Status: ALUMNI
State: OR
Project Term: 10/15/2010 - 10/14/2011
Program: BEETIT
Award: $458,251

Architectural Applications (A2)

Architectural Applications (A2) is developing a building moisture and heat exchange technology that leverages a new material and design to create healthy buildings with lower energy use. Commercial building owners/operators are demanding buildings with greater energy efficiency and healthier indoor environments. A2 is developing a membrane-based heat and moisture exchanger that controls humidity by transferring the water vapor in the incoming fresh air to the drier air leaving the building. Unlike conventional systems, A2 locates the heat and moisture exchanger within the depths of the…

Status: ALUMNI
State: IL
Project Term: 01/01/2012 - 09/30/2015
Program: REACT
Award: $4,683,016

Argonne National Laboratory (ANL)

Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) is developing a cost-effective exchange-spring magnet to use in the electric motors of wind generators and EVs that uses no rare earth materials. This ANL exchange-spring magnet combines a hard magnetic outer shell with a soft magnetic inner core—coupling these together increases the performance (energy density and operating temperature). The hard and soft magnet composite particles would be created at the molecular level, followed by consolidation in a magnetic field. This process allows the particles to be oriented to maximize the magnetic properties of low…

Status: ALUMNI
State: IL
Project Term: 10/01/2014 - 03/31/2017
Program: REBELS
Award: $2,000,000

Argonne National Laboratory (ANL)

ANL is developing a new hybrid fuel cell technology that could generate both electricity and liquid fuels from natural gas. Existing fuel cell technologies typically convert chemical energy from hydrogen into electricity during a chemical reaction with oxygen or some other agent. In addition to generating electricity from hydrogen, ANL’s fuel cell would produce ethylene—a liquid fuel precursor—from natural gas. In this design, a methane-coupling catalyst is added to the anode side of a fuel cell that, when fed with natural gas, creates a chemical reaction that produces ethylene and utilizes…

Status: CANCELLED
State: IL
Project Term: 01/12/2017 - 01/11/2020
Program: SHIELD
Award: $2,020,599

Argonne National Laboratory (ANL)

Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) with its partners will develop a transparent nanofoam polymer that can be incorporated into a window film/coating for single-pane windows. The transparent polymer-nanoparticle composite will be applied to glass, and will improve the thermal insulation and the soundproofing of a window. Key to this technology is the generation of small and hollow nanometer-sized particles with thin shells. These will be embedded in a polymer with a carefully controlled structure and uniform dispersal of nanoshells in the polymer matrix. Competing approaches such as those used…

Status: ACTIVE
State: IL
Project Term: 09/28/2020 - 03/27/2024
Program: GEMINA
Award: $2,199,009

Argonne National Laboratory (ANL)

Advanced reactor (AR) power plants can minimize O&M costs by integrating advanced instrumentation and control systems into designs. Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) aims to reduce the O&M cost of the Kairos Power fluoride salt-cooled high temperature reactor by (1) developing advanced distributed sensing and data generation techniques to characterize critical components and systems; (2) increasing sensor diversity and functionality to measure several process variables simultaneously; and (3) automating maintenance tasks through machine learning-enabled fault detection and diagnostics…

Status: ALUMNI
State: IL
Project Term: 09/01/2020 - 04/14/2022
Program: Exploratory Topics
Award: $562,571

Argonne National Laboratory (ANL)

Argonne National Laboratory is developing a low-temperature catalytic upcycling process for converting post-consumer plastic wastes made of polyethylene or polypropylene polymers to premium synthetic lubricants. Argonne’s hydrogenolysis (decomposition of a compound resulting from its interaction with hydrogen) catalyst technology converts these polymers to the desired lubricant product with high selective and near-quantitative yields, and with negligible formation of light gases. Data generated will be used to develop a process flow design and conduct a techno-economic analysis for a 250-ton…

Status: ACTIVE
State: IL
Project Term: 04/01/2022 - 03/31/2024
Program: OPEN 2021
Award: $1,199,998

