The Renewable Energy Initiative at the Lugar Center for Renewable Energy - IUPUIKyle Cline - Business Manager - Lugar Center for Renewable Energy
The Richard G. Lugar Center for Renewable Energy was established in March 2007 to address the societal needs for clean, affordable and renewable energy sources, improve the nation's energy security, and reduce global warming. Its primary mission is to promote research excellence in the area of renewable energy through collaborative efforts among faculty in the disciplines of engineering, chemistry, physics, biology, and environmental affairs. It will promote renewable energy applications through teaching, learning, civic engagement, and synergistic partnerships with industry, government labs and local communities.
Goals of the Center include to:
Develop an international reputation for excellence in renewable energy research, with an emphasis on renewable hydrogen generation and its applicationsTonight we will look into three issues.
Develop and sustain a core expertise in fuel cell technology and in bio-fuel production and applications<
Develop and sustain research activities through collaborations and partnerships with federal agencies, state government, and industry
Pursue commercialization of new technologies through industry collaborations
Expand participation to all Indiana University campuses
1) Why renewable energy?
2) Why now?
3) What is the Lugar Center Doing?
The major reasons to support renewable energy are:
There is a limited availability of current energy resources
Current energy consumption has lead to negative environmental impact
There is great economic instability in the world and resources are not domestic.
In addition to these, current energy use is very inefficient, prices fossil fuels have risen greatly since WW2 paralleling demand and complete depletion of these resources is projected as follows under current conditions:
Global Oil - 41 years
Natural Gas - 61 years
Coal - 204 years
In the area of efficiency coal to electric power is only 34% efficient with current technology and oil to auto transportation is only 12.6% efficient.
Of all the 894 known oil reserves in the world OPEC nations control 870 and the US controls only 23.
The United States leads the world in Natural Gas usage, CO2 emissions.
From facts such as these we conclude there are three urgent needs:
Reduce reliance on fossil fuels
Use energy sources more efficiently
Develop renewable energy resources
Currently only solar-wind generation of electricity has demonstrated a capacity to be cost effective with current energy economics, and this technology is seeing significant deployment. Even it (to be truly efficient) will require extensive development and implementation of Distributed Power Generation technology, a policy area of study for the Center.
The Lugar Center is currently operating programs in the following specific areas:
Renewable energy through fuel cell technology
Renewable energy through hydrogen (solar and reformer technology)
Environmentally benign usage of renewable fuels (non-competing with food and other essential sources)
Bio-fuel production and applications
Advanced battery and energy storage technology
Hybrid electric vehicles
Plug-in Hybrid electric vehicles
Policy and social issues associated with renewable energy
Currently these is a promising research program at the Center involving testing and fabrication self-healing polymers for use in fuel cell membranes and catalysts. Addition efforts are being applied to the use of ethanol (as opposed to natural gas) as the basic source of hydrogen energy for transport. This has great potential of being clean, lightweight, zero emission, and having very high efficiency.
The Center also has a strong effort to promote public policy and influence the politic to get serious about truly renewable, environmentally passive energy now.
To learn more about the Lugar Center please visit its web site: www.lugarenergycenter.iupui.edu