Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:June 1, 2005

News and Events

News & Events

DOE Announces $64 Million in Hydrogen Research Projects

DOE announced last week the selection of 70 hydrogen research and development projects that will receive $64 million in funding from the DOE Office of Science over the next three years. The projects will tackle five main research areas: materials for hydrogen storage; membranes for fuel cells and for separating hydrogen from other gases and purifying it; nanoscale catalysts for hydrogen production, storage, and use; production of hydrogen from solar energy; and hydrogen production processes that mimic or make use of biological processes that generate hydrogen. More than 50 research organizations in 25 states are participating in the projects, including industrial research laboratories, academic institutions, and DOE national laboratories. See the DOE press release and the full list of awardees (PDF 23 KB) on the DOE Office of Science Web site.

The 70 projects are part of a portfolio of basic and applied research, technology development, and learning demonstration projects that will significantly advance the President’s Hydrogen Fuel Initiative, which aims to make hydrogen fuel cell vehicles and refueling stations available, practical, and affordable for U.S. consumers by 2020. For more information, see the DOE Hydrogen Program Web site.

President Bush marked the occasion by touring a Shell hydrogen fueling station in Washington, D.C. The President called hydrogen “the wave of the future” and noted that the United States leads the world in hydrogen research. See the White House press release.

DOE and USDA to Cooperate on Producing Hydrogen from Biomass

DOE and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced last week that they signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) aimed at developing more cost-effective ways to produce hydrogen from biomass resources. Under the MOU, DOE and USDA experts will meet regularly to share information on technologies and activities of mutual interest related to reducing the cost of chemically converting biomass to hydrogen. Biomass sources that can be used for hydrogen production include ethanol, crop and forest residues, and dedicated energy crops, such as switchgrass or willow. Transitioning to hydrogen technologies in the agriculture industry and in rural communities is important for a number of reasons: Renewable, farm-based biomass can fuel hydrogen production; agricultural vehicles could one day be fueled by hydrogen; and hydrogen fuel cell technology could potentially provide power for rural communities and remote locations on farms and ranches. See the DOE press release.

The DOE and USDA effort is part of the President’s $1.2-billion Hydrogen Fuel Initiative. DOE and USDA are also working together through the Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Research and Development Interagency Task Force, which is part of the President’s National Science and Technology Council. For more information, see the federal Hydrogen.gov Web site.

DOE and USCAR Launch $70 Million Project for Lightweight Vehicles

DOE announced last week a $70-million, five-year agreement with the U.S. Council for Automotive Research (USCAR)?a cooperative research organization formed by DaimlerChrysler Corporation, Ford Motor Company, and General Motors Corporation?to develop lightweight, high-strength materials that will reduce the weight of vehicles without compromising safety. As one example, improved manufacturing and the use of advanced high-strength steel can reduce vehicle weight by 15 to 25 percent. DOE estimates that every 10 percent reduction in vehicle weight cuts fuel consumption by about 7 percent.

DOE’s FreedomCAR and Vehicle Technologies Program and USCAR’s U.S. Automotive Materials Partnership will split the cost of research and development for a number of new materials, including advanced high-strength steel; lightweight metals such as aluminum, magnesium, titanium; and new materials such as carbon fiber and polymer matrix composites. None of the DOE funds will go to the automakers; instead, the funds will be directed to government labs, universities, and suppliers to help develop the nation’s technology base. See the DOE press release.

DOE Initiates Six Projects to Boost Vehicle Fuel Efficiency

DOE announced last week its agreement with industrial and academic organizations to pursue six projects aimed at significantly improving the fuel efficiency of cars an
d trucks. DOE is providing $7.35 million in funding to the six partnerships, which have a total value of $14 million. Four of the projects focus on developing advanced combustion engines, including an exhaust gas recirculation control system for diesel engines, a variable valve actuation system for low-temperature combustion in diesel engines, a fast-response actuator system for adjusting the compression ratio in engines, and an engine that operates on a high-compression-ratio, modified Atkinson combustion cycle?an approach used in the Toyota Prius and Ford Escape Hybrid?in which the intake valve is held open longer than normal to allow a reverse flow into the intake manifold.

In addition, International Truck and Engine Corporation will develop idle reduction equipment for trucks that will be available as a factory-ordered option, and Clarity Group, Inc. will conduct field performance evaluations for a wide variety of advanced technology vehicles, and will evaluate the infrastructure needed to support the vehicles. See the DOE press release.