Argonne National Laboratory (ANL)

Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) will demonstrate a novel process for reducing iron ore to iron that reduces cost, eliminates CO2 emissions, and increases efficiency. ANL’s process uses hydrogen (H2) plasma instead of carbon-rich coke or natural gas to reduce iron ore in a rotary kiln furnace, which will improve the thermodynamics and kinetics of iron ore reduction, potentially eliminate the need for iron ore pelletizing, and enable the process to run at a lower temperature. The team estimates that the combination H2 plasma-rotary kiln process can improve energy efficiency and potentially…

Status: ACTIVE
State: IL
Project Term: 04/29/2022 - 04/28/2025
Program: OPEN 2021
Award: $3,000,000

Argonne National Laboratory (ANL)

Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) and other national laboratories and universities will develop a transformational technology for LLFP transmutation using energetic photons and protons. For instance, long-lived isotope I-129 (half-life of 15.7 million years) can be transmuted to short-lived isotope I-128 (half-life of 25 minutes). A high transmutation performance can be achieved by multiple transmutations in the arrangement of the LLFP target surrounded by an LLFP blanket. ANL’s proposed LLFP transmutation technology could substantially reduce the disposal impacts of the recovered radioactive…

Status: ACTIVE
State: IL
Project Term: 06/22/2022 - 06/21/2025
Program: OPEN 2021
Award: $3,600,000

Argonne National Laboratory (ANL)

Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) and Oklo will develop crucial technologies in researching pyroprocessing for advanced fast reactor fuels. Pyroprocessing involves the use of high-temperature molten salts to enable the recycling and reuse of valuable nuclear materials from used fuel. Recycling improves the utilization of nuclear resources, generates less nuclear waste, and reduces the cost of fuel. The ANL team will develop a system to improve the safeguarding, security, and operations of future fuel reprocessing plants to support this outcome. The system comprises new advanced multimodal…

Status: ACTIVE
State: IL
Project Term: 01/16/2023 - 01/15/2026
Program: CURIE
Award: $1,520,000

Argonne National Laboratory (ANL)

Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) will develop, produce, and test rotating packed bed contactors designed from the ground up for UNF reprocessing. The proposed PAcked Centrifugal Equipment for Radiochemical separations, PACERs, applies a centrifugal field to increase the efficiency of separations in packed beds and decrease the required packing volumes by more than 50% compared with state-of-the-art columns. PACERs could replace current CO2 and I2 off-gas scrubbing systems, pulsed columns, and ion exchange columns used for traditional gas-liquid, liquid-liquid, and solid-liquid separations,…

Status: ACTIVE
State: IL
Project Term: 02/16/2023 - 05/15/2026
Program: CURIE
Award: $4,900,000

Argonne National Laboratory (ANL)

Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) will research an electrochemical oxide reduction (OR) process that meets CURIE’s cost and waste metrics for a pyroprocessing facility. Electrochemical OR is a single-step process that converts used oxide fuels to metal that can be electrorefined to produce uranium/transuranic (U/TRU) alloys suitable for fabrication into advanced reactor fuels. However, current process inefficiencies result in non-uniform and incomplete conversion to metal, long process times, and large waste volumes. ANL will address these inefficiencies by research a highly efficient OR…

Status: ALUMNI
State: AZ
Project Term: 05/30/2014 - 08/29/2017
Program: FOCUS
Award: $3,899,998

Arizona State University (ASU)

Arizona State University (ASU) is developing a solar cell that can maintain efficient operation at temperatures above 400°C. Like many other electronics, solar panels work best in cooler environments. As the temperature of traditional solar cells increases beyond 100°C, the energy output decreases markedly and components are more prone to failure. ASU’s technology adapts semiconducting materials used in today’s light-emitting diode (LED) industry to enable efficient, long-term high-temperature operation. These materials could allow the cells to maintain operation at much higher temperatures…

Status: ALUMNI
State: AZ
Project Term: 06/01/2014 - 08/31/2017
Program: FOCUS
Award: $2,861,296

