University of Michigan Energy Institute

Energy Institute EAB member Dan Sperling takes Blue Planet Prize

Daniel Sperling, director of the Institute of Transportation Studies at the University of California, Davis, is one of two recipients of the 2013 Blue Planet Prize. The prize, announced today by the Asahi Glass Foundation of Tokyo, has been described as the Nobel Prize for the environmental sciences.

Sperling is an international expert on transportation technology, fuels and policy, with a focus on energy and… More

Diesel done right: First Bosch Sustainability Fellowship awarded to engineering student studying diesel emissions

by Amy Mast

Electrical Engineering student Mike Hand is the 2013-2014 recipient of the Bosch Sustainability Fellowship, a new $20,000 award given to a promising University of Michigan Master’s student each year. His fellowship work will explore ways to further improve diesel calibration efficiency, which could impact development time and reduce cost.

Diesel engines are a staple of long-haul transport and compose about 50 percent… More

Alternative Fuel Cars Are No Carbon Cure-All, Study Says

by Amy Mast

Making cars more fuel-efficient is great for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, but beyond that, policymakers should turn their gaze to emissions in energy sectors — from oil wells and power plants to farms and forests affected by biofuels production — rather than promoting sales of electric and other alternatively fueled vehicles. That’s the eye-opener in a new paper by… More

2013-06-21 Clean Energy Manufacturing Initiative Midwest Regional Summit

The Clean Energy Manufacturing Initiative (CEMI) is a new Department of Energy initiative focused on increasing American competitiveness in Clean Energy Manufacturing. Led by the Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy (EERE), the initiative aims to:

Increase U.S. competitiveness in the production of clean energy products: Strategically invest in technologies that leverage American competitive advantages and overcome competitive disadvantages.
Increase U.S. manufacturing competitiveness across

… More

Big Problems, Simple Solutions: Energy Institute-Led Team Receives Third Century Grant

by Amy Mast

Ten researchers at the University of Michigan are combining their considerable resources, talent and experience to find a solution.

Now they just have to figure out what the problem is.

The group has received a $300,000 Global Challenges grant from the University’s Third Century Initiative, a highly competitive $50 million, five-year funded research program developed by the Office of the Provost. The… More

Nuclear for good: Michigan Memorial Phoenix Seed Funding Projects Selected

Could these good ideas be great ideas? Sometimes you just need a little bit of money to find out.

One of the nation’s oldest organizations dedicated to beneficial use of atomic energy- the Michigan Memorial Phoenix Project- has awarded four small grants to a new class of awardees. These small grants allow researchers to explore interesting, risky “first” questions in lines of inquiry that could… More

Energy Institute Director installed as first DTE Energy Professor

Mark Barteau, the Director of the University of Michigan Energy Institute, was officially installed as the Department of Chemical Engineering’s DTE Professor of Advanced Energy Research on April 25.

Barteau, who was named to the position in fall 2012, is an internationally recognized expert on catalysis- a process by which a chemical reaction is aided by the introduction of a non-reactive ingredient. A better understanding… More

DeCicco quoted in NYT fuel emissions story

A new National Research Council Report details the difficulty of reaching US 80% fuel and emissions reduction goals by 2050, noting that vehicle efficiency alone won’t get emissions to the target rate. UMEI Research Professor John DeCicco served on the committee preparing the report and was quoted in a March 19 New York Times article summarizing it. An excerpt from the Times piece, titled “No… More

U-M, Ben-Gurion Energy collaboration accepting concept papers

Got a great idea? As part of their newly signed collaborative agreement to jointly fund research proposals related to energy, the University of Michigan and Israel’s Ben-Gurion University of the Negev are cooperatively funding research related to energy security. Both universities have common and complementary expertise in energy-related science and technology; this program is intended to develop and foster joint research activities that increase personnel… More

Stephen Maldonado, Energy Institute affiliate faculty, receives Sloan Fellowship

Stephen Maldonado, assistant professor of chemistry and a member of the applied physics program is one among three U-M professors selected as a 2013 Alfred P. Sloan research fellow. Maldonado’s research interests lie in designing and synthesizing more efficient materials for electrochemical energy conversion and storage systems.