Grid Modernization News
Explore our archive of grid modernization news stories.
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The Future Is Autonomous: NREL's Autonomous Energy Grids Research Featured in IEEE Spectrum
A recent feature story in IEEE Spectrum magazine covers current progress and the opportunities ahead for autonomous energy grids (AEGs), and how the Basalt Vista neighborhood has made NREL's vision for AEGs a reality.Full story -
Technical Roadmap Guides Research Direction for Grid-Forming Inverters
A team of experts from NREL and several collaborating institutions have published the Research Roadmap on Grid-Forming Inverters, a comprehensive guide to understanding inverter-dominated power systems. The roadmap provides a system-wide perspective on the integration of inverter-based resources.Full story -
Top 20 NREL Stories of 2020
NREL researchers and staff reached countless goals and achieved numerous successes in science, partnerships, and technology commercialization in 2020, from breaking world records to launching new initiatives. Here are just a few of the highlights.Full story -
System Advisor Model Update Includes New Data, Improved Model Integration
Make informed decisions about renewable energy system design and project economics with the latest version of NREL's System Advisor Model.Full story -
Quantum Wells Enable Record-Efficiency Two-Junction Solar Cell
Researchers from NREL and the University of New South Wales achieved a new world-record efficiency for two-junction solar cells, creating a cell with two light-absorbing layers that converts 32.9% of sunlight into electricity.Full story -
News Release: I AM Hydro Prize Winners Leverage Advanced Manufacturing Expertise to Bolster Hydropower
Eleven winning teams claimed top honors with their concepts to leverage the rapid innovations enabled by advanced manufacturing to solve hydropower's critical challenges.Full story -
Nuclear-Renewable Synergies for Clean Energy Solutions
For nearly a decade, JISEA has supported analysis and dialogue on the potential of nuclear-renewable hybrid energy systems to provide sustainable, cost-effective, and reliable power, heat, and other energy services.Full story -
Solar District Cup Students Are Ready for the Finals
The U.S. Department of Energy Solar District Cup Collegiate Design Competition has announced that 35 teams from 34 schools are advancing as finalists in the Class of 2021 program.Full story -
Swimming With the SHARKS: NREL Makes a Splash at 2020 ARPA-E Funding Round
NREL researchers are working to fast-track the development of tomorrow's cost-effective marine energy technologies, thanks to an ARPA-E SHARKS funding award.Full story -
$10 Million Sparks Research To Reduce Risks of Promising Bioengineered Organisms
Two awards totaling nearly $10 million from the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science Biological and Environmental Research (BER) program will support two research projects at NREL and partner laboratories that aim to analyze and reduce biosecurity risks of promising bioengineered organisms.Full story -
All in a Day's Work
In their new report, "Workforce and Economic Development Considerations from the Operations and Maintenance of Wind Power Plants," NREL researchers Matthew Kotarbinski, David Keyser, and Jeremy Stefek seek to expand our understanding of wind's economic impact by examining O&M worker integration in communities.Full story -
At 30 Years Young, the Future Is Bright for NREL's High-Flux Solar Furnace
With the breakneck speed of innovation at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), the laboratory's High-Flux Solar Furnace (HFSF) is all the more remarkable for continuously facilitating envelope-pushing research since 1989.Full story -
First Solar's Photovoltaic Technology Completes 25 Years of Testing at NREL
Determining how many years a solar panel will last can take, well, years. Intended to function for 25 years or more, solar panels must be made to withstand the elements. In some cases, panels continue working well after their planned operational lifetime. Nowhere is this more evident than on the sunny hillside where NREL operates the Outdoor Test Facility.Full story -
NREL's Top 2020 Wind Program Accomplishments Demonstrate a Clear Vision for Wind Energy Advancement
The NREL wind program's top 2020 achievements demonstrate not only the laboratory's scientific and research abilities, but also its clear vision for wind energy advancement.Full story -
News Release: Tri-Lab Initiative Leads Innovation in Novel Hybrid Energy Systems
Future novel hybrid energy systems could lead to paradigm shifts in clean energy production, according to a paper published last week in Joule. Researchers from the U.S. DOE's three applied energy laboratories co-authored the paper describing such integrated energy systems.Full story -
NREL Research Takes Safety Issues into Account for Perovskite Production
While research continues to move perovskite solar technology toward commercialization, scientists at NREL are investigating how to manufacture them with human health in mind.Full story -
Co-Optima Reveals Scientific Details Behind Light-Duty Vehicle Research
For the first time, researchers with DOE's Co-Optimization of Fuels & Engines (Co-Optima) initiative have shared scientific details that will help the research community and industry identify viable candidates for bio-based fuels that can maximize performance and efficiency when used in turbocharged spark-ignition (SI) engines.Full story -
2020 Standard Scenarios Outlook Models Possible Evolution of U.S. Electricity Sector with Expanded Metrics
Explore 45 forward-looking scenarios and a new interactive data viewer with the latest release of our flagship Standard Scenarios.Full story -
NREL Research Team Analyzes COVID-19 Manufacturing Supply Shortages
The early days of the ongoing pandemic were marked by shortages of personal protective equipment and coronavirus testing materials. To help overcome those challenges, an NREL research team led by Samantha Reese and Alberta Carpenter identified pinch points in the manufacturing process due to simultaneous shortages and increased demand for face shields, N95 respirators, and materials used in coronavirus tests.Full story -
Offshore Wind Industry Prepares To Ride Economic High Tide
National Wind Technology Center researchers at NREL apply a range of modeling expertise and tools to help industry, government, and research partners gain objective understanding of the balance among potential offshore wind costs, revenues, and risks within the context of technical, legal, regulatory, tax, and policy issues.Full story
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Last Updated March 10, 2025