Arizona State University (ASU)

Arizona State University (ASU) is developing a hybrid solar energy system that modifies a CSP trough design, replacing the curved mirror with solar cells that collect both direct and diffuse rays of a portion of sunlight while reflecting the rest of the direct sunlight to a thermal absorber to generate heat. Electricity from the solar cells can be used immediately while the heat can be stored for later use. Today’s CSP systems offer low overall efficiency because they collect only direct sunlight, or the light that comes in a straight beam from the sun. ASU’s technology could increase the…

Status: ALUMNI
State: AZ
Project Term: 07/11/2016 - 03/31/2021
Program: NODES
Award: $4,354,566

Arizona State University (ASU)

Arizona State University (ASU) will develop a stochastic optimal power flow (SOPF) framework, which would integrate uncertainty from renewable resources, load, distributed storage, and demand response technologies into bulk power system management in a holistic manner. The team will develop SOPF algorithms for the security-constrained economic dispatch (SCED) problem used to manage variability in the electric grid. The algorithms will be implemented in a software tool to provide system operators with real-time guidance to help coordinate between bulk generation and large numbers of DERs and…

Status: ALUMNI
State: AZ
Project Term: 01/01/2010 - 06/30/2013
Program: OPEN 2009
Award: $6,799,288

Arizona State University (ASU)

Arizona State University (ASU) is engineering a type of photosynthetic bacteria that efficiently produce fatty acids—a fuel precursor for biofuels. This type of bacteria, called Synechocystis, is already good at converting solar energy and carbon dioxide (CO2) into a type of fatty acid called lauric acid. ASU has modified the organism so it continuously converts sunlight and CO2 into fatty acids—overriding its natural tendency to use solar energy solely for cell growth and maximizing the solar-to-fuel conversion process. ASU's approach is different because most biofuels research focuses…

Status: ALUMNI
State: AZ
Project Term: 12/21/2009 - 06/30/2012
Program: OPEN 2009
Award: $5,132,329

Arizona State University (ASU)

Arizona State University (ASU) is developing a new class of metal-air batteries. Metal-air batteries are promising for future generations of EVs because they use oxygen from the air as one of the battery's main reactants, reducing the weight of the battery and freeing up more space to devote to energy storage than Li-Ion batteries. ASU technology uses Zinc as the active metal in the battery because it is more abundant and affordable than imported lithium. Metal-air batteries have long been considered impractical for EV applications because the water-based electrolytes inside would…

Status: ALUMNI
State: AZ
Project Term: 03/12/2013 - 02/28/2017
Program: OPEN 2012
Award: $3,471,515

Arizona State University (ASU)

Arizona State University (ASU) is developing an innovative electrochemical technology for capturing the CO2 released by coal-fired power plants. ASU’s technology aims to cut both the energy requirements and cost of CO2 capture technology in half compared to today’s best methods. Presently, the only proven commercially viable technology for capturing CO2 from coal plants uses a significant amount of energy, consuming roughly 40% of total power plant output. If installed today, this technology would increase the cost of electricity production by 85%. ASU is advancing a fundamentally new…

Status: CANCELLED
State: AZ
Project Term: 08/13/2019 - 12/31/2021
Program: OPEN 2018
Award: $1,500,000

Arizona State University (ASU)

ASU will collect CO2 from air using a low-cost polymer membrane-based DAC process. The team will use water evaporation to drive to capture CO2, decrease emissions, and improve the energy efficiency of the overall carbon capture process. The project will use novel materials to create high-surface area membranes to continuously and actively pump CO2 against a concentration gradient. The process will capture distributed CO2 emissions that can be sequestered or converted into a wide range of energy-dense fuels, fuel feedstocks, or fine chemicals.

