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48-699: Since January 2023, the director is Evelyn Wang . ARPA-E was initially conceived by a report by the National Academies entitled Rising Above the Gathering Storm: Energizing and Employing America for a Brighter Economic Future . The report described a need for the US to stimulate innovation and develop clean, affordable, and reliable energy. ARPA-E was officially created by the America COMPETES Act , authored by Congressman Bart Gordon , within

96-666: A bioreactor with potential to produce gasoline directly from sunlight and carbon dioxide, and crystal growth technology to lower the cost of light emitting diodes . The U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu announced a second round of ARPA-E funding opportunities on December 7, 2009. ARPA-E solicited projects that focused on three critical areas: Biofuels from Electricity (Electrofuels), Batteries for Electrical Energy Storage in Transportation (BEEST), and Innovative Materials and Processes for Advanced Carbon Capture Technologies (IMPACCT). On April 29, 2010, Vice President Biden announced

144-452: A "Soluble Acid Lead Flow Battery" that pumps chemicals through a battery cell when electricity is needed (GRIDS), "Silicon Carbide Power Modules for Grid Scale Power Conversion" that uses advanced transistors to make the electrical grid more flexible and controllable (ADEPT), and an "Absorption-Osmosis Cooling Cycle," a new air conditioning system that uses water as a refrigerant, rather than chemicals (BEET-IT). ARPA-E's fourth round of funding

192-498: A faculty member in 2007. Wang is particularly known for her research on solar-powered devices to extract drinkable water from the atmosphere. Scientific American and the World Economic Forum named her technology that produces water from air in an arid climate as one of the "Top 10 Emerging Technologies of 2017". Her water extraction device, which she designed in collaboration with Omar M. Yaghi , has been compared to

240-548: A leave of absence from UMD to become chief scientist at BP , a position which she held until April 2014. Then, having been nominated by President Barack Obama in November 2013 to become director of ARPA-E and awaiting Senate confirmation, she became a senior adviser in the office of the Secretary of Energy . She was confirmed on December 8, 2014, and subsequently sworn into her position at ARPA-E. She served as ARPA-E director until

288-1776: A liquid that turns solid when exposed to carbon dioxide. On March 2, 2010, at the inaugural ARPA-E Energy Innovation Summit, U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced a third funding opportunity for ARPA-E projects. Like the second funding opportunity, ARPA-E solicited projects by category: Grid-Scale Rampable Intermittent Dispatchable Storage (GRIDS), Agile Delivery of Electrical Power Technology (ADEPT), and Building Energy Efficiency Through Innovative Thermodevices (BEET-IT). GRIDS welcomed projects that focused on widespread deployment of cost-effective grid-scale energy storage in two specific areas: 1) proof of concept storage component projects focused on validating new, over-the-horizon electrical energy storage concepts, and 2) advanced system prototypes that address critical shortcomings of existing grid-scale energy storage technologies. ADEPT focused on investing in materials for fundamental advances in soft magnetics, high voltage switches, and reliable, high-density charge storage in three categories: 1) fully integrated, chip-scale power converters for applications including, but not limited to, compact, efficient drivers for solid-state lighting, distributed micro-inverters for photovoltaics, and single-chip power supplies for computers, 2) kilowatt scale package integrated power converters by enabling applications such as low-cost, efficient inverters for grid-tied photovoltaics and variable speed motors, and 3) lightweight, solid-state, medium voltage energy conversion for high power applications such as solid-state electrical substations and wind turbine generators. BEET-IT solicited projects regarding energy efficient cooling technologies and air conditioners (AC) for buildings to save energy and reduce GHG emissions in

336-531: A pipeline of energy technology innovation that ranges from early stage to more mature stages of technical readiness. As a result of ARPA-E's unique operational model, in which projects are managed both against ambitious technical and commercial goals, increasing numbers of the mature projects were proving attractive to follow-on investors, had products in field testing, or had early stage commercial products. During her tenure at ARPA-E, Williams focused on streamlining ARPA-E's administrative processes to better support

384-415: A process of debate surrounding the technical/scientific merits and challenges of potential research areas. Programs must satisfy both “technology push”—the technical merit of innovative platform technologies that can be applied to energy systems—and “market pull”—the potential market impact and cost-effectiveness of the technology. The program creation process begins with a “deep dive” where an energy problem

