Articles tagged with "NREL"
NREL Technical Support Empowers Local Governments & Tribes To Boost Energy Efficiency & Cut Costs - CleanTechnica
The U.S. Department of Energy’s Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) Program, supported by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), provides noncompetitive funding and technical assistance to hundreds of local governments and tribal communities nationwide. This initiative aims to help recipients reduce energy costs, improve efficiency, and create jobs by leveraging NREL’s advanced modeling and analysis capabilities. Since fall 2024, NREL has been working closely with communities to tailor energy solutions that align with their unique priorities, offering expert guidance to maximize the impact of EECBG funding. Two highlighted examples illustrate the program’s community-driven approach. In Encinitas, California, NREL is assisting the city in exploring microtransit options—flexible, on-demand transportation using smaller vehicles—as a cost-effective and environmentally friendly alternative to traditional public transit. This strategy is expected to enhance mobility for commuters and tourists while reducing emissions. Meanwhile, in Chenega, Alaska, a remote island community accessible only by air or water
energyenergy-efficiencyNRELlocal-governmentsconservationenergy-conservation-block-grantcommunity-energy-projectsNREL & Google Host Artificial Intelligence Hackathon To Tackle Data Center Energy Challenges - CleanTechnica
NREL and Google collaborated to host a two-day hackathon in June 2025, bringing together around 50 experts from nine U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) national laboratories to explore the use of Google’s generative AI and large language model tools in addressing energy challenges faced by U.S. data centers. The event aimed to leverage advanced AI capabilities, including Google’s Gemini platform and tools like Agentspace, Idea Generation, and Deep Research, to improve energy reliability, affordability, and scalability in data center operations. Participants applied these AI tools to real-world problems such as geospatial analytics, energy systems optimization, digital-twin development, and grid outage prediction using weather forecasting models. The hackathon fostered collaboration between DOE researchers and multiple Google teams, including Google Public Sector, DeepMind, Google Research, and Climate Ops, highlighting the potential of AI to accelerate innovation in energy management and grid resilience. Google emphasized the importance of this partnership in addressing critical national issues like energy security and data center
energyartificial-intelligencedata-centersNRELGoogle-AIenergy-optimizationhackathonJud Virden, Ph.D., Appointed Laboratory Director at NREL - CleanTechnica
Jud Virden, Ph.D., has been appointed as the new director of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and president of the Alliance for Sustainable Energy, which manages NREL for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). He will assume the role on October 1, 2025, succeeding Dr. Martin Keller. Virden was selected after a national search and brings extensive leadership experience from his tenure as associate laboratory director at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), where he oversaw about 1,700 staff working on DOE energy priorities including grid modernization and environmental management. His background includes a Ph.D. in chemical engineering from the University of Washington and a strong record in public-private partnerships and advancing energy technologies. Dr. Virden’s appointment is seen as a strategic fit for NREL’s mission to accelerate energy innovation, with Alliance board co-chairs praising his scientific rigor, strategic vision, and collaborative approach. He expressed eagerness to build on NREL’s reputation and
energyrenewable-energyNRELenergy-innovationgrid-resilienceenergy-technologiesDepartment-of-EnergyVioleta Sanchez i Nogue’s Journey to Bioprocess Development at NREL - CleanTechnica
Violeta Sanchez i Nogue’s journey to becoming a senior researcher at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) began with a childhood fascination with chemistry sparked by a junior chemistry lab kit. Growing up near Barcelona, she nurtured her passion through hands-on experiences, including an engineering boot camp that exposed her to university-level environmental research. She pursued chemical engineering at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, followed by a Ph.D. in engineering at Lund University in Sweden, where she engaged with NREL’s pioneering work in bioprocess development. Joining NREL in 2015 as a postdoctoral researcher, Sanchez i Nogue contributed to ambitious multidisciplinary projects focused on biofuel production and biotechnology, collaborating with universities, national labs, and industry partners. Her work involves leveraging the natural strengths of microorganisms in bioreactors and spans metabolic engineering, separations, catalysis, and analysis. She values the collaborative environment at NREL, appreciating the daily learning opportunities and the synergy created by diverse expertise. Beyond laboratory
energybioenergybioprocess-developmentchemical-engineeringrenewable-energyNRELbiotechnologyA Career Built on Helping Others: Cory Chovanec's Journey in Weatherization - CleanTechnica
Cory Chovanec’s career in weatherization began unexpectedly after high school when he took a temporary job as a weatherization technician. Initially unfamiliar with the field, he quickly became passionate about the work after insulating an attic in a cold Wisconsin farmhouse and witnessing firsthand how improving home insulation significantly reduced energy loss and lowered heating costs for a low-income family. This experience sparked his dedication to the Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP), which aims to increase energy efficiency and affordability for low-income households while enhancing health and safety. Over nearly two decades, Chovanec advanced from entry-level technician roles to becoming the weatherization team lead at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). Leveraging his extensive field experience, he now contributes to technical assistance, research, and resource development supporting the U.S. Department of Energy’s WAP. His work helps improve the effectiveness of weatherization efforts nationwide, ensuring that field staff have the tools and knowledge needed to reduce energy costs and improve living conditions for vulnerable populations. Ch
