Award Data

Replacement of petroleum based vehicles with fuel cell electric vehicles operating on hydrogen produced from domestically available resources would dramatically decrease emissions of greenhouse gases and other pollutants as well as reduce dependence on oil from politically volatile regions of the world. One major inhibitor to a hydrogen society is the lack of infrastructure, which requires hydroge ...

High energy physics research, modern medicine and advanced materials are continually demanding stronger magnetic fields. Efforts to generate fields in excess of 25 Tesla have been a principal driver of High Temperature Superconductor research. Although HTS materials were discovered decades ago and have always shown significant potential for high field use, until recently magnets using the technolo ...

In order to make large scale commercial production of microalgae based commodity food and fuel products, significant strides in algal productivity need to be achieved. With current regulatory guidelines, large scale outdoor cultivation of microalgae for these products restricts the use of transgenic algal strains, which in the laboratory thus far have been the primary strategy taken to effectively ...

Nuclear fusion has great potential for supplying global energy needs with a clean, abundant energy source. Advanced superconducting magnets will be used to contain the plasma at the center of the reactor. To operate these magnets, new sensors are needed to monitor the superconductors in real-time to detect the signs that the superconductor may quench (lose superconducting properties), so that corr ...

In 2011, the US Department of Energy (DOE) launched the SunShot Initiative with the goal of making solar electricity cost-competitive with conventional power generation by 2020. Since 2011, research funded by the DOE has resulted in substantial progress toward meeting the aggressive SunShot performance and cost targets, but significant technical hurdles remain. In particular, the Gen3 CSP Roadmap ...

The DOE has identified a need for thin and durable proton conducting membranes that offer enhanced energy efficiency to power zero emission vehicles. Specifically, a cost effective hydrocarbon-based alternative to expensive commercial perfluorosulfonic acid ionomers are sought. Current hydrocarbon membranes do not meet the performance or durability needed in the conditions for transportation fuel ...

Perovskite-sensitized solar cells have demonstrated high conversion efficiencies however the stability of device is limited compared to common PV technologies. Moisture, UV irradiation, and high temperature triggered degradation limit their commercial viability; therefore, improved cell durability is necessary for perovskite solar cell market entry. In addition, the scale-up and optimization of th ...

Tristructural isotropic (TRISO) fuel is a key component of advanced small modular nuclear fission reactors due to its inherent safety at high temperatures and irradiation levels and decreased proliferation risk relative to current reactor fuels. A more efficient cooling method for TRISO fuel compacts would increase heat transfer, allow for an increase in fuel density, and further improve accident ...

Idaho National Laboratory (INL), under funding from the Critical Materials Institute, has developed a US patented technology to reclaim valuable metals from waste electronic equipment. The Electrochemical Recycling Electronic Constituents of Value (E-RECOV) method uses an electrochemical cell to efficiently recover the bulk of metals from discarded electronics, leading to more complete recycling o ...

High Temperature Superconducting (HTS) materials have excellent mechanical and electrical properties. They are very attractive for various industrial applications such as power cables and high field, high current superconducting magnets. Magnets made with these materials could play a key role in the commercialization of fusion energy machines. However, HTS materials have very slow normal zone prop ...