Energy Department announces $24M for carbon capture projects

U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry recently announced approximately $24 million in federal funding for eight research and development (R&D) projects for Novel and Enabling Carbon Capture Transformational Technologies.

The projects will focus on the development of solvent, sorbent and membrane technologies to address scientific challenges and knowledge gaps related to reducing the cost of carbon capture.

Secretary Perry announced the projects today at a joint press conference with International Energy Agency (IEA) Executive Director Fatih Birol.

“By 2040 the world will still rely on fossil fuels for 77 percent of its energy use,” Perry said. “Our goal is to produce them in a cleaner way. These projects will allow America, and the world for that matter, to use both coal and natural gas with near-zero emissions.”

The Office of Fossil Energy’s (FE’s) Carbon Capture Program is funding the projects. The National Energy Technology Laboratory will manage them.

The scope of the projects align with the scientific challenges and knowledge gaps identified in a Department of Energy (DOE) ministerial-level Mission Innovation report issued in Sept. 2017 titled Accelerating Breakthrough Innovation in Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage.

FE provided approximately $28.9 million to 11 other projects during the the first closing of this funding opportunity announcement in fiscal year 2018.