May 2015
News Release: INL and NREL Demonstrate Power Grid Simulation at a Distance
The Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and Idaho National Laboratory (INL) have successfully demonstrated the capability to connect grid simulations at their two labs for real time interaction via the Internet. This new inter-lab capability enables the modeling of power grids in greater detail by allowing software and equipment anywhere in the world to establish a real-time connection to the unique facilities and capabilities available within the DOE national laboratory complex.
April 2015
News Release: NREL Announces Participants for Executive Energy Leadership Program
The Energy Department’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has selected 21 leaders to participate in its 2015 Executive Energy Leadership program (Energy Execs), which empowers executives to integrate clean energy solutions in their communities.
News Release: NREL Report Estimates Market Potential of Shared Solar and Discusses Relevant Securities Regulations
Analysis from the Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) finds that by making shared solar programs available to households and businesses that currently cannot host on-site photovoltaic (PV) systems shared solar could represent 32 to 49 percent of the distributed photovoltaic market in 2020.
The (Scientific) Flight of the Falcon
NREL and Laufer employ "Houdini" to teach radar how to detect birds near wind power plants.
Energy Department Announces New Tools for Hydrogen Fueling Infrastructure Deployment
The Energy Department has announced two new tools developed through H2USA to help address technical and financial barriers to hydrogen fueling infrastructure deployment. The tools, the the Hydrogen Financial Analysis Scenario Tool (H2FAST) and the Hydrogen Refueling Stations Analysis Model (HRSAM), were developed by NREL and Argonne National Laboratory respectively to address the key technical and financial barriers to hydrogen fueling infrastructure deployment. Additionally, NREL and Sandia National Laboratories published two task reports through the Hydrogen Fueling Infrastructure Research and Station Technology (H2FIRST) project, which supports H2USA by addressing critical R&D barriers to station deployment.
NREL and Partners Review Key Issues, Lessons Learned from U.S. Wind Integration Studies and Operating Practices
As a complement to DOE's recently released Wind Vision Report, a new paper summarizes the lessons learned from actual power systems operational practice, along with some of the most relevant and comprehensive wind integration studies conducted during the past several years.
NREL's ESIF Offers Equipment Testing on Grand Scale
NREL Power Systems Engineering Center Director Dr. Ben Kroposki spoke to Smart Grid Today about the unique capabilities of the Energy Systems Integration Facility.
NREL Teams with Southern California Gas to Launch First Power-to-Gas Project in U.S.
Demonstration projects will create and test a power-to-gas concept that uses electricity from renewable sources to make carbon-free hydrogen gas.
News Release: NREL Releases Report Describing Guidelines for PV Manufacturer Quality Assurance
The Energy Department’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has released an updated proposal that will establish an international quality standard for photovoltaic (PV) module manufacturing. The document is intended for immediate use by PV manufacturers when producing modules on an industrial scale so they can increase investor, utility, and consumer confidence in PV system performance.
Assuring Solar Modules Will Last for Decades
NREL heads international effort to toughen standards, ensure reliability of solar PV systems.
News Release: NREL Fills Key Leadership Role for Energy Systems Security and Resilience
Dr. Erfan Ibrahim has joined the Energy Department’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory as director of Cyber Physical Systems Security and Resilience for NREL’s Energy Systems Integration directorate. This critical area of research and development addresses the challenges of integrating clean energy sources into the national energy infrastructure.
March 2015
News Release: Industry-backed Best Practices Guides Aim to Lower Financing Costs for Solar Energy Systems
The Solar Access to Public Capital (SAPC) working group has released new best practices guidelines for solar photovoltaic (PV) systems, with the goal of increasing investor confidence in the long-term viability of PV systems. The guides — SAPC Best Practices in PV System Installation and SAPC Best Practices in PV Operations and Maintenance — were developed by SAPC subcommittees, each involving dozens of solar and finance entities.
Discovering Drop-In Biofuels to Leverage Petroleum Refineries
In the search for abundant and sustainable options to petroleum-derived fuels, biofuels stand out as a promising alternative. An NREL study is determining which biomass-derived oxygenates are most commercially feasible in drop-in fuels that are compatible with existing engines and fuel distribution.
News Release: NREL Director Announces His Retirement
Dr. Dan E. Arvizu today announced that he intends to retire at the end of September from his role as the Director and Chief Executive of the Energy Department’s (DOE) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Golden, Colorado.
News Release: NREL Tool Finds Effective Behind-the-Meter Energy Storage Configurations
The Energy Department’s (DOE) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has used the Battery Lifetime Analysis and Simulation Tool (BLAST) to confirm that energy storage for demand-charge management can deliver attractive economic benefits. The analysis paired recent utility rate structures with historic data on solar photovoltaic electricity generation and commercial facility loads to evaluate 6,860 unique scenarios. The results revealed that, in the absence of incentives, small battery systems reducing peak demand by 2.5 percent offer the most attractive return on investment.
NREL's Newest PE-Licensed Engineers Commit to Sustainability
Engineers travel the globe to help save energy, improve lives.
Colorado High School Science Bowl Rescheduled
On March 7, Colorado high school students will rack their brains to quickly find answers to rapid-fire questions at the 25th Colorado High School Science Bowl. Competition rounds begin at 9 a.m. and will last until 12:30 p.m., at the Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), 15013 Denver West Parkway, Golden, CO.
February 2015
News Release: NREL Refines Method to Convert Lignin to Nylon Precursor
A new study from the Energy Department’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) demonstrates the conversion of lignin-derived compounds to adipic acid, an important industrial dicarboxylic acid produced for its use as a precursor to nylon, plasticizers, lubricants, polyesters, and other popular products and chemicals.
FAST Revs Up with a v8
Offshore and land-based wind turbine systems are subject to complex and harsh operating conditions. When designing systems for such conditions, wind technology developers need powerful tools. One such tool is the computer-aided engineering tool called FAST, developed and supported by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. The laboratory has recently released an improved and expanded version of FAST that features a new modularization framework that boosts the tool’s power, robustness, and flexibility.
NREL Researchers Advance Wind Energy Systems Engineering
In recent years, researchers from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) have been making progress in multiple avenues of wind systems engineering. This includes the study of how to integrate wind energy engineering and cost models across wind plants, finding the important interactions between various subsystems to achieve a better understanding of how to improve system-level performance and cost reductions, and hosting international, collaborative workshops.
Last Updated May 28, 2025