The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Oak Ridge National Laboratory has been selected to lead an Energy Earthshot Research Center, or EERC, focused on developing chemical processes that use sustainable methods instead of burning fossil fuels to radically reduce industrial greenhouse gas emissions to stem climate change and limit the crisis of a rapidly warming planet.
“Our Energy Earthshots are game-changing endeavors to unleash the technologies of the clean energy transition and make them accessible, affordable, and abundant,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm. “The Energy Earthshot Research Centers and the related work happening on college campuses around the country will be instrumental in developing the clean energy and decarbonization solutions we need to establish a 100% clean grid and beat climate change.”
The ORNL-led Non-Equilibrium Energy Transfer for Efficient Reactions Center, or NEETER, will coordinate a research team from across the nation focused on replacing bulk heating for chemical processes with electrified means, providing a new way to do chemistry, and decarbonizing large-scale processes in the chemical industry. DOE has committed $19 million over four years for the center.
“This center is an exciting opportunity to advance innovative methods for performing important chemical reactions with heat derived from electricity instead of burning fossil fuels,” said ORNL’s David Sholl, NEETER Director. “Our world-class team will combine powerful fundamental insights with leadership-class computing to push forward use of mechanochemistry and resistive heating to achieve chemical outcomes that are simply not possible with traditional heating methods.”