DOE to award $22.3M to accelerate the development of MD, HD plug-in vehicles and use of other sustainable transportation technologies
06 June 2016
The US Department of Energy (DOE) announced approximately $22.3 million of funding to support research, development, and demonstration of innovative plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) and direct injection propane engine technologies, as well as community-based projects to accelerate the adoption of light, medium, and heavy duty vehicles that operate on fuels such as biodiesel, electricity, E85, hydrogen, natural gas, and propane.
The “Fiscal Year (FY) 2016 Vehicle Technologies Multi-Topic Funding Opportunity Announcement” (DE-FOA-0001535) seeks cost-shared projects across three areas of sustainable transportation technologies.
A new “plug-in electric drive vehicle program” focuses on research, development, and demonstration of medium- and heavy-duty PEVs, from class 3 to 7, including vehicles that can use their onboard energy storage to provide power to electrical loads external to the vehicle.
The PEV projects must include three phases (Phase 1 and Phase 2 combined must not exceed two years):
- Phase 1: Component development (batteries and/or electric drive system)
- Phase 2: Powertrain integration into vehicle(s)
- Phase 3: Vehicle demonstration for at least one year in length but must not exceed two years.
The plug-in vehicle area of interest will receive approximately $7.8 million of the $22.3 million.
DOE is also seeking cost-shared projects for the research, development, and demonstration of direct injection propane engines for on-highway vehicles that could result in substantial reductions of greenhouse gas emissions. This includes light, medium, and heavy‐duty applications.
The engine must be based on a currently‐available commercial engine; the proposed project must include demonstration of the engine in a vehicle or on a test stand.
The DI propane engine area of interest will receive approximately $4.5 million in federal funding.
Lastly, DOE is seeking highly leveraged Alternative Fuel Vehicle Community Partner Projects that will significantly accelerate the use of light-, medium-, and heavy-duty vehicles that operate on fuels such as biodiesel, electricity, E85, hydrogen, natural gas, and propane as well as the fueling infrastructure needed to support them.
Led by community-based partnerships between state and local governments and key private sector stakeholders, these projects are intended to help catalyze alternative fuel use nationwide through the collection and sharing of best practices and lessons learned.
This last area of interest will receive approximately $10 million in funding from the $22.3 million.
Propane is refinery waste, cleaner than gasoline but not that innovative vs electric I feel.
Posted by: TeslaRedux.co | 06 June 2016 at 08:14 PM
We really do need to leave the fossil fuels in the ground: Natural gas, propane and E85 (or as I call it G15) are not the best solutions.
Posted by: ai_vin | 06 June 2016 at 11:22 PM
Propane is a substantial component of gas associated with oil and natural-gas liquids (NGLs). It's a byproduct of the hydro-deoxygenation of triglycerides to make "green diesel".
Posted by: Engineer-Poet | 07 June 2016 at 08:17 AM