Office of the Under Secretary for Science and Innovation, U.S. Department of Energy’s Post

Critical materials are the building blocks of clean energy, essential for technologies like the batteries in our electric vehicles to the offshore wind turbine generators providing renewable energy and more. But rising demand and limited supply of #criticalmaterials is obstructing the expansion of clean energy technology production.   That’s why U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)'s Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies Office addresses high-impact opportunities and challenges across the entire life cycle of critical materials for #cleanenergy technologies.   One way DOE moves the needle is through the Critical Materials Innovation Hub (CMI), which is led by Ames National Laboratory and focuses on enhancing and diversifying critical materials supply, developing substitutes, building a circular economy, and crosscutting research.   With more than 50 U.S. patents, 20 licensed technologies, and 635 peer-reviewed publications over 🔟 years, the CMI Hub is leading the push for secure and sustainable domestic critical materials supply chains.   Dive deeper into the CMI Hub’s impressive decade of successes by checking out this 10-year look back! ↩️ https://lnkd.in/g-piCzHt

REMINDER: Please join Under Secretary Richmond at the U.S. Department of Energy - Grid Modernization Initiative webinar next week. More information below: https://lnkd.in/gnAHMHaE

Under Secretary Richmond is excited to speak on this panel and share the U.S. Department of Energy - Grid Modernization Initiative's strategy for addressing the opportunities and challenges facing our nation's power grid. https://lnkd.in/gzyTUxY2

Remote communities are well-positioned to demonstrate optimized microgrid technologies, including those that generate renewable energy locally. Through the Community Microgrid Assistance Partnership, DOE will work closely with rural and Tribal communities to develop microgrid technologies that will lead to more reliable, affordable energy in isolated regions. With the right design and innovation, microgrid solutions will help lower energy costs, improve energy resilience, and spur economic opportunities. Apply today for technical assistance and funding at: https://lnkd.in/es2sz7Cb

Critical materials are the building blocks of clean energy, essential for technologies like the batteries in our electric vehicles to the offshore wind turbine generators providing renewable energy and more. But rising demand and limited supply of #criticalmaterials is obstructing the expansion of clean energy technology production. That’s where the Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies Office (AMMTO) comes into play. AMMTO addresses high-impact opportunities and challenges across the entire life cycle of critical materials for #cleanenergy technologies. One example of how AMMTO moves the needle is through the Critical Materials Innovation Hub (CMI), formerly known as the Critical Materials Institute. DOE is celebrating the 10th anniversary of the CMI Hub, which is led at Ames National Laboratory and focuses on enhancing and diversifying critical materials supply, developing substitutes, building a circular economy, and crosscutting research. With more than 50 U.S. patents, 20 licensed technologies, and 635 peer-reviewed publications over ten years, the CMI Hub is leading the push for secure and sustainable domestic critical materials supply chains. Dive deeper into the CMI Hub’s impressive decade of successes by checking out this 10-year look back! ↩️ https://lnkd.in/g-piCzHt

Exciting news from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory! On Sept. 16, DOE Deputy Principal Under Secretary Derek Passarelli, EERE Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Jeff Marootian, NREL Director Martin Keller, Deputy Laboratory Director Julie Baker, and JE Dunn Construction Vice President Mike Tilbury joined together with staff to celebrate a groundbreaking for the Energy Materials and Processing at Scale (EMAPS) facility. This signature facility set to open in 2027 will enable materials and process innovations in energy storage, advanced manufacturing, grid modernization, and net-zero chemicals and fuels for transportation and industrial decarbonization. The laboratory design will facilitate a multidisciplinary approach to materials R&D by providing opportunities for engineers, scientists, and industry partners to work together in shared laboratory facilities to greatly accelerate process scale-up and market adoption of the advanced energy materials needed for a clean energy transition.

Next Advancement in Sustainable Marine Energy Research A new era of marine energy research is officially underway that will accelerate the development and deployment of novel marine energy technologies from testing at the bench scale to early demonstration under real ocean operating conditions. Officials gathered on Sept. 5 at the Sequim Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) campus to dedicate the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) first hybrid-electric research vessel, RV Resilience. Speakers included PNNL Laboratory Director Steven Ashby, Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Rep. Derek Kilmer (D-WA), and Washington State Rep. Steve Tharinger. Speaking for DOE were Science & Innovation Chief of Staff Ariel Marshall, Ph.D. and Alejandro Moreno, Associate Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), U.S. Department of Energy. RV Resilience is the first hybrid electric-diesel research vessel in the DOE fleet and is poised to help advance research critical to addressing the development and deployment of marine energy and offshore wind.    It will be managed and operated by researchers at the Sequim campus of DOE’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, the only marine research laboratory in DOE’s complex. At 50 feet long, Resilience is the first of its size class to be partially electrified. It’s big enough to fit a 113-kilowatt battery, but small enough to be nimble for research in Sequim Bay and beyond. Along with the new vessel, PNNL-Sequim will soon be home to new seawater experimental tanks, a climate-controlled research space on an updated pier and a new and improved space for public outreach activities. RV Resilience will demonstrate both slow and fast charging - showing the world that hybrid vessels are not only suitable for research duty cycles, but offer real operational advantages in efficiency, noise, and emission reduction.  The vessel enables the following marine research: marine power generation (installations, impacts), environmental impacts and surveys, acoustic testing and surveys, marine mammal and bird observations, scientific diver support, autonomous underwater vehicle launch and recovery, hybrid propulsion system research, and electrified vessel charging system research. Watch video: https://lnkd.in/grCTHdgh

Register for today's (9/4) webinar here: https://lnkd.in/d4VCYgTy

The U.S. Department of Energy has been investing in fusion for decades through the Office of Science (SC) Fusion Energy Sciences (FES) program to establish the scientific foundations for a fusion energy source. Recently, DOE Under Secretary for Science and Innovation Dr. Geri Richmond joined U.S. Representative Rick Larsen, the Office of Science and Technology Policy’s Rian Bahran, Ph.D. and Jonathan Barr, plus several of the nation's leading experts in fusion, including Drs. Jean Paul Allain, Scott Hsu, Tammy Ma (LLNL), Matthew Gomez (SNL), and Thomas Weber (LANL) for a tour of Zap Energy's integrated systems development and fusion facilities in Everett, Washington. The visit highlighted Zap being a former ARPA-E awardee and one of the awardees of the new Milestone-Based Fusion Development Program – an innovative new public-private partnership that brings together privately funded fusion companies and our national laboratories and universities to resolve key scientific and technological challenges that must be overcome to realize preliminary engineering designs for fusion pilot plants. Fusion has the potential to generate primary energy with no carbon emissions that could be used to generate electricity, as well as to power hydrogen production, industrial processes, carbon capture, desalination, and more. DOE is committed to bridging fundamental fusion research with applied research and the needs of the growing U.S. fusion industry, supporting the U.S. Bold Decadal Vision for Commercial Fusion Energy and as described in the DOE Fusion Energy Strategy 2024 and the FES Building Bridges vision document. https://lnkd.in/gr3HUPtP