Status: ALUMNI
State: AZ
Project Term: 08/07/2019 - 08/14/2023
Program: OPEN 2018
Award: $3,100,000

Arizona State University (ASU)

Arizona State University will develop learning-ready models and control tools to maintain sensor-rich distribution systems in the presence of high levels of DER and storage. This approach will include topology processing algorithms, load and DER models for system planning and operation, distribution system state estimation, optimal DER operational scheduling algorithms, and system-level DER control strategies that leverage inverter controls’ flexibility. The project will alter distribution system operation from today’s reactive, load-serving, and outage mitigation-focused approach to an…

Status: ALUMNI
State: AZ
Project Term: 09/18/2017 - 06/17/2021
Program: PNDIODES
Award: $2,849,988

Arizona State University (ASU)

Arizona State University (ASU) proposes a comprehensive project to advance fundamental knowledge in the selective area doping of GaN using selective regrowth of gallium nitride (GaN) materials. This will lead to the development of high-performance GaN vertical power transistors. The ASU team aims to develop a better mechanistic understanding of these fundamental materials issues, by focusing on three broad areas. First, they will use powerful characterization methods to study fundamental materials properties such as defects, surface states, and investigate possible materials degradation…

Status: ALUMNI
State: AZ
Project Term: 11/25/2013 - 12/31/2015
Program: RANGE
Award: $1,998,913

Arizona State University (ASU)

Arizona State University (ASU) is developing an innovative, formable battery that can be incorporated as a structural element in the vehicle. This battery would replace structural elements such as roof and side panels that previously remained passive, and incapable of storing energy. Unlike today’s batteries that require significant packaging and protection, ASU’s non-volatile chemistry could better withstand collision on its own because the battery would be more widely distributed throughout the vehicle so less electricity would be stored in any single area. Furthermore, ASU’s battery would…

Status: ALUMNI
State: AZ
Project Term: 12/13/2016 - 06/11/2020
Program: SHIELD
Award: $2,197,800

Arizona State University (ASU)

Arizona State University (ASU) and its partners will develop new windowpanes for single-pane windows to minimize heat losses and improve soundproofing without sacrificing durability or transparency. The team from ASU will produce a thermal barrier composed of silicon dioxide nanoparticles deposited on glass by supersonic aerosol spraying. The layer will minimize heat losses and be transparent at a substantially lower cost than can be done presently with silica aerogels, for example. A second layer deposited using the same method will reflect thermal radiation. The windowpanes will also…

Status: ALUMNI
State: AZ
Project Term: 02/20/2014 - 07/15/2019
Program: SWITCHES
Award: $2,303,865

Arizona State University (ASU)

Arizona State University (ASU) will develop a process to produce low-cost, vertical, diamond semiconductor devices for use in high-power electronics. Diamond is an excellent conductor of electricity when boron or phosphorus is added—or doped—into its crystal structures. In fact, diamond can withstand much higher temperatures with higher performance levels than silicon, which is used in the majority of today’s semiconductor devices. However, growing uniformly doped diamond crystals is difficult and expensive. ASU’s innovative diamond-growing process could create greater doping uniformity,…

Status: Selected
State: AZ
Project Term: TBD
Program: GOPHURRS
Award: TBD

Arizona State University (ASU)

Arizona State University is developing a water-jet underground construction tool that would deploy medium-voltage electrical cables and conduits simultaneously underground with a lower risk to existing utilities by eliminating the need for a hard drill bit. The proposed tool creates a borehole by passing high-pressure water through a steering drill head and then vacuuming the slurry back out of the borehole to clear a path for excavation. At the same time, the system installs conduit to reduce cost and schedule impacts from reaming and duct pulling tasks.

