Renewable energy

Abstract

Today, we're developing advanced technologies for converting energy crops, agricultural waste, and other biomass resources into products that benefit the economy at both the local and national level. This paper discusses the downside of recent reports that deep budget cuts would mean axing another 360 jobs at NREL, the nation's leading center for renewable energy research. Affected programs include ethanol, methanol and biodiesel production; advanced wind turbines that harvest cost-competitive energy throughout the Great Plains; and photovoltaic devices, which are now competing for hundreds of rural niche markets but require further development to reach full potential as utility-scale power generators. Waste-to-energy technologies, superconducting energy storage systems, and resource assessment programs would be eliminated under current budget scenarios. Energy forecasters from Shell International Petroleum Company predict that renewable energy technologies will play a significant role in world energy production by the year 2050. Population growth, rapid industrialization of emerging nations, and decreasing fossil fuels reserves were all cited as contributing factors to this paradigm shift in energy sources. DOE and its industry partners are developing technologies to meet tomorrow's energy needs.