California Group To Run Energy Hub

A consortium led by California Institute of Technology and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory was selected by the Department of Energy to run a newly created energy research hub that will examine methods to generate fuels directly from sunlight. The goal, according to DOE Deputy Secretary Daniel Poneman, is to find “a cost-effective way to produce fuels as plants do—combining sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide.” This Joint Center for Artificial Photosynthesis will receive $122 million over five years to develop a solar-energy-to-chemical-fuel conversion system and move it to commercialization. This is the second energy hub announced by DOE. Earlier this year, DOE approved funds for a nuclear energy hub, and it soon will announce a third hub related to improving building efficiency. The photosynthesis consortium includes several University of California campuses and the SLAC National Accelerator Lab at Stanford University and will be led by Caltech chemistry professor Nathan S. Lewis.