Status: ALUMNI
State: AR
Project Term: 09/14/2010 - 03/31/2014
Program: ADEPT
Award: $3,914,051

Arkansas Power Electronics International (APEI)

Currently, charging the battery of an electric vehicle (EV) is a time-consuming process because chargers can only draw about as much power from the grid as a hair dryer. APEI is developing an EV charger that can draw as much power as a clothes dryer, which would drastically speed up charging time. APEI's charger uses silicon carbide (SiC)-based power transistors. These transistors control the electrical energy flowing through the charger's circuits more effectively and efficiently than traditional transistors made of straight silicon. The SiC-based transistors also require less…

Status: ACTIVE
State: CO
Project Term: 08/10/2022 - 08/09/2024
Program: Exploratory Topics
Award: $500,000

Artimus Robotics

Artimus Robotics aims to enable environmentally conscious deep-sea mining of rare earth elements and precious metals using next-generation bio-inspired unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs). The team will focus on developing inexpensive electronics for its hydraulically amplified self-healing electrostatic (HASEL) actuators, which enable ‘soft’ autonomous vehicles that can facilitate environmentally conscious mineral collection methods to access the deep ocean. More than 50% of the total UUV cost is attributed to the motors and associated drive systems. Replacing such a system with a HASEL-…

Status: ACTIVE
State: UT
Project Term: 06/12/2020 - 03/11/2024
Program: Exploratory Topics
Award: $2,950,000

Arva Intelligence

Arva will establish validation sites where dedicated energy crops (corn-soy or sorghum) and crop residues (straw/stover) are used to produce domestic, sustainable, carbon-negative biofuels (i.e., ethanol, biodiesel, or biogas). Arva will measure carbon and nitrogen fluxes using state-of-the-art high-frequency commercial-scale monitoring towers to assess carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, and methane emissions at sub-second resolution yearlong. All deployed farm equipment is highly instrumented, and will measure fuel, electricity, and fertilizer use, in addition to crop yield and management…

Status: ALUMNI
State: WA
Project Term: 01/01/2014 - 09/30/2015
Program: REMOTE
Award: $999,751

Arzeda

The team from Arzeda will use computational enzyme design tools and their knowledge of biological engineering and chemistry to create new synthetic enzymes to activate methane. Organisms that are capable of using methane as an energy and carbon source are typically difficult to engineer. To address this challenge, Arzeda will develop technologies essential to creating modular enzymes that can be used in other organisms. The team will combine computation enzyme design with experimental methods to improve enzyme activity and help direct methane more effectively into metabolism for fuel…

Status: ALUMNI
State: MA
Project Term: 11/18/2016 - 02/17/2020
Program: SHIELD
Award: $2,751,377

Aspen Aerogels

Aspen Aerogels and its partners will develop a cost-effective, silica aerogel-insulated windowpane to retrofit single-pane windows. Silica aerogels are well-known, highly porous materials that are strongly insulating, resisting the flow of heat. The team will advance their silica aerogels to have a combination of high visible light transmittance, low haze, and low thermal conductivity. The team's design consists of an aerogel sheet sandwiched between two glass panes to make a double glazed pane. This silica aerogel-insulated pane will be manufactured using an innovative supercritical…

Status: ACTIVE
State: MA
Project Term: 10/01/2022 - 09/30/2024
Program: HESTIA
Award: $1,152,476

Aspen Products Group

Aspen Products Group (Aspen) will develop a microfibrillated cellulose-based thermal insulation with high thermal resistance, low flammability, and low moisture absorption. The use of microfibrillated cellulose enables a substantial amount of atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) to be incorporated into the insulation microstructure. Aspen will fabricate insulation samples, demonstrate insulation performance per relevant American Society for Testing and Materials standards, and perform product life cycle and technoeconomic analyses to demonstrate an insulation product that meets construction…

Status: ALUMNI
State: WI
Project Term: 09/01/2010 - 04/30/2014
Program: BEETIT
Award: $2,889,676

Astronautics Corporation of America

Astronautics Corporation of America is developing an air conditioning system that relies on magnetic fields. Typical air conditioners use vapor compression to cool air. Vapor compression uses a liquid refrigerant to circulate within the air conditioner, absorb the heat, and pump the heat out into the external environment. Astronautics' design uses a novel property of certain materials, called "magnetocaloric materials", to achieve the same result as liquid refrigerants. These magnetocaloric materials essentially heat up when placed within a magnetic field and cool down when…

