Two NETL staff members who specialize in executing partnership agreements to enable the real-world application of the Lab’s expertise and technology were recognized for excellence at the 2022 Spring Meeting of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Technology Transfer Working Group.

Leah Bower and Samantha Zhang received Best in Class honors in the Partnering category for expediting the execution of an inter-agency agreement between the federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) and NETL, which resulted in an opportunity for the Lab to tackle critical pipeline safety issues.

The role of the PHMSA is to ensure the safe transportation of energy and other hazardous materials through the nation’s extensive pipeline system. To develop its Pipeline Safety Testing Enhancement Study, PHMSA asked NETL to provide research and development (R&D) and engineering expertise specifically in oil and natural gas pipelines, aboveground facilities, liquefied natural gas facilities and underground natural gas storage facilities, as well as an economic analysis of pipeline safety investments in a potential independent R&D facility and writing expertise to complete congressional report requirements.

Bower, lead tech transfer agreements specialist, and Zhang, technology transfer analyst, successfully navigated the organizational structures of two separate federal agencies and addressed challenges presented by each organization’s accounting needs and the U.S. Treasury’s new online platform for invoicing. They also resolved potential bottlenecks by coordinating discussions among legal, finance and other teams from both organizations.

Their efforts reduced the internal approval process from the standard 21 days to three days. Furthermore, Bower and Zhang established the groundwork for a streamlined review and approval process for future NETL-PHMSA agreements.

The U.S. natural gas pipeline network includes more than 210 individual pipeline systems that total more than 300,000 miles of interstate and intrastate pipelines. NETL supports a robust project portfolio to develop advanced materials for improved pipeline resiliency, smart sensor systems with monitoring and risk assessment capabilities and other innovations to enhance the integrity of the pipeline system.

“Efforts such as those taken by Leah and Sam ensure that NETL expertise can be used expeditiously to improve the safety and reliability of the nation’s energy infrastructure,” said Jessica Lamp, manager of NETL’s Technology Transfer Innovations Program.

NETL is a U.S. Department of Energy national laboratory that drives innovation and delivers technological solutions for an environmentally sustainable and prosperous energy future. By leveraging its world-class talent and research facilities, NETL is ensuring affordable, abundant and reliable energy that drives a robust economy and national security, while developing technologies to manage carbon across the full life cycle, enabling environmental sustainability for all Americans.