432-546: A project under Electrofuels entitled "Engineering a Bacterial Reverse Fuel Cell," which focuses on development of a bacterium that can convert carbon dioxide into gasoline. MIT received an award under BEEST for a proposal entitled "Semi-Solid Rechargeable Fuel Battery," a concept for producing lighter, smaller, and cheaper vehicle batteries. IMPAACT projects included the GE Global Research Center 's "CO2 Capture Process Using Phase-Changing Absorbents," which focuses on

480-516: A replacement for rare earth magnets based on an innovative composite using manganese materia (REACT); a project entitled "HybriSol," that develops a heat battery to store energy from the sun (HEATS); a project that develops a new system that allows real-time, automated control over the transmission lines that make up the electric power grid (GENI); and a project that develops light-weight electronics to connect to photovoltaic solar panels to be installed on walls or rooftops. Since 2010, ARPA-E has hosted

528-1544: A review panel. One notable facet of ARPA-E's evaluation process is the opportunity for the applicant to read reviewers’ comments and provide a rebuttal that the Agency reviews before making funding decisions. The applicant response period allows ARPA-E to avoid misunderstandings by asking clarifying questions that enable ARPA-E to make informed decisions. The U.S. Department of Energy and ARPA-E awarded $ 151 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds on October 26, 2009 for 37 energy research projects. It supported renewable energy technologies for solar cells , wind turbines , geothermal drilling , biofuels , and biomass energy crops . The grants also supported energy efficiency technologies, including power electronics and engine-generators for advanced vehicles , devices for waste heat recovery , smart glass and control systems for smart buildings , light-emitting diodes (LEDs), reverse-osmosis membranes for water desalination , catalysts to split water into hydrogen and oxygen, improved fuel cell membranes, and more energy-dense magnetic materials for electronic components. Six grants went to energy storage technologies, including an ultracapacitor , improved lithium-ion batteries , metal-air batteries that use ionic liquids , liquid sodium batteries , and liquid metal batteries . Other awards went to projects that conducted research and development on

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576-518: A senior advisor to the Secretary on DOE's technology transfer policies, issues, and plans. She established the Department's new Office of Technology Transitions to expand the economic impact of the Department's extensive Research and Development activities. Williams joined ARPA-E just before its sixth anniversary, as the Agency's portfolio of active and alumni technology development programs were forming

624-685: A significant output, totaling 4,614. In addition, the program has generated 716 patents. Evelyn Wang Evelyn Ning-Yi Wang is a mechanical engineer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where she is the Ford Professor of Mechanical Engineering, director of the Device Research Laboratory, and chair of the Department of Mechanical Engineering. Topics in her research include heat transfer , ultrahydrophobicity , solar energy and nanostructures . Wang

672-440: A youth orchestra. Like her parents and her two older brothers, Wang attended MIT herself, earning a bachelor's degree there in 2000. Her doctorate is from Stanford University in 2006. Her dissertation, Characterization of Microfabricated Two-Phase Heat Sinks for IC Cooling Applications , was jointly supervised by Thomas W. Kenny and Kenneth E. Goodson. Wang did postdoctoral research at Bell Labs before returning to MIT as

720-520: Is explored to identify potential topics for program development. ARPA-E Program Directors then hold technical workshops to gather input from experts in various disciplines about current and upcoming technologies. To date, ARPA-E has hosted or co-hosted 13 technical workshops. Following each workshop, the Program Director proposes a new program and defends the program against a set of criteria that justifies its creation. The Program Director then refines

768-537: Is the daughter of Kang L. Wang , an electrical engineer who emigrated from Taiwan to the US to become a graduate student at MIT; her mother Edith Wang was also a Taiwanese graduate student at MIT, where both parents met one another. Her father became a professor at the University of California, Los Angeles , and Wang grew up in Santa Monica, California , attending public school there and traveling internationally as part of

816-475: Is the vice-chair of JASON , an independent group of scientists offering advice to the US government on key science and technology issues. At BP, Williams worked in Group Technology, where she was responsible for assurance of technology programs, and strategic research and program development. Early in her tenure, she set up the initial advisory structure for BP's Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative Within

