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April 2020
NREL Launches $9 Million Solar Desalination Prize Competition
On April 27, with support from NREL, the U.S. Department of Energy kicked off the Solar Desalination Prize, a $9 million competition that's part of the American-Made Challenges series. The competition is designed to accelerate the development of systems that use solar-thermal energy to produce clean drinking water from salt water.
Jerry Davis Q&A: Cutting-Edge Research, Microgrids for U.S. Military, and Ultramarathons
Jerry Davis works with the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) to develop renewable energy technologies for military operations and installations. Davis sat down with us to talk about his work on bringing advanced microgrid technologies and cybersecurity measures to support DoD and mission readiness.
Automated Test Bed Helps Battery Stakeholders with Residential Systems
NREL's residential battery test bed provides a research environment that allows any stakeholder to understand the inner workings of batteries—for any use (backup, self-consumption, arbitrage), from any vendor, and in any climate.
50th Anniversary of Earth Day Puts NREL Research in Focus
Five decades ago, an idea sprouted into an event that grew into a movement, which today, on its 50th anniversary, we recognize as Earth Day—a global day of awareness and a celebration of principle, responsibility, and sustainability. NREL has always enjoyed strong ties to Earth Day. The laboratory's second director, Denis Hayes, played a key role in its creation, coordinating the first Earth Day in 1970.
Greening Industry: Building Recyclable, Next-Generation Turbine Blades
NREL's pioneering thermoplastics work is helping close the circle, ensuring today's blades become tomorrow's blades, too.
Buildings Research Sets Foundation for Future Design
"Earth Day is about looking at how we use energy and how we can increase sustainability by reducing our negative impact on Earth," said NREL's Roderick Jackson. "Buildings are the largest consumers of energy. If a building can be designed in a way that allows us to accelerate that clean energy future… that's what we're doing here."
Desalination Dreams: Meet the Entrepreneurial Waves to Water CONCEPT Stage Winners
This Earth Day, we recognize five teams of entrepreneurs who are integrating marine energy and desalination to provide clean water.
NREL Researchers Review Promising Class of New Materials for Energy Applications
Scientists at NREL have performed a comprehensive review of a unique, emerging class of materials called chalcogenides that hold the potential for use in solar cells, water splitting, and other energy applications.
Spring Sightings: Flowers and FAST Prize Teams Blossom
Three winning teams of the Furthering Advancements to Shorten Time (FAST) Commissioning for Pumped-Storage Hydropower Prize are reducing the time, cost, and risk associated with commissioning pumped-storage hydropower projects.
News Release: NREL Six-Junction Solar Cell Sets Two World Records for Efficiency
Scientists at NREL have fabricated a six-junction solar cell that now holds the world record for the highest solar conversion efficiency at 47.1%, which was measured under concentrated illumination. A variation of the same cell also set the efficiency record under one-sun illumination at 39.2%.
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Last Updated May 5, 2025