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Turning Bacteria into Fuel
Willem Vermaas, a Professor at Arizona State University, explains to ARPA-E Director Arun Majumdar how ASU researchers grow fuel from fatty acids harvested from photosynthetic bacteria. This special bacteria is used for solar powered, highly efficient production of biofuels.
Image: Energy Department Image | Photo by Quentin Kruger | Public Domain
Date taken: Tue, 02/28/2012 - 00:00
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Turning Bacteria into Fuel
Willem Vermaas, a Professor at Arizona State University, explains to ARPA-E Director Arun Majumdar how ASU researchers grow fuel from fatty acids harvested from photosynthetic bacteria. This special bacteria is used for solar powered, highly efficient production of biofuels.
Image: Energy Department Image | Photo by Quentin Kruger | Public Domain
Date taken: 02/28/2012 - 00:00
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ASU's Cyanobacteria
If successful, the ASU project would develop a more efficient way to produce and incorporate biofuels into the existing transportation fuel infrastructure.
Image: Energy Department Image | Photo by Quentin Kruger | Public Domain
Date taken: 02/28/2012 - 00:00
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Turning Buildings into Batteries
Chicago-based Clean Urban Energy uses the thermal properties of buildings’ mass to store cooling energy during off-peak, unoccupied hours when electricity prices are low. The stored cool is released throughout the day, reducing energy consumption during peak times.
Image: Energy Department Image | Photo by Quentin Kruger | Public Domain
Date taken: 02/28/2012 - 00:00
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Harvard's Electrofuels
Researchers from Harvard University explain their technology to ARPA-E Director Arun Majumadar. Harvard is engineering a self-contained, scalable Electrofuels production system that can directly generate liquid fuels from bacteria, carbon dioxide (CO2), water and sunlight.
Image: Energy Department Image | Photo by Quentin Kruger | Public Domain
Date taken: 02/28/2012 - 00:00
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General Motors' Waste Heat Recovery System
Detroit-based ARPA-E awardee General Motors explains their waste heat recovery system. If successful, GM’s shape memory alloy heat engine technology would increase the fuel efficiency of U.S. vehicles up to 10% -- reducing the consumption of up to 380 million barrels of oil every year.
Image: Energy Department Image | Photo by Quentin Kruger | Public Domain
Date taken: 02/28/2012 - 00:00
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Biking for Batteries
CUNY's Josh Galloway shows how the bike is able to charge their flow-assisted alkaline battery. The CUNY Energy Institute aims to demonstrate a better cycle life than lithium-ion batteries, which can be up to 20 times more expensive than Zinc-based batteries.
Image: Energy Department Image | Photo by Quentin Kruger | Public Domain
Date taken: 02/28/2012 - 00:00
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CUNY's Energy Storage Solution
The nation's current electric grid has limited ability to store excess energy, so electricity must constantly be generated to match demand. If successful, CUNY Energy Institute’s flow assisted alkaline battery project would put the U.S. on a path towards creating a smarter grid with low-cost batteries that are capable of storing enough electricity to power homes, cars and cities.
Image: Energy Department Image | Photo by Quentin Kruger | Public Domain
Date taken: 02/28/2012 - 00:00
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Transphorm(ing) Electric Motor Drives
California-based Transphorm is developing transistors with gallium nitride (GaN) semiconductors that could be used to make cost-effective, high-performance power converters for a variety of applications, including electric motor drives which transmit power to a motor.
Image: Energy Department Image | Photo by Quentin Kruger | Public Domain
Date taken: 02/28/2012 - 00:00
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Transphorm's Transistors
If successful, Transphorm’s transistors would improve the energy efficiency of electric motor drives by 2-8%.
Image: Energy Department Image | Photo by Quentin Kruger | Public Domain
Date taken: 02/28/2012 - 00:00
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Delphi Automotive
Indiana-based Delphi Automotive is developing power converters that are smaller and more energy efficient, reliable, and cost-effective than current power converters. If successful, Delphi would improve the efficiency of power conversion by 50% or more -- making a variety of eletric vehicles more viable alternatives to conventional gas-powered vehicles.
Image: Energy Department Image | Photo by Quentin Kruger | Public Domain
Date taken: 02/28/2012 - 00:00
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UMD's Thermoelastic Cooling
Researchers at the University of Maryland are developing an energy-efficient cooling system that eliminates the need for synthetic refrigerants that harm the environment. Using thermoelastic cooling systems, UMD is developing and testing shape memory alloys and a cooling device that alternately absorbs or creates heat in much the same way as a vapor compression system, but with significantly less energy and a smaller operational footprint.
Image: Energy Department Image | Photo by Quentin Kruger | Public Domain
Date taken: 02/28/2012 - 00:00
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ADI's 24/7 Solar Storage Solution
Wayne Bliesner, Founder and CEO of ADI Solar, explains ADI's revolutionary high-temperature chemical storage solution, which provides dispatchable energy using the chemical energy stored in calcium hydride.
Image: Energy Department Image | Photo by Quentin Kruger | Public Domain
Date taken: 02/28/2012 - 00:00
Washington, DC
More than 240 breakthrough energy developments from ARPA-E awardees and other innovative companies were on display at the third annual ARPA-E Energy Innovation Summit Technology Showcase this year. These projects covered everything from grid-scale storage to building efficiency to advanced carbon capture and electrofuels. Leaders from across research, business, and government were able to meet with the researchers and entrepreneurs behind these innovative clean energy startups.
ARPA-E was launched in 2009 to support projects that could lead to transformational, breakthrough technologies, but are considered too risky for private sector investment. If successful, these projects could form the foundation for new industries and make a tremendous impact on the economy.
Check out the photo slideshow above for a look at some of the highlights.