864-794: The United States Department of Energy (DOE) in 2007, though without a budget. The initial budget of about $ 400 million was a part of the economic stimulus bill of February 2009. In early January 2011, the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2010 made additional changes to ARPA-E's structure; this structure is codified in Title 42, Chapter 149, Subchapter XVII, § 16538 of the United States Code. Among its main provisions, Section 16538 provides that ARPA-E shall achieve its goals through energy technology projects by doing

912-613: The 37 awardees that ARPA-E had selected from over 540 initial concept papers. The awards ranged from around $ 500,000 to $ 6 million and involved a variety of national laboratories, universities, and companies. Unlike the First Funding Opportunity, the Second Funding Opportunity designated project submissions by category. Of the selected projects, 14 focused on IMPAACT, 13 focused on Electrofuels, and 10 focused on BEEST. For example, Harvard Medical School submitted

960-933: The 8th Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz International Prize for Water . She was named to the 2021 class of Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science . In 2023 she was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences . Ellen D. Williams (chemist) Ellen D. Williams ForMemRS (born December 5, 1953) is an American scientist, best known for her research in surface properties and nanotechnology, for her engagement with technical issues in national security, as chief scientist of BP , and for government service as director of ARPA-E . Born in Oshkosh, Wisconsin , Williams grew up in

1008-677: The Energy Innovation Summit. The 10th Summit was held July 8–10, 2019 in Denver, Colorado , and the 11th Summit was held March 17–19, 2021 at the Gaylord Convention Center, near Washington, D.C. ARPA-E has generated over 1,000 projects since inception, attracted about $ 4.9 billion in private investment for 179 of these projects, with $ 2.6 billion invested in R&;D by the US government. Published, peer reviewed research articles are also

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1056-1075: The Gathering Storm” report. August 9, 2007 President George W. Bush signed into law the America COMPETES Act that codified many of the recommendations in the National Academies report, thus creating ARPA-E. April 27, 2009 President Barack Obama allocated $ 400 million in funding to ARPA-E from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 . September 18, 2009 President Barack Obama nominated Arun Majumdar as Director of ARPA-E. October 22, 2009 Senate confirmed Arun Majumdar as ARPA-E's first Director. October 26, 2009 Department of Energy awarded $ 151 million in Recovery Act funds for 37 energy research projects under ARPA-E's first Funding Opportunity Announcement. December 7, 2009 U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu announced ARPA-E's second round of funding opportunities in

1104-754: The Materials Research Science and Engineering Center in 1996. She served as its director from 1996 through 2009. In 2000 she was named distinguished university professor. She was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2003, and to the National Academy of Sciences in 2005. She served as the chair of the NAS committee on Technical Issues Concerning the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty from 2009 to 2011. In 2010, Williams took

1152-677: The U.S. government, primarily through the Departments of Energy and Defense. As a result of her experience, in 2009 she was asked to lead a study on issues of verification of nuclear testing, which was one of the concerns cited in the Senate decision not to ratify the treaty in 1999. The resulting report, reviews the verification capabilities in the US and at the Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Organization (CTBTO), and shows that detection capability advanced significantly over

1200-425: The areas of “Electrofuels”, “Innovative Materials & Processes for Advanced Carbon Capture Technologies (IMPACCT),” and “Batteries for Electrical Energy Storage in Transportation (BEEST).” March 1 – 3, 2010 ARPA-E hosted the inaugural “Energy Innovation Summit” which attracted over 1,700 participants. March 2, 2010 U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu announced ARPA-E's third round of funding opportunity in

1248-659: The areas of “Grid-Scale Rampable Intermittent Dispatchable Storage (GRIDS),” “Agile Delivery of Electrical Power Technology (ADEPT),” and “Building Energy Efficiency Through Innovative Thermodevices (BEET-IT).” April 29, 2010 Vice President Joe Biden announced 37 awarded projects under ARPA-E's second funding opportunity. July 12, 2010 Department of Energy awarded $ 92 Million for 42 research projects under ARPA-E's third funding opportunity. December 8, 2014 Ellen Williams confirmed by Senate as Director of ARPA-E. June 28, 2019 Lane Genatowski confirmed by Senate as Director of ARPA-E. December 22, 2022 Evelyn Wang

1296-496: The company, she advocated for increased implementation of advanced computational approaches in molecular chemistry, fluid dynamics, and distributed sensing and ‘big data’ analysis. She also led a strategic multi-university research program on natural resource constraints in the context of energy (the Energy Sustainability Challenge),. In addition to the extensive University research publications that resulted from

