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News and Feature Stories
The following news stories take an in-depth, behind-the-scenes look at how NREL is advancing energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies.
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April 2021
Researchers Rev Up Innovative Machine Learning Strategies to Reclaim Energy, Time, and Money Lost in Traffic Jams
Inching forward in bumper-to-bumper traffic, drivers bemoan the years of their lives sacrificed in bad commutes.
Department of Energy Funding Boosts US-MAP Research into Perovskites
New funding for perovskites is considered a significant step toward metal halide perovskite PV commercialization.
News Release: New Consortium of Power System Operators and Technical Institutes Commits to Decarbonization Efforts Ahead of President Biden's Leaders' Climate Summit
Global effort announced by the U.S. secretary of energy, U.K. BEIS Department secretary of state, and CEOs of power system operators and organizations from around the world focuses on research, innovation, knowledge exchange, and technical assistance to achieve net-zero-emissions power systems.
Earth Anticipates a Circular Economy for Energy Materials
One of the three key pillars of NREL's vision for the next decade is developing a circular economy for energy materials. This critical objective focuses on reducing waste and preserving resources through the design and manufacture of materials and products with reuse, recycling, and upcycling in mind from the start.
News Release: Devising Wave-Powered Warning Systems: NREL Announces Winners of Ocean Observing Prize DESIGN Contest, Launch of BUILD Contest
NREL is proud to announce the seven winners of the DESIGN Contest, the first of three contests in the Ocean Observing Prize’s DEVELOP Competition, which aims to help protect coastal communities from dangerous storms by conceiving the development of autonomous, wave-powered hurricane monitoring systems.
Thinking Inside the Blade: NREL Takes Novel Approach to 3D-Printed Water Power Prototypes
NREL's Advanced Manufacturing team is applying what they have learned from 3D-printing of wind blade molds to create additively manufactured tidal turbine prototypes.
Google Taps NREL Expertise To Incorporate Energy Optimization into Google Maps Route Guidance
To take a bite out of transportation energy use and emissions and combat climate change, NREL is partnering with Google to develop more eco-friendly routing in Google Maps.
Ten Innovative Teams Emerge Victorious in Round 4 of the American-Made Solar Prize
On April 9, 2021, the U.S. Department of Energy announced 10 finalist teams that are moving forward in the American-Made Solar Prize Round 4 competition.
NREL Announces Winners of the Groundbreaking Hydro Prize
Two winning teams claimed top honors in the Groundbreaking Hydro Prize with their creative concepts to help support hydropower's continued trajectory of growth.
Offshore Wind Data Release Propels Wind Prospecting
Using state-of-the-art modeling tools and sophisticated resource assessment technologies, the Wind Resource Characterization team at NREL makes available new offshore wind data sets through Wind Prospector—a geospatial tool using data from the WIND Toolkit that visualizes data, analyzes the potential for wind energy, and provides wind developers, consultants, and researchers access to updated wind data sets.
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Last Updated April 28, 2025