Energy for Sustainability

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NSF Directorate for Engineering Division
of Chemical, Bioengineering, Environmental, and
Transport Systems (CBET) Environmental
Engineering Sustainability Cluster Energy for
Sustainability Program Director - Greg Rorrer
- grorrer _at_nsf.gov
Rotator from Oregon State University, Chemical
Engineering (24 August 2009)

• ? Current Program Interest Areas
• ? Existing Award Portfolio
• ? Recent Proposal Activity
• ? Examples of Program Research Projects

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ENG/CBET Energy for Sustainability Program
Emphasis Areas
Metabolic Engineering for Biofuels
Microbial Fuel Cells
Algae for Biofuels
Bio H2
Biofuels Bioenergy
Thermocatalytic Biomass Conversion to Liquid Fuels
Lignocellulose Bio-Conversion
Fuel Cells Powered by Renewables
Renewable Energy Production Technologies
Wind Energy
Wave/Tidal Hydrokinetic Energy
Solar Photovoltaics
Photocatalysis (solar fuels)
Nanostructured Semiconductors for PV
Photonic/ Plasmonics for PV
Polymer/ Organic PV
Geoff Prentice FY 2011
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Budget FY 2010 - Approximately 9.2 Million
Description Awards Total Dollars
Total Proposals Received 429 ---
Unsolicited Awards 29 6,693,062
CAREER (27 Proposals) 3 1,200,000
EAGER/RAPID 1 48,860
GOALI 0 0
Workshop/Conferences 9 134,971
Supplements (REU, etc.) 8 106,855
Co-funded Awards 1 48,860
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CBET Energy for Sustainability Program Award
Portfolio 32.5 million (07 - 10)
ARRA American Reinvestment Recovery Act (2009)
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CBET Energy for Sustainability Program Award
Portfolio 131 grants (07 10)
(11 Total CAREER Awards, 3 per year)
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CBET Energy for Sustainability Program Proposal
Activity FY 2010
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CBET Energy for Sustainability Program Topical
Areas of Awards (07 10)
Biofuels Bioenergy 37 awards, 9.05 mil
MFC microbial fuel cell Algae algal
biofuels Bio-H2 hydrogenase systems Biomass
hydrolysis, pretreatment
Solar Photovoltaics (PV) 35 awards, 9.30 mil
SC Semiconductor PV SC Earth-abundant SC
PV DSC Dye-sensitized PV OPV Polymer-based
PV H2 PV for water splitting
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CBET Energy for Sustainability Program Topical
Areas of Awards (07 10)
Fuel Cells (FC) 30 awards, 7.73 mil
PEM poly. electrolyte membrane SOFC solid
oxide FC DAFC direct alcohol FC DCFC direct
carbohydrate FC
Wind Wave Energy 17 awards, 3.74 mil
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CBET Energy for Sustainability Program Current
Investments Biofuels Bioenergy
Rajesh Khare, Texas Tech (CBET0854463)

• Plant biomass conversion
• Pretreatment enzymes
• Thermal-catalytic conversion to
• liquid hydrocarbons
• Advanced biofuels
• Biofuels via metabolic engineering
• Energy-rich metabolites from algae
• Fuels from CO2
• Bioenergy
• Microbial/enzyme fuel cells
• Direct carbohydrate fuel cells
• Hydrogenase water-splitting to H2

• Utilization of light energy to
• Drive metabolically
• expensive reactions
• Generate electricity

Claudia Schmidt-Dannert Univ. Minnesota (CBET
0756296)
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CBET Energy for Sustainability Program Current
Investments Wind Wave Energy

• Modeling simulation (wind)
• Turbine aerodynamics control
• Wind turbine farm interactions
• with atmospheric boundary layer
• Advanced concepts (wind)
• Gas-expanded lubricants
• Piezoelectric systems
• Floating structures
• Tethered systems
• Wave/Tidal/Hydrokinetic
• Bio-inspired systems

Marilyn Smith, Georgia Tech (CBET
0731034) Advances in Wind Turbine Analysis and
Design for Sustainable Energy
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NSF Engineering Investments in Solar
Photovoltaic (PV) Materials Devices

• Innovative integration of new materials devices
  for 3rd generation PV
• Nanowires, nanotubes
• Nanocrystalline/thin film
• Earth-abundant materials
• Multi-junction/hybrid stacks
• Plasmonic structures
• Photonic structures
• Dye-sensitized solar cells
• Polymer-based photovoltaics
• Self-assembled systems
• Biomimetic/bioinspired systems

Cherie R. Kagan Univ. of Pennsylvania
Russel Holmes, University of Minnesota
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Copper Zinc Tin Sulfide (CZTS) Based Solar
Cells Eray S. Aydil, University of Minnesota
(CBET 0931145)
Process develop thin film deposition methods
that will lead to CZTS based solar cells
New Material CZTS is made from earth abundant
nontoxic elements
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Sustainable Photosynthetic Hydrogen
Evolution Paul Frymier, University of Tennessee
(CBET-0828615)
FY 2010 Highlight
Ni-Fe hydrogenase
H2
e-
Increasing the binding affinity of Cytochrome to
Photosystem I (PS-I) is increases the transfer of
electrons, which increases the rate of hydrogen
(H2) production
Ferredoxin
2H

PS-I
e-
Cytochrome c553
Fusion complex of PS-I from a thermophyllic
cyanobacterium hydrogenase enzyme generates H2
under sunlight
Engineered Cytochrome
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