maintenance of wind and solar energy parks, by accelerating the performance of renewable energies through the validation and demonstration of aerospace technologies.

The application of this technology will automate inspection and repair tasks, reducing costs and favouring production. It plans to conclude with the realisation of a model and a test of the solution in a pilot project.

A total of 13 European partners across France, Ireland, Portugal, Spain and the UK are involved and a budget of €3.9 million has been co-financed by the Interreg Atlantic Area Program through the European Regional Development Fund.

Leading the efforts in the use of non-invasive radio frequency techniques from DCU is Professor Patrick McNally, Full Professor at DCU’s School of Electronic Engineering and a member of the university’s Advanced Processing Technology Research Centre:

“The Atlantic region is below the European Average average in the consumption of energy from renewable sources. Countries need to update their renewable energy production technologies to overcome these challenges.

"We are delighted to be part of this project and look forward to working with colleagues across Europe to address this challenge in the Interreg Atlantic Area.”