Two U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) National Laboratories, the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), are working with the University of Kentucky and the Pennsylvania State University to further the research and development of coal-derived carbon fibers.

The second week of the DOE-NETL 2020 Virtual Integrated Project Review Meeting is filled with opportunities to learn from the best. Experts in simulation and modeling to achieve efficiencies in coal- and gas-fired power plants and others in the fields of high performance materials, the current state of the existing power plant fleet, and the use of artificial intelligence and sensors for improved plant operations will be featured Aug. 24-27 in this series of free programs. Session titles and dates are:

NETL researchers envision a future in which hospitals, universities and other institutions will use on-site combined heat and power (CHP) systems to produce their own electricity, as well as the energy to heat and cool their buildings, while burning less fuel and releasing fewer emissions into the atmosphere. To make that happen, NETL’s Thermal Sciences Team is designing advanced airfoils for natural gas turbines to enable CHP systems to operate with greater efficiency.

Oil and gas producers will benefit from NETL’s aptitude as its researchers share their expertise regarding water and the Marcellus Shale during the upcoming Pennsylvania Independent Oil and Gas Association (PIOGA) Waste and Water Technical Session. Scheduled for Aug. 19, the Water and Waste Management Training Session comes as part of PIOGA’s Technical Seminar Series which will be held in a virtual format due to COVID-19. NETL’s presentations will provide attendees with information that can improve the outcomes of their production operations.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy (FE), NETL and the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) are partnering through an interagency agreement that establishes a job-training program to help create a high-tech workforce with advanced welding skills to install and service superalloy components in next-generation fossil-fueled power plants and meet the demand for welders with similar skills in the automotive and aerospace industries.

The 2020 Virtual Integrated Project Review Meeting, a series of free virtual sessions organized by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and NETL, will begin Monday, Aug. 17, with CCUS Integrated Projects, a three-day conference on carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS), and will continue into the fall with sessions highlighting technologies for efficient and cleaner uses of fossil energy resources and value-added products.

In an NETL-supported project with Virginia Tech, researchers developed a safe and  efficient processing technology that can extract and concentrate rare earth elements (REE) from coal refuse material already found throughout the Appalachian region, namely in shales and clays. The new process opens the door to future commercialization, as it decreases the size and cost of needed systems.

Students from all around the country demonstrated their research prowess during the Department of Energy’s 25th Mickey Leland Energy Fellowship (MLEF) summer internship program via virtual conference throughout the week of Aug. 3-7, 2020.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy (FE) and NETL have selected one additional project to receive approximately $1.5 million in federal funding for cost-shared research and development under the second closing of funding opportunity announcement (FOA) DE-FOA-0002001.000001, Crosscutting Research for Coal-Fueled Power Plants.

NETL’s water-cooled Rotating Detonation Engine installed in the Lab’s High Pressure Combustion Test Facility in Morgantown, W.Va.By partnering with a host of federal agencies including NASA, NETL’s rotat