Energy Analysis News
Explore our archive of Energy Analysis news stories.
Dec. 22, 2020
Make informed decisions about renewable energy system design and project economics with the latest version of NREL's System Advisor Model.
Dec. 22, 2020
NREL researchers and staff reached countless goals and achieved numerous successes in science, partnerships, and technology commercialization in 2020, from breaking world records to launching new initiatives. Here are just a few of the highlights.
Dec. 18, 2020
For nearly a decade, JISEA has supported analysis and dialogue on the potential of nuclear-renewable hybrid energy systems to provide sustainable, cost-effective, and reliable power, heat, and other energy services.
Dec. 8, 2020
Future novel hybrid energy systems could lead to paradigm shifts in clean energy production, according to a paper published last week in Joule. Researchers from the U.S. DOE's three applied energy laboratories co-authored the paper describing such integrated energy systems.
Dec. 3, 2020
Explore 45 forward-looking scenarios and a new interactive data viewer with the latest release of our flagship Standard Scenarios.
Dec. 2, 2020
The early days of the ongoing pandemic were marked by shortages of personal protective equipment and coronavirus testing materials. To help overcome those challenges, an NREL research team led by Samantha Reese and Alberta Carpenter identified pinch points in the manufacturing process due to simultaneous shortages and increased demand for face shields, N95 respirators, and materials used in coronavirus tests.
Nov. 5, 2020
Moving from a linear to a circular economy for energy materials starts with research and development. JISEA Analyst Garvin Heath and a team of researchers are leading the charge.
Nov. 5, 2020
WESyS simulates the possible evolution of the U.S. waste-to-energy industry based on industrial, technological, and policy-related factors.
Oct. 20, 2020
As a University of Texas graduate student in 2011, Ben Sigrin tried to understand how people make decisions about purchasing or leasing rooftop solar panels. He quickly found that it is not black or white—and that there is no average consumer.
Oct. 19, 2020
NREL's Distributed Generation Market Demand (dGen) model is publicly available for the first time. Public users can access model methodology and instructions, run the code, and receive technical support from the dGen team.
Oct. 8, 2020
H2@Scale Initiative finds achievable 2X to 4X U.S. hydrogen market growth.
Oct. 2, 2020
R&D World magazine today presented NREL with four of its annual R&D 100 Awards for research innovations. In addition to the R&D 100 winners, two additional NREL technologies were given Special Recognition Awards.
Sept. 29, 2020
Hybrid systems of floating solar panels and hydropower plants may hold the technical potential to produce a significant portion of the electricity generated annually across the globe, according to an analysis by researchers at NREL.
Sept. 17, 2020
In a recently published journal article, NREL researchers investigated the soil impacts of solar PV array installations and considered how energy and agriculture can coexist.
Sept. 2, 2020
The devastating hurricane that struck northwest Florida in October 2018 proved an ideal case study for a risk assessment tool developed by NREL.
Aug. 27, 2020
The first-ever Transportation Annual Technology Baseline consolidates U.S. vehicle and fuel technologies data for current and future markets through 2050.
Aug. 18, 2020
A year into their unique collaboration, NREL and ExxonMobil are navigating a multi-pronged effort toward a future where clean-burning biofuels replace some petroleum-based fuels.
Aug. 17, 2020
A new literature review suggests climate change is anticipated to impact regional and global energy systems, with varying magnitudes of effects across regions and technologies.
Aug. 13, 2020
Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette introduced two new acronyms to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory's (NREL's) lexicon on Aug. 12: RAIL and ARIES. RAIL stands for Research and Innovation Laboratory, while ARIES is short for Advanced Research on Integrated Energy Systems.
Aug. 3, 2020
As electric vehicle sales continue to rev up in the United States, the power grid is in parallel contending with the greatest transformation in its 100-year history: the large-scale integration of renewable energy and power electronic devices. The changes will test the limits of grid integration, but NREL sees opportunity at the intersection of energy systems and transportation.
July 30, 2020
For Jeff Logan, a curiosity came alive when he went to college. This curiosity has brought him around the world to study the clean energy transition.
July 22, 2020
Most of us do not remember the first time we experienced electricity. It has always been a given. But for Haiku Sky, it is a distinct memory. He was four years old—and was fascinated by the idea that you could flip a switch and there would be light.
July 17, 2020
Solar energy technologies could meet process heating demands, reduce carbon emissions, and improve heating efficiency in the U.S. industrial sector—for up to 15-50% energy savings.
July 17, 2020
What can the Renewable Energy Potential (reV) model calculate when it comes to renewable energy potential? Just about everything.
July 13, 2020
Due to rapid increase of PV installations over the past decade, there is expected to be an explosion of retired PV modules by 2050. NREL scientists propose research and development to advance processes for managing that waste and establishing a PV circular economy.
July 9, 2020
Released each year, electricity-generation technology cost and performance data power forward-looking analyses at NREL and beyond.
July 7, 2020
Researchers at NREL have developed a novel machine learning approach to quickly enhance the resolution of wind velocity data by 50 times and solar irradiance data by 25 times—an enhancement that has never been achieved before with climate data.
July 1, 2020
The Open Energy Data Initiative Data Lake hosts high-value data sets and analytics tools in one public location, expanding access to the broader research community and accelerating innovation.
June 22, 2020
Motorists can save as much as $14,500 on fuel costs over 15 years by driving an electric vehicle instead of a similar one fueled by gasoline, according to a new analysis conducted by researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy's NREL and Idaho National Laboratory.
June 19, 2020
Some soul-searching and road-tripping set her on the right route to her goal of working with NREL's System Advisor Model.
June 18, 2020
Eight teams from across the United States are working with NREL to develop and test novel applications of solar energy in rural communities and commercial-scale settings as part of the second round of the Solar Energy Innovation Network.
May 28, 2020
A new video and report explain the historical role of inertia in maintaining a reliable power system—and how this role is changing as the grid evolves.
April 30, 2020
Based on user feedback, NREL recently upgraded the Materials Flows through Industry modeling tool for improved ease of use and enhanced accuracy in modeling the U.S. industrial sector supply chain.
March 25, 2020
Ten years since its founding, the Joint Institute for Strategic Energy Analysis continues to provide critical insights linking energy, society, and prosperity around the world.
March 17, 2020
The vast majority of solar panels are living up to expectations for energy production after five years, according to a new analysis of 100,000 photovoltaic (PV) systems across the United States.
March 2, 2020
Biennial data compilation identifies changes in markets and power system operations as renewables are integrated onto the grid.
Feb. 26, 2020
The REopt Lite web tool evaluates the economic viability of grid-connected photovoltaics, wind, and battery storage at a site. REopt Lite Open Source lets programmers, software developers, and researchers access the code behind the web tool.
Feb. 19, 2020
New Data Compilation Includes Information on Industrial Energy Prices and Economic Activity for 2016-2018.
Feb. 18, 2020
New edition also shows continued growth in U.S. installed wind and solar photovoltaic capacity, energy storage, and electric vehicle sales.
Jan. 7, 2020
A series of reports identify how Bangladesh, India, and Nepal might develop a coordinated regulatory framework to effectively implement cross-border electricity trade.
Jan. 2, 2020
An oft-repeated refrain—the sun doesn't always shine, is sometimes seen as an impediment to renewable energy. But it's also an impetus toward discovering the best ways to store that energy until it's needed.
