DoE injects millions into R&D

WASHINGTON D.C., USA, October 2, 2008. The US Department of Energy (DoE) announced several rounds of funding for biofuels, water power, solar power storage and photovoltaic (PV) research and development (R&D) projects in September.

Biofuels

DoE has selected six biofuels projects in which it plans to invest up to US$4.4 million, subject to annual appropriations. The awards are given to US institutions of higher education supporting R&D for cost-effective, environmentally friendly biomass conversion technologies for turning non-food feedstocks into advanced biofuels.

Combined with the minimum university cost share of 20%, more than $5.7 million is slated for investment in these six projects.

By engaging these partners DoE is working to meet the Renewable Fuel Standard mandated by the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, which has a requirement of producing at least 36 billion gallons of US renewable fuels by 2022.

The following six projects were selected for negotiation of awards:
- University of Toledo: Development of cost-effective biocatalysts capable of increasing product yield in the biological conversion of lignocellulosic biomass.
- Steven’s Institute of Technology: Evaluate and demonstrate a novel microchannel reactor to reform pyrolysis oil to synthesis gas (syngas) together with BASF Catalysts LLC.
- Montana State University: Partner with Utah State University to evaluate the oil content of algae cultures available to the universities and identify populations that naturally have higher rates of oil production.
- University of Georgia: Develop novel approaches to supply nutrients to oil-producing algal systems resulting in cost-effective algae-biofuel production systems.
- University of Maine: Determine the optimal yield and productivity of high potential bacteria at moderate to high temperatures.
- Georgia Tech Research Corporation: Evaluate and model the reaction kinetics in two experimental gasifiers using forest residues under different processing conditions.

For more information, click here.

Water Power Projects

Later in September, DoE selected 14 research teams for awards totalling up to US$7.3 million with a cost share value of over US$18 million. The projects will advance commercial viability, cost-competitiveness, and market acceptance of new technologies that can harness renewable energy from oceans and rivers.

The following organisations and projects have been selected for award negotiations:

Technology Development (up to US$600,000 for up to two years):
- Electric Power Research Institute Inc (EPRI): Fish-friendly hydropower turbine development and deployment.
- Verdant Power Inc: Improve structure and fabrication of large, high-power kinetic hydropower systems rotors.
- Public Utility District #1 of Snohomish County: Puget Sound Tidal Energy In-Water Testing and Development Project.
- Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E): WaveConnect Wave Energy In-Water Testing and Development Project.
- Concepts ETI Inc: Development and demonstration of an ocean wave converter (OWC) power system.
- Lockheed Martin Corporation: Advanced composite ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC).

Market Acceleration (up to US$500,000):
- Electric Power Research Institute: Wave energy resource assessment and GIS database for the US.
- Georgia Tech Research Corporation: Assessment of energy production potential from tidal streams in the US.
- RE Vision Consulting LLC: Best siting practices for marine and hydrokinetic technologies with respect to environmental and navigational impacts.
- Pacific Energy Ventures LLC: Siting protocol for marine and hydrokinetic energy projects.
- PCCI Inc: Marine and hydrokinetic renewable energy technologies – identification of potential navigational impacts and mitigation measures.
- Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC): International standards development for marine and hydrokinetic renewable energy.

National marine energy centres (up to US$1.25 million for up to five years):
- Oregon State University (OSU) and University of Washington (UW): Northwest National Marine Renewable Energy Center.
- University of Hawaii: National Renewable Marine Energy Center.

For more information, click here.

Solar Power Storage and Heat Transfer Projects

On September 19, DoE announced selections for negotiations of award under the Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA), Advanced Heat Transfer Fluids and Novel Thermal Storage Concepts for Concentrating Solar Power Generation. These 15 new projects for up to approximately US$67.6 million, will facilitate the development of lower-cost energy storage for concentrating solar power (CSP) technology.

Selected projects are expected to promote DoE’s goal of reducing the cost of CSP electricity from 13-16 cents/kWh today with no storage to 8-11 cents/kWh with six hours of storage by 2015, and to less than 7 cents/kWh with 12-17 hours of storage by 2020.

Seven companies and six universities have been selected for funding under this award. In total, DoE will provide up to US$35 million over four years, subject to annual appropriations; with cost-share, the total public-private investment will be up to approximately US$67.6 million for the selected projects:

Advanced Heat Transfer Fluids Research and Development:
- Symyx: Deep eutectic salt formulations suitable as advanced heat transfer fluids.

Thermal Energy Storage Research and Development:
- Abengoa: Advanced thermal energy storage for central receivers and supercritical coolants.
- Acciona: Sensible heat, direct, dual-media thermal energy storage module.
- City University of New York: A storage method for CSP plants allowing operation at high temperatures.
- General Atomics: Thermo-chemical heat storage for CSP.
- Infinia Corporation: Innovative application of maintenance free phase change thermal energy storage for dish engine solar power generation.
- Lehigh University: Thermal energy storage technologies for CSP generation.
- Terrafore: Heat transfer and latent heat storage in inorganic molten salts for CSP plants.
- Texas Engineering Experiment Station: Molten salt carbon nanotube thermal energy storage for CSP systems.
- University of Alabama: Molten salts thermal energy storage for CSP generation.
- University of Arkansas: Development and performance evaluation of high temperature concrete for thermal energy storage and solar power generation.
- University of Connecticut: Thermal energy storage for CSP.
 
Thermal Energy Storage Near-Term Demonstration:
- Abengoa: Reducing the cost of thermal energy storage for parabolic trough solar power plants.
- Acciona: Indirect, dual-media, phase change material thermal energy storage modul.
- US Solar Holdings: CSP energy storage solutions – multiple technologies compared.

For more information, click here.

Solar Photovoltaic Technology Development:

At the end of the month, DoE announced up to US$17.6 million, subject to annual appropriations, for six early stage photovoltaic (PV) module incubator projects that focus on the initial manufacturing of advanced solar PV technologies.

Including the cost share from industry, which will be at least 20%, the total research investment is expected to reach up to US$35.4 million.

Through these projects, companies will seek to accelerate the time it takes to move PV technologies from laboratory demonstration into pilot production, and to reduce the cost, improve performance and expand the manufacturing capacity of PV modules.
 
Upon negotiation of their subcontracts through DoE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), the following six companies will begin their 18-month projects:
- 1366 Technologies: Developing a new cell architecture and related processes for low-cost multi-crystalline silicon cells.
- Innovalight: Developing very high-efficiency, low-cost solar cells and modules by ink-jet printing their proprietary “silicon ink” onto thin-crystalline silicon wafers.
- Skyline Solar: An integrated lightweight, single-axis tracked system that has been demonstrated to reflect and concentrate sunlight over 10x onto silicon cells.
- Solasta: Using a novel cell design based on an amorphous-silicon “nanocoax” structure, which increases current and lowers materials cost by shortening the path charge carriers must travel to the cell’s conducting wires.
- Solexel: Plans to commercialise a disruptive, 3D, high efficiency mono-crystalline silicon cell technology, while dramatically reducing manufacturing cost per watt.
- Spire Semiconductor: Plans on opening up the design space for three-junction tandem solar cells by growing differentiated bi-facial cells on a gallium arsenide substrate.

For more information, click here.

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