ITECS Insider » Powerful Partnerships

Department Of Energy Announces $8.5 Million To Advance Solar Energy Grid Integration Systems

admin — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 01:14:31 +0000

(DOE, September 7, 2010) Washington, DC – U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu today announced that the Department of Energy’s Sandia National Laboratories is investing $8.5 million for four projects that have reached Stage III of the Solar Energy Grid Integration Systems (SEGIS) program. These investments will be matched more than one-to-one by the SEGIS contractors to support more than $20 million in total projects. The selections announced today are part of the Department’s ongoing work to improve the Nation’s electrical grid reliability as solar energy technologies reach cost-competitiveness with conventional sources of electricity and increasing amounts of photovoltaic (PV) solar electricity flow into the Nation’s electrical grid. “Continuing to support solar and grid technologies is necessary in order for America to maintain its competitive edge in the clean energy industries,” said Secretary Chu. “These types of projects will help ensure that our efforts to advance renewable energy and support the modernization of our electrical grid are coordinated and integrated, helping to provide Americans with reliable, clean energy at lower costs.” Click here to read more…

Secretary Chu Announces U.S. Centers For U.S.-China Clean Energy Research

admin — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 19:32:10 +0000

(DOE, September 2, 2010) – U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced today that two consortia – one led by the University of Michigan and one led by the West Virginia University – will receive a total of $25 million over the next five years under the U.S.-China Clean Energy Research Center (CERC). The funding will be matched by the grantees to provide at least $50 million in total U.S. funding and will facilitate joint research and development of clean energy technologies by the United States and China. Chinese counterparts will contribute an additional $50 million, with combined funding from both countries totaling $100 million. The University of Michigan’s award will advance technologies for clean vehicles, while West Virginia University will use its funding to focus on the next generation of clean coal technologies, including carbon capture and storage. Click here to read more…

USDA And DOE Partnership Seeks To Develop Better Plants For Bioenergy

admin — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 19:25:14 +0000

(DOE, September 2, 2010) — Energy Secretary Steven Chu and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced research awards under a joint DOE-USDA program aimed at improving and accelerating genetic breeding programs to create plants better suited for bioenergy production. The $8.9 million investment is part of the Obama Administration’s broader effort to diversify the nation’s energy portfolio and to accelerate the development of new energy technologies designed to decrease the nation’s dependence on foreign oil. “Cost-effective, sustainable biofuels are crucial to building a clean energy economy,” said Secretary Chu. ”By harnessing the power of science and technology, this joint effort between DOE and USDA will help accelerate research in the critical area of plant feedstocks, spurring the creation of the domestic bio-industry while creating jobs and reducing our dependence on foreign oil.” Click here to read more…

NIH Awards Grants To Support Biomedical Research In Space

admin — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 19:19:01 +0000

(NIH, September 1, 2010) The National Institutes of Health announced today that it has awarded the first new grants under the Biomedical Research on the International Space Station (BioMed-ISS) initiative, a collaborative effort between NIH and NASA. Using a special microgravity environment that Earth-based laboratories cannot replicate, researchers will explore fundamental questions about important health issues, such as how bones and the immune system get weak. “Through this initiative, the NIH is proud to continue its longstanding partnership with NASA,” said NIH Director Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D. “We look forward to working with our NASA colleagues and other members of the ISS team to implement these unique experiments.” The National Laboratory at the ISS provides a virtually gravity-free — or microgravity — environment where the cellular and molecular mechanisms that underlie human diseases can be explored. Click here to read more…

Grant To Pay For Research Into Solar Power Projects’ Effects On Desert Plants

admin — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 23:00:59 +0000

(Sunpluggers.com, August 28, 2010) A research study intended to provide more information about the effects of renewable energy projects on desert plants has been awarded a grant from the California Energy Commission. Numerous proposed solar power projects in desert areas are undergoing review by state, federal and local officials, and one large 250-megawatt project in the Mojave Desert in Kern County has recently been approved by the state. Other renewable energy forms will also be a part of the research. The University of California at Davis will receive $580,907 to provide new location data and enhanced habitat suitability models for predicting the potential habitat and distribution of rare plants in the Mojave and Colorado deserts, the commission said in a news release. The research is expected to provide information that can be used to help assess the impacts of renewable energy projects in the desert and to help craft effective mitigation measures for such projects. Partners involved in the research include the Jepson Herbarium at the University of California at Berkeley, the California Native Plant Society, and the California Department of Fish and Game. Click here to read more…