DOE estimates that these technologies could reduce fuel use for all highway vehicles by 10 percent, saving more than one million barrels of oil per day by 2025. The six projects are part of DOE’s FreedomCAR and Vehicle Technologies Program, which aims to improve the efficiency of internal combustion engines for light-duty vehicles (passenger cars, pickup trucks, and sport utility vehicles) by at least 30 percent by 2010. For heavy-duty vehicles, such as trucks and buses, the program’s goal is at least a 40 percent improvement in fuel efficiency by 2013. See the FreedomCAR and Vehicle Technologies Program Web site.

Seven Teams Qualify for the North American Solar Challenge

University teams and their solar-powered cars had their first chance to qualify for the 2005 North American Solar Challenge in May, and seven of the teams met the challenge. The American Solar Challenge is a solar car race held every other year and normally taking place within the United States; this year’s race runs from Austin, Texas, to Calgary, Alberta, and has appropriately been renamed the North American Solar Challenge. Solar racers attempted to qualify for the race by competing in the sixth annual Formula Sun Grand Prix 2005, held at Heartland Park Raceway in Topeka, Kansas, from May 18th to 20th. The seven qualifying teams include the University of Minnesota, Iowa State University, and Auburn University (of Alabama)?the three race leaders at the Formula Sun Grand Prix?as well as the University of Missouri-Rolla, the “CalSol” team from University of California at Berkeley; the University of Michigan; and Northwestern University (of Illinois).

Thirty solar car teams from across North America were blessed with perfect weather at the Formula Sun Grand Prix. The event was dominated by a strong performance from the University of Minnesota solar car team, which logged more than 850 miles on the track during the three-day solar marathon. See the press release (PDF 31 KB) and for the full race results, see the Formula Sun Grand Prix Web site.

The 2005 North American Solar Challenge will start in Austin on July 17th and end in Calgary on July 27th. Currently, 32 teams intend to face the challenges of the 2,500-mile race, which will be not only the longest solar car race in the world, but also the first to cross an international border. The race is sponsored by DOE, DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory, and Natural Resources Canada, and includes five Canadian solar car teams. Teams that failed to qualify in Kansas will have a final chance to qualify at a pre-race event in Texas. See the 2005 North American Solar Challenge Web site.

Offshore Wind Power Plant Slated for Georgia’s Coast

Southern Company and the Georgia Institute of Technology announced last week that they will collaborate on the Southeast’s first offshore wind power project, to be located off the coast of Savannah, Georgia. Southern Company is an electric utility serving most of Georgia and Alabama, as well as southeastern Mississippi and the Florida panhandle. The wind project is expected to include three to five wind turbines with a total generating capacity of about 10 megawatts. The first step of the project, a design and conceptual engineering phase, will start in July using technical expertise from both Georgia Tech and Southern Company.

The project is a continuation of research conducted by Georgia Tech’s Strategic Energy Initiative, a research group devoted to testing both the scientific and economic feasibility of innovative technologies. Although the Southeast in general lacks good wind resources, the Georgia Tech group found an offshore wind resource by analyzing six years of wind data collected from Navy platforms located off the Savannah coast. According to Southern Company, the strong westerly winds that blow along Georgia’s coast make this offshore region the best site in the Southeast for a wind demonstration project. The company says the area is also ideal for offshore wind because of its extensive area of shallow water at distances beyond view from the shoreline. See the Southern Company press release.

Large wind power plants of all types will have an easier time connecting to power grids under new rules approved last week by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). The new interconnection requirements apply to wind power facilities larger than 20 megawatts, and most requirements will take effect in early 2006. According to FERC, the new rule removes unnecessary obstacles to further wind power development, while ensuring that electric reliability is protected. See the FERC press release.

Energy Connections

DOE to Offer Loan Guarantees for Alaska Natural Gas Pipeline

DOE announced last week that it is seeking public comment on a program that will guarantee loans of up to $18 billion for the construction of a pipeline to bring Alaskan natural gas to the lower 48 states. The loan guarantee simplifies financing for developers interested in building the pipeline, which would provide access to Alaska’s 35 trillion cubic feet of proven natural gas reserve
s. According to DOE, such a pipeline could add nearly 2 trillion cubic feet of natural gas to supplies in the contiguous United States, helping to further stabilize natural gas prices. DOE published a Notice of Inquiry in the Federal Register on May 27th and will accept comments through July 26th. See the DOE press release, and for additional information, see the DOE Fossil Energy Web site for the Notice of Inquiry (PDF 35 KB) and the online form to respond to the Notice of Inquiry.

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