Perhaps no other scientific endeavor is as pivotal to our nation’s future as research conducted in the fields of energy and the environment. The last 10 years have seen many astonishing advances in these disciplines, pushed on by a number of imperatives: the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, to develop and make use of cleaner sources of energy, and to clean up those environments that have been polluted or made hazardous. The research projects profiled in this section show how far scientists at the National Laboratories have come toward resolving these issues. Research is making great strides toward improving waste-treatment technologies, increasing the efficiency of solar cells, investigating ways to harness fusion energy and developing technologies that will make hydrogen-powered vehicles more commonplace on our highways. These are the kinds of scientific and technological innovations that, in the long run, will help preserve our planet’s ecosystems and ensure our future energy needs.

	Meet the Next Generation of Environmentally Friendly (and Versatile) Nuclear Reactors—Idaho National Laboratory scientists envision nuclear reactors that will work more efficiently and produce less waste, and can be used for other industrial applications.
	Making Coal Cleaner for the Future—Because of its abundance and low cost, scientists at the National Energy Technology Laboratory are looking for ways to make coal a cleaner energy resource.
	Soon at the Pump: Cellulosic Biofuels—Consumers will have more than gasoline and diesel to choose from when they pull up to the pump.
	Building Better Batteries with New Materials and Imagination—Batteries that are more compact, more powerful and longer-lasting promise to reduce the cost and increase the practicality of tomorrow’s hybrid-electric vehicles.
	Fusion Energy: True Star Power—Fusion, no longer exclusive to the sun and stars, provides means for endless energy on earth.
	Mapping Energy from the Source to Your Car's Tailpipe and Beyond—Just how much energy goes into a sports utility vehicle versus a hybrid vehicle? GREET can tell you exactly.
	Bioenergy Research Centers at the Forefront of Greener Fuels—A joint effort by several research laboratories is working to make biofuels a viable and sustainable energy resource.
	Reducing Energy Demands Begins at Home—Building an affordable, comfortable home that produces as much energy as it uses is no longer the home of the future, but the home we need now.
	Microseismic Monitoring: Revealing What Is Going On Deep Underground—A new technology will get the most out of our nation’s oil and gas resources by helping engineers and geologists “see” how a well connects with an oil reservoir below the surface of the earth.
	The Future of Fuel—Scientists are making significant headway in finding alternatives to power automobiles without polluting the atmosphere.
	Bringing Solar Energy’s Cutting Edge to Light—Growing public demand for solar electric energy ensures that it will become a significant part of our clean energy needs in the near future.
	From Sludge to Glass: Making Nuclear Waste Safer for the Future—Research and development work continues to improve a proven method for storing high-level radioactive waste, and explore other applications for the future.
	New Technology Foresees Power Blackouts Before they Occur—“Phasors” have nothing to do with Star Trek; they’re the way of the future for monitoring the nation’s power grid.
	What Takes the Wind Out of A Wind Turbine?—Building a wind turbine that is both durable and more energy efficient requires thinking outside the props.