Status: Selected
State: TBD
Project Term: TBD
Program: SEA-CO2
Award: TBD

atdepth MRV

atdepth MRV is developing an ocean modeling system that utilizes graphical processing units (GPUs) which would dramatically improve modeling speed compared with traditional approaches that use central processing units (CPUs). The team seeks to build a model for marine carbon dioxide removal sites that would not only include global-scale ocean processes but also local processes no larger than a few meters, such as small-scale turbulence. If successful, the team could speed up regional ocean modeling systems by more than 100 times compared with legacy CPU-based approaches, create outputs in…

Status: ACTIVE
State: DE
Project Term: 07/29/2022 - 07/28/2024
Program: Exploratory Topics
Award: $500,000

AtmosZero

AtmosZero, in partnership with Colorado State University, seeks to develop a modular high-temperature heat pump system with the potential to significantly reduce carbon emissions from on-site heat generation in the U.S. industrial sector. Approximately 75% of all on-site energy consumption in the U.S. manufacturing sector is used to generate heat, which means industrial process heat must be decarbonized to substantially reduce U.S. emissions. The team will use a combination of strategic approaches, including: heat recuperation strategies, optimized heat exchanger selection and sizing, and…

Status: ALUMNI
State: CA
Project Term: 01/11/2012 - 03/31/2014
Program: GENI
Award: $3,464,850

AutoGrid

AutoGrid, in conjunction with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and Columbia University, will design and demonstrate automated control software that helps manage real-time demand for energy across the electric grid. Known as the Demand Response Optimization and Management System - Real-Time (DROMS-RT), the software will enable personalized price signals to be sent to millions of customers in extremely short timeframes—incentivizing them to alter their electricity use in response to grid conditions. This will help grid operators better manage unpredictable demand and supply fluctuations in…

Status: ALUMNI
State: IL
Project Term: 11/09/2020 - 11/08/2023
Program: REPAIR
Award: $5,000,000

Autonomic Materials

Autonomic Materials, Inc. (AMI) proposes a new category of rehabilitation materials for legacy natural gas pipes. The novel Extruded-in-Place Pipe-in-Pipe (ExiPiPTM) rehabilitation solution for legacy gas piping avoids costly excavation-intense replacement while providing a new structurally independent pipe offering a 50-year life span. This solution leverages frontally cured poly(dicyclopentadiene) as the new pipe material and will feature self-healing and self-reporting functionalities. This material will be deployed in a live pipe and supported by a modular robotic platform capable of…

Status: CANCELLED
State: CA
Project Term: 01/01/2014 - 12/12/2016
Program: SWITCHES
Award: $1,337,425

Avogy

Avogy will develop a vertical transistor with a gallium nitride (GaN) semiconductor that is 30 times smaller than conventional silicon transistors but can conduct significantly more electricity. Avogy’s GaN transistor will function effectively in high-power electronics because it can withstand higher electric fields and operate at higher temperatures than comparable silicon transistors. Avogy’s vertical device architecture can also enable higher current devices. With such a small and efficient device, Avogy projects it will achieve functional cost parity with conventional silicon transistors…

Status: ALUMNI
State: CA
Project Term: 08/04/2017 - 02/03/2020
Program: ENLITENED
Award: $1,999,999

Ayar Labs

Ayar Labs will develop new intra-rack configurations using silicon-based photonic (optical) transceivers, optical devices that transmit and receive information. The team will additionally develop methods to package their photonic transceiver with an electronic processor chip. Marrying these two components will reduce the size and cost of the chip system. Integrated packaging also moves the photonics closer to the chip, which increases energy efficiency by reducing the amount of "hops" between components. If successful, the project will prove that chip packages incorporating both…

Status: ALUMNI
State: SC
Project Term: 01/31/2012 - 02/15/2015
Program: REACT
Award: $3,042,556

