Clean Energy Roundup: 8/17/11

DOE Awards $175M for Advanced Vehicle Research

DOE announced on August 10 that it will offer over $175 million over the next three to five years to accelerate development and deployment of advanced vehicle technologies. The funds will leverage additional investments by grantees for a total of over $300 million.

40 projects across 15 states will help improve the fuel efficiency of next generation vehicles. Targets include innovations throughout the vehicle, such as better fuels and lubricants, lighter-weight materials, longer-lasting and less-expensive electric vehicle (EV) batteries and components, and engine technologies that more efficient.

DOE's comprehensive approach to vehicle efficiency research and development will help ensure technologies are available to help automakers achieve recently announced fuel efficiency standards.

For example, Ford Motor will get $1.5 million to identify fuel properties that enable novel low-emission combustion strategies. For another, US Automotive Materials Partnership of Southfield, Michigan, will get $3.5 million to validate crash models for carbon-fiber composites.

Overall, the selections focus on eight approaches to improving vehicle efficiency:

• advanced fuels and lubricants to enable optimal performance of advanced combustion engines;
• lightweight materials to accelerate commercial availability of lighter-weight vehicles while maintaining safety standards;
• lightweight multi-material prototype to design, build, and test a lightweight vehicle that is 50% lighter than a baseline light-duty vehicle (part of the Clean Energy Dialogue with Canada);
• advanced cells for EV batteries;
• advanced power electronics and electric motor technology for next generation power inverters and electric motors;
• thermoelectric and enabling engine technology to convert engine waste heat to electricity;
• fleet efficiency to demonstrate fuel-efficient tire and driver feedback technologies;
• advanced vehicle testing and evaluation.

See the DOE press release and the award winners .

A123 Gets GM Contract for Advanced EV Batteries   

A123 Systems has been awarded a contract from General Motors to produce batteries for future GM electric vehicles (EVs).

A123, which operates a battery lab in Warren, Michigan, is a Massachusetts-based developer and manufacturer of advanced lithium ion batteries and systems. The contract includes advanced cells and fully integrated electronic components. The specific vehicles and brands will be announced later.

In preparation for production, teams from GM and A123 will work on developing calibrations and software controls for the battery system. The carmaker says it's committed to offering a full line of EVs, each of which calls for a different battery specification.

Also this week, A123 was awarded almost $3 million by DOE to develop and demonstrate dry-process electrode fabrication to reduce the cost of EVs. The award is part of DOE's $175 million support for advanced vehicle technologies. See the GM press release and the separate DOE advanced vehicles press release.

President Obama Announces Initiative to Spur Biofuels Industry

President Obama announced on August 16 that DOE, the U.S. Dept of Agriculture (USDA), and the U.S. Navy will invest up to $510 million to produce advanced drop-in aviation and marine biofuels that are completely interchangeable and compatible with conventional fuels.

Over the next three years, in partnership with the private sector, the group will seek renewable sources to power military and commercial transportation.

The initiative responds to a presidential directive as part of the administration's Blueprint for a Secure Energy Future, the framework for reducing dependence on foreign oil. The biofuels initiative is being steered by the White House Biofuels Interagency Work Group and the White House Rural Council.

Increased use of advanced biofuels is a key component of the administration's energy security agenda, but the US lacks the manufacturing capability for next-generation drop-in biofuels. To accelerate production of bio-based jet and diesel fuel, the departments developed a plan to jointly construct or retrofit several drop-in biofuel plants and refineries. This effort will help address energy security and national security challenges, and will provide economic opportunities.

The joint plan calls for DOE, USDA, and the Navy to invest a total of up to $510 million, with private industry providing at least a one-to-one match. The partnership aims to reduce U.S. reliance on foreign oil and create biofuels jobs while positioning American companies and farmers as global leaders in advanced biofuels production. See the White House press release and the departmental agreement .