Grid Modernization News

Feb 13, 2017, 17:00 by Jamie Wiebe

NREL and two industry partners, NextEra Energy, Inc., and YStrategies, Inc., signed a cooperative research and development agreement in December 2016 to bring wake steering, or slight adjustments to turbine direction that reduce wind drag, to industry wind plants for the first time.

Feb 10, 2017, 17:00 by User Not Found

Students from Fort Collins, Colo., dominated this year's Colorado High School Science Bowl with Fort Collins High School emerging victorious over second-place finisher Ridgeview Classical.

Feb 8, 2017, 17:00 by User Not Found

In January the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the Hydrogen Education Foundation announced SimpleFuel as the winner of the $1 million H2 Refuel H-Prize Competition to develop a home hydrogen fueling system. NREL acted as the independent validator for the competition by collecting and analyzing three months of system performance data and presenting the results to the independent H-Prize judges' panel.

Feb 5, 2017, 17:00 by User Not Found

Robert L. McCormick, an engineer at the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), has been named a fellow of SAE International, an association for engineers and other technical experts in automotive, commercial-vehicle, and aerospace industries.

Feb 5, 2017, 17:00 by User Not Found

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) released a new report that spotlights key accomplishments the first year of the U.S. Department of Energy Co-Optimization of Fuels & Engines (Co-Optima) initiative.

Feb 2, 2017, 17:00 by User Not Found

A team of scientists from the Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) determined that surface recombination limits the performance of polycrystalline perovskite solar cells.

Jan 12, 2017, 17:00 by User Not Found

The National Wind Technology Center (NWTC) at the Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has begun validation work on the first water power technology ever tested in an NREL dynamometer facility.

Jan 10, 2017, 17:00 by User Not Found

The Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) will help an additional 10 companies advance their technologies under the third round of the Wells Fargo Innovation Incubator (IN2) program, a five-year, $10 million program designed to facilitate early-stage technologies that provide scalable solutions to reduce the energy impact of commercial buildings.

Jan 9, 2017, 17:00 by Wayne Hicks

Catalyst converts sustainable carbon sources into fuel for high-performance engines.

Jan 8, 2017, 17:00 by User Not Found

Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) developed a method which boosts the longevity of high-efficiency photocathodes in photoelectrochemical water-splitting devices.

Jan 8, 2017, 17:00 by User Not Found

The Energy Department (DOE) recently announced the award of funding to accelerate the development and deployment of alternative vehicle and fuel technologies, including $1.6 million for the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to support three projects led by industry partners Blossman Services, Blue Bird Body Company, and Odyne Systems, LLC. NREL will support these partners in advancing electric-drive and propane fuel technologies for medium- and heavy-duty vehicles.

Dec 27, 2016, 17:00 by User Not Found

The 2015 Renewable Energy Data Book shows that U.S. renewable electricity grew to 16.7 percent of total installed capacity and 13.8 percent of total electricity generation during the past year.

Dec 20, 2016, 17:00 by User Not Found

The Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO) under the Energy Department’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy announced a Request for Information (RFI) seeking input from stakeholders on a draft Marine and Hydrokinetic (MHK) Program strategy.

Dec 18, 2016, 17:00 by Terri Marshburn

The NWTC is building a reputation as a research and validation resource for technology and software that will help detect and deter bird and bat interactions. Earlier this year, researchers and engineers from Oregon State University and the University of Washington's Northwest National Marine Renewable Energy Center used the NWTC to test an array of sensors designed to continuously monitor for interactions (including impacts) of birds and bats with offshore wind turbines--with similar applications for land-based turbines.

Dec 18, 2016, 17:00 by Terri Marshburn

The NWTC's dynamometer test facility recently welcomed one of the largest generators ever validated on its 5-megawatt dynamometer. Columbia Power Technologies is partnering with the NWTC to characterize a direct-drive wave energy generator.

Dec 18, 2016, 17:00 by Katie Wensuc

The NWTC at NREL teams in systems engineering and wind power plant controls have been selected to lead a novel field demonstration to improve wind energy production and help commercialize clean energy technologies.

Dec 16, 2016, 10:43 by Ernie Tucker

When the NWTC at NREL commissioned a new 5-megawatt dynamometer facility and controllable grid interface capability in fall 2013, it created a unique opportunity for the Energy Department, industry, and other partners.

Dec 15, 2016, 17:00 by Carol Laurie

Collaboration with industry and academic partners is often the key to success for research conducted by the NWTC at the NREL. Two recent projects exemplify the benefits of working closely with organizations that bring different strengths to the table.

Dec 15, 2016, 17:00 by User Not Found

Researchers at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and Texas A&M University have developed advanced computational models to enhance scientific understanding of a battery electrode’s material recipe and how it controls battery performance.

Dec 15, 2016, 17:00 by Kelly Yaker

The national energy landscape has changed significantly since the first national strategy for offshore wind was released in 2011. With the first operational offshore wind farm along the Atlantic Coast set to start generating electricity before the end of 2016, the United States is beginning a new era of wind energy production. This fact is highlighted in the National Offshore Wind Strategy: Facilitating the Development of the Offshore Wind Industry in the United States, which was coauthored by the Energy Department, the Interior Department's Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, and NREL.