Baldor Electric Company

Baldor Electric Company is developing a new type of traction motor with the potential to efficiently power future generations of EVs. Unlike today's large, bulky EV motors which use expensive, imported rare-earth-based magnets, Baldor's motor could be light, compact, contain no rare earth materials, and have the potential to deliver more torque at a substantially lower cost. Key innovations in this project include the use of a unique motor design, incorporation of an improved cooling system, and the development of advanced materials manufacturing techniques. These innovations could…

Status: ACTIVE
State: FL
Project Term: 01/09/2023 - 04/08/2025
Program: HESTIA
Award: $2,230,060

BamCore

BamCore aims to transition its bamboo/wood hybrid dual panel hollow wall system to primarily bamboo content to develop a prefabricated, building code-compliant vertical framing wall system for constructing carbon-negative low- and mid-rise buildings. BamCore will (1) replace high embodied carbon insulation with carbon negative insulation (2) maximize fiber utilization for more efficient sequestration-to-storage ratio and less waste, (3) replace the wood panel core with a bamboo or fast growing agricultural alternative, (4) achieve high fire rating without high embodied carbon gypsum board,…

Status: CANCELLED
State: NJ
Project Term: 02/18/2014 - 06/30/2015
Program: RANGE
Award: $3,873,532

BASF

BASF is developing metal hydride alloys using new, low-cost metals for use in high-energy nickel-metal hydride (NiMH) batteries. Although NiMH batteries have been used in over 5 million vehicles with a proven record of long service life and abuse tolerance, their storage capacity is limited, which restricts driving range. BASF looks to develop a new NiMH design that will improve storage capacity and reduce fabrication costs through the use of inexpensive components. BASF will select new metals with a high energy storage capacity, then modify and optimize battery cell design. Once the ideal…

Status: ALUMNI
State: OH
Project Term: 11/01/2012 - 09/30/2014
Program: AMPED
Award: $930,179

Battelle Memorial Institute

Battelle Memorial Institute is developing an optical sensor to monitor the internal environment of lithium-ion (Li-Ion) batteries in real-time. Over time, crystalline structures known as dendrites can form within batteries and cause a short circuiting of the battery's electrodes. Because faults can originate in even the tiniest places within a battery, they are hard to detect with traditional sensors. Battelle is exploring a new, transformational method for continuous monitoring of operating Li-Ion batteries. Their optical sensors detect internal faults well before they can lead to…

Status: ALUMNI
State: OH
Project Term: 09/01/2010 - 12/30/2011
Program: BEETIT
Award: $399,922

Battelle Memorial Institute

Battelle Memorial Institute is developing a new air conditioning system that uses a cascade reverse osmosis-based absorption cycle. Analyses show that this new cycle can be as much as 60% more efficient than vapor compression, which is used in 90% of air conditioners. Traditional vapor-compression systems use polluting liquids for a cooling effect. Absorption cycles use benign refrigerants such as water, which is absorbed in a salt solution and pumped as liquid—replacing compression of vapor. The refrigerant is subsequently separated from absorbing salt using heat for re-use in the cooling…

Status: CANCELLED
State: MA
Project Term: 03/06/2012 - 10/31/2015
Program: GRIDS
Award: $2,465,082

Beacon Power

Beacon Power is developing a flywheel energy storage system that costs substantially less than existing flywheel technologies. Flywheels store the energy created by turning an internal rotor at high speeds—slowing the rotor releases the energy back to the grid when needed. Beacon Power is redesigning the heart of the flywheel, eliminating the cumbersome hub and shaft typically found at its center. The improved design resembles a flying ring that relies on new magnetic bearings to levitate, freeing it to rotate faster and deliver 400% as much energy as today's flywheels. Beacon Power's…

Status: ALUMNI
State: NY
Project Term: 12/01/2013 - 09/30/2015
Program: RANGE
Award: $587,564

Bettergy

Bettergy is developing an inexpensive battery that uses a novel combination of solid, non-flammable materials to hold a greater amount of energy for use in EVs. Conventional EV batteries are typically constructed using costly materials and require heavy, protective components to ensure safety. Consequently, these heavy battery systems require the car to expend more energy, leading to reduced driving range. Bettergy will research a battery design that utilizes low-cost energy storage materials to reduce costs, and solid, non-flammable components that will not leak to improve battery safety.…

