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April 2016
From Pump to Plug: Measuring the Public's Attitude about Plug-In Electric Vehicles
A new report by NREL's Mark Singer highlights what consumers really think about plug-in electric vehicles and what is needed to overcome widespread barriers to adoption.
Winds of Change Blowing for Wind Farm Research with NREL’s SOWFA Tool
Before the Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) released its Simulator fOr Wind Farm Applications (SOWFA) simulation tool in August 2013, there had not been an open-source, freely available tool of this capability that researchers all over the world could embrace. Now, the winds of change are blowing.
NREL Research Proves Wind Can Provide Ancillary Grid Fault Response
When the Energy DEpartment commissioned a 1.5-megawatt (MW) wind turbine in 2009, it became a key player in improving the performance and lowering the costs of wind energy systems. In 2015, researchers at the National Wind Technology Center at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, Colorado, connected the 300-foot-tall turbine to the controllable grid interface test facility, which simulates the real-time conditions of a utility-scale power grid. This began an ongoing, Energy Department-funded research effort to test how wind turbines can remain connected to the grid during short periods of grid failure.
One Step Closer to the Marketplace for State-of-the-Art Wind Turbine Drivetrain
National Wind Technology Center researchers at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory have entered the final phase of testing a next-generation drivetrain—the components of a wind turbine that convert the rotational energy of the rotor into electricity—that will be less expensive, more reliable, and more efficient. This project, funded by the Energy Department, combines innovations across the entire drivetrain system, including the gearbox, generator, and power converter.
News Release: NREL, SLAC Scientists Pinpoint Solar Cell Manufacturing Process
Scientists at the Energy Department’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory have been able to pinpoint for the first time what happens during a key manufacturing process of silicon solar cells.
NWTC Researchers Develop Wave Energy Conversion Technology
Robert Thresher may be considered the wizard of wind at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, having worked in the field since 1973. At the laboratory since 1984, Thresher’s credited with the buildup of what is now the National Wind Technology Center and the startup of the Energy Department's Water Energy Program. His longtime efforts at turning wind and water into renewable energy has now yielded a record of invention titled “Wave Energy Conversion Devices with Actuated Geometry.”
NREL and Sandia National Laboratories to Sharpen Wind Farm Turbine Controls
Researchers at the Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory are working to make the “brains” of a wind farm smarter and more efficient.
March 2016
News Release: Global Gathering Addresses PV Role in Energy Prosperity and Climate Change Mitigation
Scientists from the Energy Department’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), along with their counterparts from solar energy research institutes in Germany and Japan, gathered recently to discuss the future of photovoltaics (PV) and assess its contributions to increasing global prosperity, energy security and mitigation of climate change.
NREL Supports Native American Tribes in Clean Energy Transformational Leadership
From the subzero tundra in Alaska to the Southwest, NREL is partnering with Native American tribes and Alaska Native villages to advance clean energy goals.
NREL Research into Perovskites Yields New Findings
Two recently published papers show the results of photoemission spectroscopy and time-resolved optical spectroscopy, which quantify the energetics and carrier dynamics that occur at interfaces between the perovskite absorber and transport layers.
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Last Updated May 5, 2025