Search for energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies available for licensing, patents and patent applications, and publications.

Though considered a promising large-scale energy storage device, the real-world deployment of redox flow batteries has been limited by their inability to work well in a wide range of temperatures and their relatively high cost. Historically, the state-of-the-art has been an all-vanadium redox flow battery using a sulfate-based electrolyte.

Researchers at PNNL have developed two novel approaches to redox flow batteries that overcome these barriers and offer superior performance and cost... read more

Reactive Air Aluminizing is a process for applying a protective coating on steel components in solid oxide fuel cells and other high temperature electrochemical devices. This innovative process results in a continuous aluminum oxide coating that reduces chromium volatility and mitigates chemical interaction between glass seals and steel components during exposures at extremely high temperatures (up to 800° Celsius in lab tests).

The Facility Energy Decision System—or FEDS—Software is a user-friendly, menu-driven, Windows-based software program that provides a comprehensive method for quickly and objectively identifying facility energy improvements that offer maximum life-cycle cost savings.

The Grid Friendly™Charger Controller technology allows electric car owners to recharge their rides at times of lowest cost and least stress on the grid.

Electricity grids have traditionally been monitored using systems based upon dated and slow communications and computational technologies.  A large effort is underway in the electricity industry to replace those legacy systems with high-speed and accurate monitoring units call “phasor monitoring units,” or PMUs.  Real-time phasor measurement systems provide significant opportunity for real-time monitoring of a grid’s stability state. Such monitoring will enable... read more

The need for large, grid-scale electrochemical storage is being realized as a critical part of integrating large quantities of renewable, intermittent generation into the electrical grid.  PNNL is investigating a number of potential solutions, but the most promising of them is redox flow batteries because of the relatively low cost of scaling them to large capacities.  A redox flow battery is a form of rechargeable battery that can reversibly convert electrical energy into ... read more

Platinum, a costly precious metal element, is commonly used in fuel cells to facilitate the split of the hydrogen atom, which enables the membrane within a PEM (proton exchange membrane) fuel cell to generate a charge, and thus generate clean, direct current electricity. In PEM fuel cells, hydrogen at the anode generates electron and protons. The protons migrate through the proton-conducting membrane, and react with reduced oxygen at cathode to create water. Meanwhile, electrons move from... read more

With the surge in demand for electric vehicles, automotive suppliers and manufacturers are in a race to find cutting edge technologies that deliver more powerful batteries in smaller packages and lower cost – a challenge that researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory have undertaken and remain committed to solving.

The Decision Support for Operations and Maintenance (DSOM®) system is an expert operations and maintenance system that combines online condition monitoring and control of equipment. This allows plant operators, maintenance staff, engineers, and administrators to use one enterprise-wide system to monitor operations in and make adjustments according to streamlined, real-time information.

Researchers and engineers at PNNL have developed an automated, sophisticated, multi-level, real-time centrifugal chiller diagnostician with diagnostics available under partial load conditions. This diagnostician provides auto-analysis of system efficiency and diagnoses the most probable causes of centrifugal chiller operations caused by common failures. It provides a generic diagnostic tool applicable to most major brands of centrifugal chiller units.

A novel thermoelectric generator (TEG) design by PNNL allows the conversion of ambient thermal energy into electric power for a variety of low-power uses. These miniature TEGs are able to power wireless sensors and their associated radio frequency transmitters used in a wide range of remote monitoring applications including building energy management, automotive component controls, agricultural monitoring, security surveillance, and wildlife management.

Low-cost processing methods will be required if the small organic molecule materials currently under development for use in organic light-emitting devices (OLEDs) and other electronics are ever to realize widespread commercial application.

Thermal expansion differences between the porous anode/active anode and dense electrolyte in an anode supported solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) result in a camber (out of plane deflection) after high-temperature heat treatments. Researchers at PNNL have devised two methods to reduce the camber by applying a symmetrical thermal expansion design to the planar cell assembly.

The demand response system developed by researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory is a transactional response system that determines optimal operation periods for smart electric appliances and devices based on consumer preferences and real-time pricing signals from the electric grid.

One of the critical issues in designing and fabricating a high-performance, planar, solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) stack is the development of the appropriate materials and techniques for hermetically sealing the metal and ceramic components.

The long-term performance of a solid oxide fuel cell is very dependent on the materials and techniques used to hermetically seal the components of the stack. Researchers at PNNL have developed a method for fabricating durable and thermal-mechanically stable seals for solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) needing metal-to-metal or metal-to-ceramic joining.

Researchers at PNNL have developed a new, low-cost method for hermetically sealing ceramic and metallic components used in high-temperature electrochemical devices.

In a solid-oxide fuel cell (SOFC), the anode facilitates the reaction between hydrogen, carbon monoxide and hydrocarbon fuels with oxygen ions that permeate the electrolyte from the cathode side of the cell. An ideal anode should have high electrical conductivity and electro-catalytic activity, and further, it would be advantageous if the anode was tolerant to intermittent air exposure and sulfur-containing compounds in hydrocarbon fuels such as gasoline, diesel and natural gas.

One of the critical issues in designing and fabricating a high-performance, planar, solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) stack is the development of the appropriate materials and techniques for hermetically sealing the metal and ceramic components. Researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) have developed a method for sealing SOFC components that has shown ultra-low leak rates when applied to hybrid compressive mica seals.

The National Energy Technology Laboratory selected PNNL... read more

Among the critical issues in designing and fabricating a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) stack are the materials and techniques for hermetically sealing the metal and/or ceramic components. Researchers at PNNL have developed a high-strength seal incorporating metal mesh and glass fibers. The unique method results in a durable, insulating seal that resists the damages commonly brought on by thermal cycling.

One of the critical issues in designing and fabricating a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) stack is the development of appropriate materials and techniques for hermetically sealing the metal and/or ceramic components. Researchers at PNNL have developed a unique method that results in a stronger, more robust seal that can stand the tests of time.

The Water Heater Controller is a device that provides smart grid services from existing, installed electric water heaters. The device uses the water heater’s thermal energy storage to provide fast, autonomous regulation (both up and down) and short-duration spinning reserves for the power grid. Additionally, as part of a communicating energy management system the Water Heater Controller can shift the power demand for heating hot water to non-peak power demand periods. These services... read more

Grid Friendly™ Charger Controller or Grid Friendly™ Appliance technology, both developed at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), provide regulation services for utilities based on varying loads by water heaters and electric vehicle chargers.

The Graphical Contingency Analysis (GCA) Tool is a visual analytic software tool that aids power grid operators and planners to effectively manage complex outage predictions and helps operators and planners predict potential network failures and take effective actions in response to adverse situations.