Enlarge image Newly installed solar panels at NREL’s National Wind Technology Center face skyward to follow the sun. NREL biologists are experimenting with native seed mixes to reestablish plants and wildlife habitat on the graded site. Credit: Joe Verrengia NREL’s newest source of clean energy — a 1 megawatt solar array — is supplying laboratory […]
Making Wind Turbines Builds Career Interest
Enlarge image NREL Education Programs Science Coordinator Rick Shin attaches a balsa-wood wind turbine to a gear system at Denver West High School. NREL’s Education Programs staff visit schools dozens of times each year to instruct and inspire. Credit: Pat Corkery The wind turbine that Louis Solis and Jose Santistevan fashioned in about 20 minutes […]
Light Inspires Energy Efficient Building Design
Enlarge image NREL Researchers Dane Gillespie and Erin Whitney will get to see the windows they normally test in the lab used in a real world environment at the RSF. Credit: Pat Corkery Artists find inspiration in many ways. But for the artists (architects and researchers) working collaboratively to create the most energy efficient office […]
Energy Data Available Anywhere, Any Time
Enlarge image NREL’s Debbie Brodt-Giles was a key developer of the Virtual Information Bridge to Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy its sister Open Energy Information. Credit: Pat Corkery Having rapidly established itself as a “go to” site for transportation and other related energy information, the Virtual Information Bridge to Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy (VIBE) […]
NREL to Help Scale Up Biofuels Operations
Enlarge image NREL Biomass Partnership Development Team Leader, John Ashworth works with NREL’s industry partners to develop and prove biomass conversion technologies. Due to recent ARRA funding announcements, NREL has five new partners in the biofuels race. Credit: Pat Corkery When it comes to fostering new biofuels technology during a recession, a big barrier can […]
NREL Sets the Bar for Office Building Energy Use
Enlarge image Designers met NREL’s aggressive energy use requirement for the Research Support Facility by taking advantage Colorado’s sunny climate. Large windows for daylighting and thermally sophisticated wall systems for solar heating are crucial to the net-zero energy design. Credit: Pat Corkery Technology — from sophisticated computer modeling to advanced windows that actually open! — […]
NREL Works with Truckers to Reduce Fuel Use
Enlarge image NREL Senior Project Leader Ken Proc examines sensors that measure the outside ambient temperature and compare it to the temperature in truck cabs. Credit: Pat Corkery Being “green” can have positive impacts on your pocket book, and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is working with one industry to find ways to shave […]
New Labs to Concentrate on Solar Thermal Energy
Enlarge image NREL Senior Scientist Cheryl Kennedy holds a sample of an experimental mirror coating to increase the efficiency of concentrating solar power. NREL is receiving $5.4 million in ARRA funding for new laboratories to accelerate CSP research and development. Credit: Pat Corkery As the market for clean solar power rapidly expands, NREL researchers are […]
NREL Uncovers Clean Energy Leaders State by State
Enlarge image California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger tours a solar panel installation on the roof of a Sam’s Club store in Glendora, Calif., earlier this year. California ranks first in the nation in generating renewable energy from non-hydroelectric sources, according to NREL’s 2009 State of the States report. Credit: David McNew/Getty Images An exclusive state-by-state analysis […]