1344-556: The department of physics and astronomy, which is part of the University of Maryland College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences , she advanced to associate professor in 1987, and professor of physics and the Institute for Physical Science and Technology in 1991. Building on her fundamental work on the morphology of solid surfaces, she founded the University of Maryland Materials Research Group in 1991 and led its expansion to become

1392-475: The dependence on rare earth materials by developing substitutes in two key areas: electric vehicle motors and wind generators. HEATS funded projects that promoted advancement in thermal energy storage technology. GENI focused on funding software and hardware that could reliably control the grid network. Solar ADEPT accepted projects that integrated power electronics into solar panels and solar farms to extract and deliver energy more efficiently. The Awardees for

1440-1292: The end of the Obama administration in January 2017, and then resumed her position as distinguished university professor at the University of Maryland. In May 2020, Williams was appointed as director of the Earth System Science Interdisciplinary Center at the University of Maryland . Her five-year term as director began in July 2020. She sits on the International Scientific Advisory Committee of Australia's ARC Centre of Excellence in Future Low-Energy Electronics Technologies . Williams' research in experimental surface science explores fundamental issues in statistical mechanics, particularly including practical applications nanotechnology. Her research group pioneered applications of direct imaging techniques for atomic-scale structures on surfaces. She worked closely with theorists to design experiments to address theoretical and conceptual questions important to

1488-533: The fields of catalysis, thin film growth and nano-electronics. She has published over 200 academic articles, which have been cited over 8000 times. Her most widely cited work includes at least four areas of fundamental research (see Selected Publications below); structure-transport relationships in graphene, surface morphology and step fluctuations, electronic interactions with surface defects, and adsorbate-interactions. In parallel with her academic career, Williams has worked extensively in providing technical advice to

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1536-789: The following areas: 1) cooling systems that use refrigerants with low global warming potential ; 2) energy efficient air conditioning (AC) systems for warm and humid climates with an increased coefficient of performance (COP); and 3) vapor compression AC systems for hot climates for re-circulating air loads with an increased COP. Secretary Chu announced the selection of 43 projects under GRIDS, ADEPT, and BEET-IT on July 12, 2010. The awards totaled $ 92 million and ranged from $ 400,000 to $ 5 million. The awards included 14 projects in ADEPT, 17 projects in BEET-IT, and 12 projects in GRIDS. Examples of awarded projects include

1584-877: The following: Like DARPA does for military technology, ARPA-E is intended to fund high-risk, high-reward research involving government labs, private industry, and universities that might not otherwise be pursued. ARPA-E has four objectives: ARPA-E was created as part of the America COMPETES act signed by President George W. Bush in August 2007. President Barack Obama announced the launch of ARPA-E on April 27, 2009 as part of an announcement about federal investment in research and development and science education. Soon after its launch, ARPA-E released its first Funding Opportunity Announcement , offering $ 151 million in total with individual awards ranging from $ 500,000 to $ 9 million. Applicants submitted eight-page "concept papers" that outlined

1632-473: The fourth funding opportunity were announced on September 29, 2011. The 60 projects received $ 156 million from the ARPA-E Fiscal Year 2011 budget. Examples of the awarded projects included a project that increases the production of turpentine , a natural liquid biofuel (PETRO); a project entitled "Manganese-Based Permanent Magnet," that reduces the cost of wind turbines and electric vehicles by developing

1680-446: The innovation teams working under ARPA-E funding, on strengthening the support given teams in preparing their new technologies for commercial uptake, and on establishing rigorous assessment practices. Under her direction, the Agency produced the first two of a planned annual series of Impact Assessments, which present the challenges, technical achievements, and pathways to commercial impact for selected ARPA-E projects. In 2016 Williams

1728-484: The interaction of surface structure with electric fields and currents. They demonstrated how the incredibly small momentum-transfer due to an electron colliding with an atom can none-the-less cause micron-scale rearrangements of the material near the surfaces. Williams’ graduate work explored how catalytically important molecules such as carbon monoxide and hydrogen interact with metal surfaces. She made seminal observations of how such molecules organize on surfaces and how

1776-466: The moisture vaporators on the desert planet Tatooine in Star Wars . However, rather than using refrigeration to condense water vapor, it uses a metal–organic framework to trap water vapor in the night and then uses the heat from solar energy to release the water from the framework during the day. Her research group has also developed a solar powered desalination system in producing clean water. Wang