energyenergy-efficiencyweatherizationhome-insulationenergy-affordabilityDepartment-of-EnergyNRELAirports Could Bolster Grid Security & Adaptability — NREL - CleanTechnica
The article discusses how regional and general aviation airports in the U.S. could play a crucial role in enhancing grid security and adaptability amid rapidly increasing electricity demand driven by aviation growth. With the rise of electric fleets such as rental vehicles, ground support equipment, and electrified aircraft, electricity demand at airports is projected to increase fivefold over the next 20 years. Many smaller airports currently rely on simple rural electric connections, making the expansion of electric infrastructure a costly and complex challenge. Researchers at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), in collaboration with NASA, are exploring how on-site distributed energy resources (DERs) like local power generation and storage can offset infrastructure costs, improve resilience, and potentially generate revenue by selling electricity back to the grid. NREL and NASA’s research initiative, ÆNodes, focuses on developing a scalable model for approximately 5,000 U.S. regional and general aviation airports to assess their energy needs and optimize their role as energy nodes. The project involves forecasting electric loads,
energyrenewable-energydistributed-energy-resourcesgrid-securityenergy-storageairport-energy-managementNRELNREL & CubicPV Push Perovskite Minimodule Performance to New Heights - CleanTechnica
A collaboration between the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and Boston-based CubicPV has achieved a new record in perovskite minimodule efficiency, reaching a certified 24.0%. This marks the first time a U.S. team has set a record in this category. The minimodule, composed of multiple interconnected cells, was fabricated through combined efforts at both organizations, leveraging their complementary expertise. NREL focuses on advancing manufacturing, durability, and efficiency of perovskite-enabled tandem solar cells, while CubicPV specializes in tandem devices that layer perovskites on silicon to capture more photons and reduce energy costs. Perovskite solar technology is notable for its low-temperature, ink-based or vacuum coating production processes using earth-abundant materials, offering a promising alternative to traditional silicon solar cells. While small-scale perovskite cells have demonstrated high efficiency, scaling up to larger-area devices with improved durability remains a key challenge for commercial viability
energysolar-energyperovskitephotovoltaicNRELCubicPVrenewable-energyNREL Publishes Method for Recycling All Components in Carbon Fiber Composites - CleanTechnica
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has developed a novel, scalable, and cost-effective method to recycle all components of carbon fiber composites (CFCs), materials widely used in high-value products like aircraft, bicycles, and automobiles. CFCs consist of carbon fibers embedded in epoxy-amine resins, which are strong, lightweight, and expensive, but difficult to recycle due to the chemically interlocked and complex nature of the resin. Traditional recycling methods have been limited by the inability to dissolve or break down these resins without degrading the valuable fibers or wasting the resin’s chemical components. NREL’s breakthrough involves using hot acetic acid—essentially vinegar—to cleave the key bonds in the epoxy resins, solubilizing the polymer networks while preserving the chemical building blocks for reuse. This method was optimized to handle diverse resin formulations from various industries and was shown to recover carbon fibers without compromising their strength. In a demonstration, recycled fibers extracted from a scrap mountain-bike frame were used to
materialscarbon-fiber-compositesrecycling-technologyepoxy-resinssustainable-materialsNRELcomposite-materials-recyclingPowering Data: NREL Partner Forum Puts Everything on the Table - CleanTechnica
The 2025 NREL Partner Forum convened over 300 stakeholders in Golden, Colorado, to address the rapidly growing energy demands of U.S. data centers, which have tripled over the past decade and doubled in the last two years. Hosted by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), the event emphasized collaboration among utilities, companies, governments, and communities to strategize how to power data centers sustainably and efficiently. Key themes included the need for data centers to become active participants in grid management, the importance of siting data centers near power sources rather than moving power to them, and the necessity of community involvement in planning. Keynote speaker Dean Nelson highlighted the complexity of balancing social, economic, ecological, and community priorities amid the surging instantaneous power demands of modern data centers, driven by advances in chip design that increase power consumption density. Panelists, including Mason Emnett of Constellation Energy, stressed that competition over energy resources creates regulatory friction, advocating instead for collaborative approaches that consider
energydata-centersgrid-integrationrenewable-energypower-managementNRELenergy-demandNREL Announces 2025 Executive Energy Leadership Cohort - CleanTechnica
energyrenewable-energyenergy-leadershipenergy-technologyNRELclean-energyenergy-innovationUpdated Risk Management Framework Supports Success of Marine Energy Devices - CleanTechnica
marine-energywave-energy-converterrisk-managementrenewable-energydesalinationNRELocean-energyNREL Partners With Chilkat Indian Village To Improve Housing in Klukwan, Alaska
energyrenewable-energyhousing-improvementcarbon-monoxide-safetyair-qualityNRELcommunity-developmentNREL Researcher Craig Turchi Brings Small Business Experience to Big Concentrating Solar Projects
energysolar-powerconcentrating-solar-powerthermal-energyrenewable-energyenergy-efficiencyNRELCan Quantum Computers Handle Energy’s Hardest Problems?
energyquantum-computingNRELenergy-storagepower-grid-reliabilitycomputational-problemsadvanced-computingModular Construction Enables Efficient & Affordable Housing
energymodular-constructionbuilding-efficiencyrenewable-energyaffordable-housingNRELair-leakage