Impacts

NREL water power research is advancing the hydropower and marine energy industries and bringing new tools, data, and analysis in wave energy and hydroelectricity to enable a future clean power grid.

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NREL's Fiscal Year 2023 Water Power Achievements

Browse through notable highlights and successes in this annual NREL water power accomplishments report.

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Meet the Staff Powering NREL's Water Power Research and Development

The research and advances in hydropower and marine energy at NREL is only possible thanks to the hard work of the staff beneath the surface.
Read the profiles in our Beneath the Surface Q&A interview series.

2023 Accomplishments

65+

Projects with industry, academia, other national labs, communities, and more

12

R&D organization partnerships

61

Peer-reviewed publications

$4.7M

Cash awards distributed across 5 prizes and competitions to 267 entrepreneurs and solvers

Water Power Awards and Honors

Elise DeGeorge
2023 NREL Staff Award (for Community Service)

Paul Murdy
2023 Composites and Advanced Materials Expo Outstanding Technical Paper (for his paper titled Investigating Marine Environmental Degradation of Additive Manufacturing Materials for Renewable Energy Applications)

Nicole Mendoza, Nathan Tom, Rebecca Fao, Sahand Sabet, and Calum Kenny
Water Power Technologies Office Seedling and Sapling Program Awards (for seven hydropower and marine energy projects)

David Greene, Kurban Sitterley, and Ariel Miara
2022 American Chemical Society Environmental Science and Technology Engineering Best Paper Award (for the article Cost and Energy Metrics for Municipal Water Reuse)

Educational Resource

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Explore the virtual NREL-developed Renewable Energy Discovery Island to see water power in action.
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"Hydropower is the unsung hero quietly keeping the lights on."

—Jennifer Daw, Hydropower Subprogram Manager

Watch How NREL Is Transforming the Water Power Industry

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Watch more on the NREL Water Power playlist.

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