It can take as long as 20 years to get a lightweight material from concept to market. If DOE can help cut that by 10 years, the savings and boost to US industry will be substantial. With our national laboratories’ expertise in lightweight materials built on a framework of industry engagement and support, LightMAT can put more of DOE’s resources to work and have a real impact.Reuben Sarkar, deputy assistant secretary for sustainable transportation in DOE’s office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy

DOE’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory will manage the new Lightweight Materials National Lab Consortium (LightMAT)—a network of nine national labs with technical capabilities that are highly relevant to lightweight materials development and use.

LightMAT will provide a single point of contact which will match industry led research teams with specific expertise and equipment found only at the national labs.

PNNL, in collaboration with the eight other DOE national laboratories, is developing a virtual storefront to showcase the capabilities of participating laboratories. Industry partners will now be able to engage LightMAT assistance through the LightMAT website.

Any US company, large or small, is able to seek assistance to locate and use strategic resources to accelerate lightweight materials research & development.

Along with access to national laboratory capabilities, all industrial partners will be able to use collaboration tools and data aggregation tools that are being developed as part of LightMAT. This includes simplified work and technology transfer agreements, and a LightMAT non-disclosure agreement that allows access to all participating laboratories through a single document.

To date, the LightMAT network includes Ames Laboratory; Argonne National Laboratory; Idaho National Laboratory; Los Alamos National Laboratory; Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory; National Renewable Energy Laboratory; Oak Ridge National Laboratory; Pacific Northwest National Laboratory; and Sandia National Laboratories.