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More accurate solar forecasting — day-ahead predictions of solar energy generation levels — could save American ratepayers millions of dollars. But it’s hard to predict the future, so new SunShot Initiative funding and research is working to fix that.

Miscellaneous electric loads (MELs) represent appliances, equipment, and devices that use electricity but don't contribute to a building’s core functions such as heating, air conditioning, lighting, or water heating. The Energy Department is increasing attention to decrease MELs’ growing energy impact, which could help reduce extra home energy costs that come from many popular holiday electronic gifts.

A common obstacle to accelerating American investment in home energy efficiency is the up-front cost of home energy upgrades and other sustainable improvements. To overcome this barrier in Florida—where a hot, humid climate can send utility bills soaring when temperatures rise—St. Lucie County used $2.9 million in seed funding from the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Better Buildings Neighborhood Program (BBNP) to create the Solar and Energy Loan Fund (SELF).

Connected thermostats allow people to remotely monitor and control their home’s heating and cooling equipment, changing how many Americans manage their home energy use. The Energy Department is researching how connected thermostats might be used in other ways to advance residential energy efficiency, so more Americans can save energy and money

The Department of Energy’s (DOE) Geothermal Technologies Office reported completion last week of seismic data acquisition at two key geothermal sites in northern Nevada.

The mini Nintendo Classic has everyone partying like it’s 1985 again. Yes, technology has certainly come a long way in 30 years. Take clean energy for example. We’re currently in the midst of a revolution that has seen costs for wind and solar technologies, electric vehicles (EVs), and light-emitting diodes (LEDs) drop by as much as 94% since 2008.

When the wind turbine industry needs to test out new designs, it turns to the National Wind Technology Center at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.

​In 1975, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) decided to harness the power of the sun, launching the Solar Energy Research Institute, which later became the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). Over the subsequent 40 years, DOE, its Solar Energy Technologies Office, and the national laboratories have engaged with innovators, businesses, and entrepreneurs to channel one of our planet’s greatest resources into sustainable, clean, and cost-effective energy.

Cummins approached researchers at three of the national laboratories—Sandia National Laboratories (SNL), Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL)—to discuss the possibility of a partnership. The labs possessed unique expertise in laser diagnostics and computer modeling and housed unique state-of-the-art facilities, including specialized measurement equipment and extremely fast supercomputers

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Wind Energy Technologies Office addresses a number of pressing energy needs, from improving technology performance to advancing wind turbines’ design and size to facilitating grid integration of renewable energy. Since wind energy research began in the United States in the 1970s, DOE has brought together industry, academia, and key research institutions to help overcome wind energy deployment challenges related to cost, design, materials, efficiency, and environmental stewardship.

Many residential and commercial buildings leak air like sieves, wasting up to 40% of their heating and cooling energy. The primary reason for this energy loss is gaps and holes that exist in buildings’ air ducts. Getting an airtight seal on every connection can be difficult; even with skillful installation and generous applications of mastic (the putty used to seal joints), leakage still occurs. Therefore, most people resign themselves to losing money and enduring uneven temperatures. Mark Modera, an expert in energy performance at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), however, was convinced there had to be a better way.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) national laboratories give the United States an undeniable strategic advantage in the global marketplace. The national labs use the world’s most advanced technology and equipment, staffed by many of the best and brightest scientific minds, to perform groundbreaking scientific research. Each year, they develop more than 1,800 new inventions and receive more than 400 patents.

Advanced inverters are a critical enabler of high solar photovoltaic (PV) penetrations because of their smart functionalities and ability to maintain a balanced grid. Deploying advanced inverters with smart grid capabilities in the field, however, is easier said than done. Thanks to the work of the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), the solar industry has a solid foundation for both using and improving inverter technology.

Now — more than ever — the United States needs to tap into the extensive capabilities of its national labs to ensure American competitiveness in the global marketplace. The DOE Lab-Corps program is doing exactly that.

Nuclear and renewable technologies are crucial parts of the United States’ energy system, providing clean, secure, abundant power. Nuclear energy is the largest zero carbon electricity source on the grid today, while renewable energy is the fastest growing form of any electricity source over the last two years. But, like chocolate and peanut butter, the question is — can these two great technologies be even better together? To help answer this question, the Department of Energy is examining the benefits and potential synergies of energy systems that feature both nuclear and renewable technologies.

As light-emitting diode (LED) performance continues to improve and prices continue to drop, adoption continues to increase. According to the latest Department of Energy (DOE) Revolution…Now report, total installation of LED A-type bulbs (the most common type) exceeded 200 million last year, growing 160% over 2014, and now accounting for 6% of all currently installed A-type lamps. That growth has been enabled by a 94% reduction in cost since 2008.

The toolkit integrates new and existing technical tools that give small and medium commercial buildings the ability to analyze and evaluate measures for HVAC equipment, interior equipment, lighting and/or whole building measures.

Researchers from the United States and Brazil have developed a new device that can reduce energy losses in buildings by measuring and assessing the energy performance of windows without removing them from their site.

Funding support from the Energy Department's State Energy Program is being used by some states to retrofit water treatment facilities and wastewater systems to use less energy because these facilities can be responsible for as much as 35% of municipal energy use.

Michael Berube, the new director of the Energy Department’s Vehicle Technologies Office, sat down recently to discuss his entry into vehicles, where we’re headed, and a love of off-roading.

Researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory developed technology that can convert human waste into sustainable biofuel.

The U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon competition now spans five continents — North America, South America, Europe, Africa and Asia — bringing together collegiate teams from around the world to address some of the most pressing global energy issues of our time.

In 2014, the Energy Department’s Geothermal Technologies Office introduced its mineral recovery research and development program to identify methods of recovering lithium and rare earth elements found in geothermal fluids. This year the effort expanded to include evaluation of comparable methods in other industries and the potential to translate successful methodologies for use in geothermal mineral recovery.

Building energy infrastructure that keeps wildlife safe is a key concern at the U.S. Department of Energy, which is why we have funded six teams to improve technologies that will protect eagles sharing airspace with wind turbines.

With Energy Department support, French Development Enterprises, LLC, GEI Consultants, and Oldcastle Precast announced the successful construction of the first prototype of a “French Dam.”The prototype technology uses modular design—a term for structures that use multiple standardized components that integrate easily— to significantly cut construction time and cost.