Status: ALUMNI
State: NY
Project Term: 06/09/2017 - 06/08/2021
Program: REFUEL
Award: $1,524,606

Bettergy

Bettergy will develop a catalytic membrane reactor to allow on-site hydrogen generation from ammonia. Ammonia is much easier to store and transport than hydrogen, but on-site hydrogen generation will not be viable until a number of technical challenges have been met. The team is proposing to develop a system that overcomes the issues caused by the high cracking temperature and the use of expensive catalysts. Bettergy proposes a low temperature, ammonia-cracking membrane reactor system comprised of a non-precious metal ammonia cracking catalyst and a robust composite membrane. A one-step…

Status: ACTIVE
State: CO
Project Term: 07/01/2021 - 12/31/2023
Program: Exploratory Topics
Award: $500,000

Big Blue Technologies (BBT)

Big Blue Technologies (BBT) proposes the world’s most efficient method to produce magnesium (Mg), a light metal with a high energy and carbon footprint whose demand is increasing due to its application in vehicle and aircraft light-weighting and portable electronics. BBT will demonstrate a continuous production system with best-in-class material and energy efficiency by extracting crude Mg from ore in a 50-kW electric arc furnace and purifying it using a dual high-temperature condenser. If successful and scaled, BBT will produce Mg at the globally competitive cost of <$2/kg, reduce total…

Status: Selected
State: TBD
Project Term: TBD
Program: SEA-CO2
Award: TBD

Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences

Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences is developing a biogeochemical computer model that improves our estimates of how the vast population of ocean zooplankton—tiny marine animals—move and lock away carbon in the deep ocean. Most ocean models treat zooplankton as a “black box” and lack key zooplankton behaviors that can result in carbon transport, leading to uncertainties in carbon accounting. The proposed work seeks to capture these behaviors in a plankton-focused model and then integrate these processes into other biogeochemical models to provide realistic and accurate accounting of the…

Status: ALUMNI
State: NY
Project Term: 03/18/2015 - 06/30/2016
Program: IDEAS
Award: $420,723

Bigwood Systems

Bigwood Systems is developing a comprehensive Optimal Power Flow (OPF) modelling engine that will enhance the energy efficiency, stability, and cost effectiveness of the national electric grid. Like water flowing down a hill, electricity takes the path of least resistance which depends on the grid network topology and on grid controls. However, in a complicated networked environment, this can easily lead to costly congestion or shortages in certain areas of the electric grid. Grid operators use imperfect solutions like approximations, professional judgments, or conservative estimates to…

Status: ALUMNI
State: CA
Project Term: 04/30/2012 - 06/30/2013
Program: OPEN 2009
Award: $8,997,843

Bio Architecture Lab

E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Company (DuPont) and Bio Architecture Lab are exploring the commercial viability of producing fuel-grade isobutanol from macroalgae (seaweed). Making macroalgae an attractive substrate for biofuel applications however, will require continued technology development. Assuming these developments are successful, initial assessments suggest macroalgae aquafarming in our oceans has the potential to produce a feedstock with cost in the same range as terrestrial-based substrates (crop residuals, energy crops) and may be the feedstock of choice in some locations. The use…

Status: ALUMNI
State: NJ
Project Term: 02/01/2013 - 12/31/2018
Program: OPEN 2012
Award: $4,665,228

Bio2Electric

Bio2Electric is developing a small-scale reactor that converts natural gas into a feedstock for industrial chemicals or liquid fuels. Conventional, large-scale gas-to-liquid reactors are expensive and not easily scaled down. Bio2Electric’s reactor relies on a chemical conversion and fuel cell technology resulting in fuel cells that create a valuable feedstock, as well as electricity. In addition, the reactor relies on innovations in material science by combining materials that have not been used together before, thereby altering the desired output of the fuel cell. The reactors can be…