March 25, 2002—Experts from the US Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) have identified key renewable energy technologies that can be used to strengthen US energy security.
According to NREL Director Richard Truly, growing energy contributions made by wind, biomass, geothermal, and solar can help America’s reliance on foreign energy sources. Technologies that NREL researchers have identified as valuable to national security include:
- High-performance buildings designed to use less than half the energy of conventional structures, significantly reducing overall energy demands during power outages.
- Liquid desiccant airflow systems developed by NREL that remove and neutralize airborne biohazards, and could be particularly suited for potentially high-risk buildings such as mail-handling facilities.
- Wind power and solar-electric systems that provide emergency backup power in the event of central power supply disruptions.
- Modular biopower systems that use locally abundant resources and can easily be deployed on a trailer.
- Distributed generation technologies that reduce dependence on mega-power plants by locating generation capacity closer to consumers.
For more information, contact NREL.
