Department of Energy
DOE’s involvement in advanced automotive research dates back to its inception in 1976 and
before that in its predecessor agency, the Energy Research and Development Agency. Many
elements of DOE’s mission are directly relevant to advanced vehicles, especially the goals of
improving efficiency of energy use, diversifying energy sources, and improving environmental
quality.DOE’s 10 national laboratories are heavily involved in advanced vehicle research and have
been encouraged to form Cooperative Research and Development Agreements (CRADAS) with
industry and with the U.S. Council for Automotive Research (USCAR) consortia to develop
jointly automotive technologies. In these CRADAS, DOE finds the laboratory efforts, while the
industry funds its share of the work. A master CRADA has been developed to be the model for all
such efforts by PNGV which eliminates the need to renegotiate the terms for each new
agreement. Focal areas of DOE research include advanced engine technologies such as gas
turbines, hybrid vehicles, alternative fuels, fuel cells, advanced energy storage, and lightweight
materials.
DOE has the lion’s share of PNGV-related federal R&D with $159 million of the total of $270
million (59 percent) in FY 1995. As noted above, the Office of Transportation Technologies
(OTT) programs are the centerpiece of PNGV Major OTT R&D programs are described below.The Electric and Hybrid Vehicle Propulsion Program is the cornerstone of DOE’s
transportation fuel efficiency research. Established under the Electric and Hybrid Vehicle
Research Development, and Demonstration Act of 1976 as amended, this program recently
released its 18th annual report to Congress. The three components of this cost-shared program
with industry consist of Advanced Battery Systems, Fuel Cell Systems, and Propulsion Systems
Development, including hybrid vehicles.Advanced Battery Systems and High Power Energy Storage Devices. In October 1991, DOE
joined with the Big Three and the Electric Power Research Institute to fund the U.S. Advanced
Battery Consortium (USABC), a 12-year, 50-50 cost-shared, $260 million program to develop
batteries with acceptable energy and power densities for electric and hybrid vehicles. USABC has
identified both mid-term and long-term goals for battery performance. As of early 1995, the
program involved six industrial contractors and six CRADAs with national laboratories. Three of
the development contracts are for batteries that can satis~ the mid-term criteria, and three are for
longer term technologies that could make EVS competitive with conventional gasoline-powered
cars. In FY 1995, DOE provided $26.9 million to the joint USABC program, as well as $1.8
million for exploratory research on new battery technologies at several national laboratories.
Requested finding for FY 1996 is $20 million for USABC and $2 million for exploratory
research. The decrease in USABC finds from FY 1995 to FY 1996 reflects a focus on fewer
batteries and the completion of mid-term battery development.
In FY 1996, roughly $10 million is requested to let cost-shared contracts through USABC for
development of high-power energy storage devices, implementing a program begun in FY 1994.
Development contracts for storage devices will be competitively selected among batteries,
ultracapacitors, and flywheels. These will be used in hybrid and fiel cell propulsion systems.