R&D

Aalborg CSP has been engineering thermal energy systems for close to four decades. Over that time, research and development has become an essential part of how we work, because the projects we take on frequently sit at the edge of what established engineering practice can answer.

The questions our engineers encounter on live projects feed directly into the research programmes we run. The findings from those programmes feed back into our engineering. The result is that new concepts are not only explored but validated and made ready for real-world application — and that when we recommend a technology or system configuration, we can say with confidence what it will cost, how it will perform, and where the risks lie. 

We de-risk technology before deployment, so that what gets built performs as designed.

Our R&D is structured around services we offer to external partners and five focused innovation areas, developed in active collaboration with universities, research institutes, and industry partners worldwide.

Explore our R&D services → 

See our innovation areas →
 

Active and recent projects include:
 

Avanguard	Design and modelling of thermo-mechanical long-duration energy storage within cross-sector energy networks (power, heat, gas).
NeXt CO2 Vision	Integration of surplus heat from Power-to-X and carbon capture facilities into district heating networks in Northern Denmark.
LTES Task45	Development and assessment of large-scale thermal energy storage systems, including pre-standardisation and performance evaluation frameworks.
Gate2GreenFuel	Mapping and optimisation of CO₂ footprint across the CCUS value chain with focus on energy system integration.
WaterWarmth	Development and demonstration of aquathermal energy systems, including water-source heat pumps for renewable heating and cooling integration.
TASK 41	International assessment of the technical and economic performance of major energy storage technologies across electricity, heating, cooling, and mobility sectors.
HELIOTROPE	Development of advanced molten salt formulations and corrosion-resistant materials for high-temperature CSP thermal energy storage up to 850°C.
TREASURE	Development of large-scale underground thermal energy storage (UTES) solutions for renewable-based heating in communities and industry.
ASTERIx-CAESar	Design and optimisation of CSP systems integrated with compressed air energy storage (CAES) for improved efficiency and grid flexibility.
SUNFLOWER	Development of advanced absorber materials and receiver designs for high-temperature open volumetric CSP systems (OVAR).
REINVEST	Designing the conversion of Danish coal plants into renewable energy hubs, Denmark
MOSAIC	Design and commissioning of innovative CSP central receiver and thermal loop, Spain
RESTORE	Renewable energy and waste heat integration for district heating networks, Europe
PHOTON	Next generation molten salt receiver design for solar tower plants, Europe
SunCharge/Hot Stone	Engineering and 3D modelling of steam generation system for stone-filled thermal storage, Denmark
POLYPHEM	Waste heat recovery exchanger for small-scale CSP plant with thermal storage, Europe
REACT-EU	High-temperature molten salt storage up to 700°C, Denmark
WeDistrict	Solar integration and simulation modelling for district heating and cooling, Europe
Desolination	Lead engineering for CSP and forward osmosis desalination demonstration plant, Saudi Arabia
DANIDA Egypt	Integrated CSP and desalination feasibility study for East Port Said Industrial Park, Egypt

See all R&D projects →