The Energy Department on December 7 announced a
$29 million investment in four projects that will help advance
affordable, reliable clean energy for U.S. families and businesses.
These projects, part of the Energy Department's SunShot Initiative, are
aimed at improving grid connection and reducing installation costs
through innovative plug-and-play technologies and reliable solar power
forecasts.
The Department announced a $21 million
investment over five years to design plug-and-play photovoltaic (PV)
systems that can be purchased, installed, and operational in one day.
Plug-and-play PV systems will make the process of buying, installing,
and connecting solar energy systems faster and less expensive for
homeowners. Fraunhofer USA’s Center for Sustainable Energy Systems in
Cambridge, Massachusetts, will develop PV technologies that allow
homeowners to easily select the right solar system for their house and
install, wire and connect to the grid. Additionally, North Carolina
State University will lead a project to create standard PV components
and system designs that can adapt simply to any residential roof and can
be installed and connected to the grid quickly and efficiently. This
effort is part of the Department’s broader initiative to bring down
"soft" or non-module hardware costs.
The Department also announced an $8 million
investment in two projects to help utilities and grid operators better
forecast when, where, and how much solar power will be produced at U.S.
solar energy plants. The University Corporation for Atmospheric
Research, based in Boulder, Colorado, will research methods to
understand cloud impact and develop short-term prediction techniques
based on this work. Also, the IBM Thomas J. Watson Research Center in
Armonk, New York, will lead a new project based on the Watson computer
system that uses big data processing and self-adjusting algorithms to
integrate different prediction models and learning technologies. These
projects are working with the Energy Department and the National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Association to improve the accuracy of solar forecasts
and share the results of this work with industry and academia. Enhanced
solar forecasting technologies will help power system operators to
integrate cost-competitive, reliable solar energy into the electricity
grid.
The SunShot Initiative is a collaborative
national effort to make solar energy cost-competitive with other forms
of energy by the end of the decade. See the Energy Department press release.
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The 2013 Scion iQ EV, a minicompact, is the top rated car in the 2013 Fuel Economy Guide.
Credit: Scion
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The Energy Department and the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) on December 6 released the 2013 Fuel Economy
Guide, giving consumers information to help them choose the most
fuel-efficient and lowest greenhouse gas-emitting vehicles. The 2013
models include efficient and low-emission vehicles in a variety of
classes and sizes, but notable this year is the growing availability of
hybrids and the increasing number of electric vehicles (EV).
This year's guide gives consumers a broad range
of information that they can use to select their next fuel-efficient
vehicle, whether they want to consider an EV or one that uses a more
conventional fuel. For the first time, the EPA and the Energy Department
have added a second top ten list of most efficient vehicles—separating
advanced technology vehicles from conventional gasoline and diesel
vehicles. Electric and plug-in hybrid electric models are the most
fuel-efficient and lowest-emission vehicles available and are becoming
more common. At the same time, consumers may still look up the
conventional gasoline and diesel models that offer superior fuel
efficiency.
The overall highest-ranking vehicle was the
Scion iQ EV, a minicompact with a 121 miles per gallon equivalent (MPGe)
rating. Some of the other cars topping their classes are: the 2013 Ford
C-Max Energi Plug-in Hybrid and 2013 Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid, which
tied for best in the midsized class with 58 MPGe for use of both
electricity and gasoline; the 2013 Tesla Model S (60 kilowatt-hour
battery pack), ranked best in the large car class with a 95 MPGe rating;
and the 2013 Toyota Prius v, which topped the midsized wagon class with
a 42 miles per gallon rating. See the Energy Department press release and the www.fueleconomy.gov website.
Renewable energy use will grow at a much faster
rate than fossil energy use through 2040, according to projections in
the Annual Energy Outlook 2013 Reference case, part of a preliminary
report released on December 5 by theU.S. Energy Information
Administration (EIA). The Reference case focuses on the factors that
shape U.S. energy markets, and projects that the use of renewable energy
in the United States as a percentage of total energy use will grow from
13% in 2011 to 16% in 2040. Electricity generation from solar and wind
energy will expand because recent cost declines make them more
economical.
The EIA report also projects increased sales of
hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicles, which grow to about 1.3 million
vehicles in 2035—about 20% higher than last year's Reference case. The
2013 report also noted that continued fuel economy improvement in
vehicles using other alternative fuels, gasoline, and diesel, combined
with growth in the use of hybrid technologies (including micro, mild,
full, and plug-in hybrid vehicles), limit the use of electric vehicles
over the projection.
As a result of improved energy efficiency and a
shift away from the most carbon-intensive fuels, U.S. energy-related
carbon dioxide emissions could remain more than 5% below their 2005
level through 2040. In particular, emissions from gasoline are expected
to be lower in the 2013 Reference case than in the 2012 report as a
result of the adoption of fuel economy standards, biofuel mandates, and
shifts in consumer behavior. See the EIA press release and the EIA report overview  .
The Energy Department on December 5 announced
two new initiatives aimed at driving increased renewable energy
production and sustainable economic development in Indian Country. As
part of the Energy Department's efforts to support tribal renewable
energy production, the Department issued a policy statement and guidance
that gives preference to Indian tribes when its facilities contract to
purchase renewable energy products or by-products based on authorities
under the Energy Policy Act of 2005. The Energy Department also
announced new training and education resources to help Tribal Nations
advance local renewable energy project financing and development.
The Department's Office of Indian Energy Policy
and the Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory recently
issued an updated estimate of the renewable energy potential on Indian
lands. While American Indian land comprises about 2% of all U.S. land,
this analysis found that Indian lands contain 5% of total U.S. renewable
energy resource potential, including high generation potential for
solar, wind, and hydropower, among other renewable resources. See the Energy Department press release. |
By Patrick B. Davis, Vehicle Technologies program manager
Here at the Energy Department's Vehicle Technologies Program, we’re revved up about the next great smartphone app: yours.
That's why we're launching the Apps for Vehicles
Challenge, which is looking for the best business plans, app ideas, and
product designs that use open vehicle data to help vehicle owners save
fuel, save money, and stay safe.
Improving fuel efficiency is a national
priority. With the country spending about $1 billion per day on foreign
oil, the Obama Administration spearheaded changes to fuel economy
standards that will double fuel efficiency for cars and light trucks by
2025. Automotive manufacturers are working to meet this target, but
everyday drivers, businesses, and the public sector can also contribute
toward meeting these national goals. For example, the Department of
Energy's Vehicle Technologies Program is managing some of the most
fascinating research projects and deployment programs in the country to
support the cars and trucks of the future. Furthermore, in terms of what
individual vehicle owners or fleet managers can do, there is an
emerging set of tools that leverage open data to improve safety and fuel
efficiency. For the complete story, see the Energy Blog.
Croatian Center of Renewable Energy Sources (CCRES)
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