The Department of Energy launched its seventh project under the Energy Earthshot initiative to promote decarbonization in transportation and chemical production.
The Clean Fuels and Products Shot aims to offset over 650 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually by 2050, through the development of sustainable alternatives for manufacturing fuel and chemicals, DOE announced Wednesday.
The project is a research, development and demonstration effort that will be undertaken by several DOE offices, including the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy and Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.
To decarbonize the petroleum and chemical industries, the new Earthshot will work to create carbon-efficient conversion technologies, mobilize biomass and waste feedstock, and conduct cradle-to-grave lifecycle analysis to distinguish and prioritize the most impactful research innovation.
In line with the initiative, DOE inaugurated the Biofuels National User Facility. The agency spent three years and $15 million to make enhancements to the site, located at Idaho National Laboratory, in order to establish a venue for addressing challenges in feeding, handling and preprocessing biofuels and bioproducts.
“This Energy Earthshot will advance the Biden-Harris Administration’s efforts to diversify the domestic supply chain with cost-competitive, clean fuels and products for daily use and establish the U.S. as a world leader in clean fuel and clean carbon-based chemical production,” Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm commented.
