Latest U.S. Department of Energy Stories

Without fungi and microbes to break down dead trees and leaf litter in nature, the forest floor might look like a scene from TV's "Hoarders." Massive-scale genome sequencing projects supported by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and being carried out at the DOE Joint Genome Institute (JGI) highlight the importance of learning how the cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin that serve as a plant's infrastructure can be broken down by these forest organisms to extract needed nutrients. Among...

SAN FRANCISCO, March 22, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- After seeing the potential for customers to save energy and money by downloading personal energy data through its Green Button service, Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) is supporting further industry innovation by sponsoring a nationwide search for the best Green Button energy apps. The Apps for Energy contest is a partnership with the White House, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), and U.S. technology firms. The developer...

DUBLIN, Calif., March 22, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Alameda County and Chevron Energy Solutions joined federal, state and local officials today to unveil a microgrid that enables the county's Santa Rita Jail to sustain power should its connection to the utility grid be interrupted. The $11.7 million project, known as a smart grid, will allow Santa Rita Jail to ensure it has a supply of reliable electricity for its daily operations and security, and will save the county approximately...

A  class of chemical compounds used for flavor and fragrance may one day become a clean, renewable resource with which to fuel our automobiles. U.S. Department of Energy researchers have modified the E. Coli bacteria to create large quantities of methyl ketone from glucose. First tests of this methyl ketone show very high cetane numbers. Cetane is a fuel rating system for diesel fuel, similar to octane ratings for gasoline. This makes the methyl ketones a viable candidate for production of...

DUBLIN, Va., March, 6, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Volvo Trucks' New River Valley (NRV) assembly plant in Dublin, Va. is the first U.S. facility to be certified to the ISO 50001 standards under a pilot program supported by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). NRV is also the first Superior Energy Performance(cm) (SEP)-certified facility to use ISO 50001 as its energy management system standard. ISO 50001 and SEP are, respectively, the top international standard and top U.S. certification...

PORTLAND, Ore., March 6, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (NEEA) and the City of Seattle will take a look at the future of solid-state street lighting in the Pacific Northwest when they collaborate on a three-night streetlight test in Seattle's Ballard neighborhood March 6 - 8. The study will demonstrate the effectiveness of solid-state lighting (SSL) using LEDs. NEEA, working with Seattle City Light and the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT),...

Discovery paves the way for new synthesis of antibiotics Researchers working at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory have used powerful X-rays to help decipher how certain natural antibiotics defy a longstanding set of chemical rules – a mechanism that has baffled organic chemists for decades. Their result, reported today in Nature, details how five carbon atoms and one oxygen atom in the structure of lasalocid, a natural antibiotic produced by...

WASHINGTON, Feb. 23, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- An unseasonable spike in gasoline prices is putting a premium on fuel-efficiency for cost-conscious drivers, says the Alliance to Save Energy. According to AAA, regular unleaded gas has hit $3.61 a gallon nationally, a jump of 23 cents since a month ago and 42 cents in the last year. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20100203/ALLIANCETOSAVEENERGYLOGO) "We cannot control the many factors that cause oil and gasoline prices...

Industry Group Spreading Falsehoods About Viability of Controversial Nuclear Project WASHINGTON, Feb. 23, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- With the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) believed to be just days away from awarding a $8.33 billion taxpayer-backed loan guarantee to Southern Company/Georgia Power and their utility partners for the proposed Vogtle reactors in Georgia, concerned groups are warning that several falsehoods are being spread about the risks faced by U.S. taxpayers....

With More than 15 Times the Solyndra Loan Guarantee on the Line, U.S. Taxpayers Being Kept in the Dark About Huge Vogtle Risks; Nine Groups Cite NRC Law Violation in Going to Court to Block Vogtle Licensing. WASHINGTON, Feb. 16, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- If you are a taxpayer who liked the less than half a billion dollar Solyndra federal loan guarantee debacle, you will love the $8.33 billion loan guarantee to the even riskier Vogtle nuclear reactor project licensed last...