The United States Department of Energy (DOE) recently announced that it will distribute $92 million in support of 43 leading-edge research projects dedicated to facilitating efficiencies in power-grid storage and building-cooling systems across the nation. The funds will be divided among universities, small and large businesses, national labs and non-profits. Nearly $28 million will go to grid-storage programs to develop new technologies for the country’s power grid that will integrate extensive use of renewable energy sources, including wind and solar. An additional $34.6 million will be allocated to improve the efficiency and cost of power conversion and switching. Building-cooling programs will receive the balance of the funds, which will be utilized to develop new technologies that reduce the substantial amounts of greenhouse gases that are currently generated using conventional cooling methods. The DOE’s actions, lead by Secretary of Energy Steven Chu, underscore the White House’s commitment to clean and renewable energy sources and serve to facilitate innovation and commercialization within this rapidly-growing industry.Full story at EcoSeed.
1 comments: