Description:
Proposed projects could include novel technology and approaches for the direct capture, conversion, storage, and use of any renewable energy sources such as wind, solar, solar-thermal, ocean, geothermal, bioenergy, etc.; and waste heat recovery. Projects may include novel technology that leads to substantial enhancement in energy storage capacity, energy use efficiency, smart energy management, thermal management, and insulation; superior energy recovery from waste streams compared to currently available technologies in any application, including (but not limited to) residential, commercial, and industrial applications. Technologies may include innovations in (but not limited to) combinations of mechanical, electrical, electrochemical, chemical/material, and biochemical approaches to improving energy efficiency in any commercially relevant application with potential for significant scalable societal impact. Innovations for existing or novel energy storage and conversion technologies (such as batteries, capacitors, supercapacitors, novel fuel cells/engines, etc.) are also relevant; nature-inspired processes for sustainable energy generation or capture; materials innovations in energy applications; lubrication/tribology innovations leading to enhancing energy efficiency; innovations in insulation materials; and off-grid portable energy generation and storage technologies that completely rely on renewable sources to allow supporting industrial energy needs in remote and underdeveloped economic regions. Proposals may also cover new or novel system level optimization/monitoring/control approaches to enhancing sustainability and energy usage and efficiency of any industrial process and manufacturing technologies.
