Almost every penny of this money should be spent buying TH!NK cars for the use of the various labratories and pay for their modification to plug-in-hybrids.

The ZEBRA battery available in these cars will become far less expensive in large quantities and will be totaly usable in the hottest and coldest climates without elaborate cooling systems. In cold areas, the heat of the battery can be considered as part of its energy storage capacity and heat the vehicle.

In the hottest climates, the battery is already so hot inside its cool vacuum insulated case that the only thing needed to cool it is a small blast of the hottest desert air. The inside of the battery is actualy cooler than the exhaust manifold of a car engine.

When the battery is too worn to meet the very high perfomance required for automobile acceleration and regeneration, it can be used by companies for power load leveling. Failed cells bypass themselves and lead to only a slight loss of capacity. Failed cells can even be replaced by new or used ones. Working cells from used batteries could be grouped in a new case for utility and other purposes.

High power low energy flyweels can be used in parallel with smaller ZEBRA batteries to lower the cost and increase the life of the system, and allow the cells to be designed for higher miles not for fast starts. Electric flywheels have been used in large trams and wind energy systems.

Ultracaps, with only the low energy capacity of a few large electric torch "D" cells, can be used for acceleration of heavy hybrid coaches, and have proven the applicability of high power low energy devices. CISIRO has a combination lead battery with ultracaps built in.

The TH!NK cars should be modified with a very small, single unit APT OPOC engine-alternator balanced to run on bio-diesel or ethanol at the highest speeds. The engine is not intended to be operated for a large percentage of the operational time of the vehicle, but it is intended for the ocassional long trip as well as an emergency return to home. Other cheaper engines might be considered for vehicles that will almost never exceed their full electric range. It is possible that two or more tiny single-piston engine-alternators would be a good fit, and modern vehicle computers could control any number. Even RCV engines could be considered. Or the engine-alternators in HONDA's inverter generators considered.

Opposed dual piston INNAS NOAX hydraulic actuated engines fitted with alternators would be a good choice for reliabilty as well. Their complexity is in the computer program.

The VOLT seems to carry the large slow engine mentality into the PHEV world. Read the papers about the engine for the very high performance TZERO long distance trailer. Where there is little use of the engine, high efficiency and long life are an extra expense.

That money not spent on TH!NK cars should be spent to equip many popular used cars with the US government developed hydraulic hybrid system used in the UPS version. Because of the smaller engine required, any hybrid has higher efficiency. The hydraulic hybrid can be converted to plug-in-hybrid with the addition of a high energy low power battery, a simple low power DC-Motor-pump and simple pressure switches. A bit of cleverness in selecting the pump and motor can even allow regeneration down long grades when the high pressure tanks are full.

Parry People Movers has a flywheel hydraulic tram that can "plug-in" at stops or use a small engine. Much money and fuel would be saved by buying Parry People Movers to operate on US funded light rail and tram projects for light use or night operation and operations on non-electrified old or new track. ..HG..

Henry, there's more to energy than just the transport sector.  New energy technologies need to be pushed out for the whole economy.

Just a nebulous announcement that the national labs will be getting some funds to do something good.

Industry is spending billions around the world with the same goals. So I am a bit dubious about how much this $7m will

"accelerate the movement of clean energy technologies from DOE’s national laboratories to the marketplace."

That is the present administration's way of saying that they are doing very little but want you to think that they are doing a lot. They are good with names and labels that many times mean the opposite of what they imply.