DOE Funds Projects On Manufacturing

The Department of Energy will pump $54 million over three years into 13 projects designed to help U.S. manufacturers increase energy efficiency and reduce costs. An additional $17 million for the projects is coming from the private sector. “The projects announced today will improve the competitive position of U.S. industry,” Energy Secretary Steven Chu said in announcing the awards on June 12. Chemistry is central to most of the grants, including projects that aim to improve production costs for titanium alloys, reduce unwanted by-products of ethylene production, and design a large-scale manufacturing process for lithium electrodes for batteries. The largest grant—$9 million, with an estimated $4.5 million more from a private-sector match—is going to Dow Chemical, which is working with Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Ford to develop a lower-cost way to produce carbon fibers.