1824-513: The program, incorporating feedback, and seeks approval from the Director. If successful, a new ARPA-E program is created, and a funding opportunity announcement (FOA) is released soliciting project proposals. The ARPA-E peer review process is designed to help drive program success. During proposal review, ARPA-E solicits external feedback from leading experts in a particular field. ARPA-E reviewers evaluate applications over several weeks and then convene

1872-662: The program, the ESC team also created three reference booklets on energy-resource issues, “The ESC Materials Handbook", “Water in the Energy Industry,” and “Biomass in the Energy Industry”. Williams has spoken widely about the need for advances in Science and Technology to sustainably supply the energy the world needs. Prior to Senate confirmation for her role in ARPA-E, Williams served as

1920-417: The remarkable ability of silicon surfaces to undergo reversible micron-scale changes in structure, and demonstrated how such changes are thermodynamically defined by changes in the free-energy of steps on the surface. The group's subsequent experimental work elegantly placed observations of structures and fluctuations of steps in a universally applicable theoretical formalism. Williams’ group also explored

1968-547: The suburbs of Detroit , Michigan. She attended Michigan State University and received her Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry in 1976. Her graduate studies were at the California Institute of Technology , where she received her PhD in chemistry in 1981, for research supervised by William Henry Weinberg. Williams did postdoctoral studies at the University of Maryland under the supervision of R.L. Park from 1981 to 1983. Then promoted to assistant professor in

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2016-661: The technical concept; some were invited to submit full applications. Arun Majumdar , former deputy director of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory , was appointed the first director of ARPA-E in September 2009, over six months after the organization was first funded. U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu presided over the inaugural ARPA-E Energy Innovation Summit on March 1–3, 2010 in Washington, D.C. 2006 The National Academies released “Rising Above

2064-448: The years after the 1999 U.S. decision not to ratify. The report places the state-of-the art detection capability in the context of different types of proliferation threats, and thus provides a valuable context for decision makers. The report also emphasizes the importance of sustaining and continuing to advance technical capabilities for verification, both in the U.S. and at the CTBTO. Williams

2112-626: Was announced on April 20, 2011 and awarded projects in five technology areas: Plants Engineered To Replace Oil (PETRO), High Energy Advanced Thermal Storage (HEATS), Rare Earth Alternatives in Critical Technologies (REACT), Green Electricity Network Integration (GENI), and Solar Agile Delivery of Electrical Power Technology (Solar ADEPT). PETRO focused on projects that had systems to create biofuels from domestic sources such as tobacco and pine trees for half their current cost. REACT funded early-stage technology alternatives that reduced or eliminated

2160-581: Was awarded the Air Force Office of Scientific Research Young Investigator Award in 2011, the U.S. Office of Naval Research Young Investigator Award in 2012, and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Bergles-Rohsenow Young Investigator Award in 2012. The ASME gave Wang their Gustus L. Larson Memorial Award in 2017; she is also a Fellow of the ASME. In 2018 she and co-author Omar M. Yaghi won

2208-762: Was confirmed by the Senate as director of ARPA-E. ARPA-E was created to fund energy technology projects that translate scientific discoveries and inventions into technological innovations, and accelerate technological advances in high-risk areas that industry is not likely to pursue independently. This goal is similar to the work of the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) which advances clean energy projects according to established roadmaps. However, ARPA-E also funds advanced technology in other spaces such as natural gas and grid technology. ARPA-E does not fund incremental improvements to existing technologies or roadmaps established by existing DOE programs. ARPA-E programs are created through

2256-543: Was elected a Foreign Member of the Royal Society (ForMemRS) of London. Other honors include: Williams has authored or co-authored numerous peer reviewed scientific journal articles including: Applying the experimental approaches developed through her career, Williams worked with collaborator Michael Fuhrer to develop key early understanding about structural fluctuations and defect interactions in defining graphene's properties. Williams’ research group discovered

2304-678: Was nominated by President Joe Biden in March 2022 as director of the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy of the U.S. Department of Energy. She was confirmed by the United States Senate on December 22, 2022. Wang was awarded the Young Faculty Award by the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency in 2008 for the project Tunable Nanostructured Arrays for Stable High-Flux Microchannel Heat Sinks. She

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