When disaster strikes, electric power is usually the first critically important service to be lost. After several years of research and development, portable electric generator sets (gensets) are now entering the marketplace. The new gensets make use of solar electric panels known as photovoltaics (PV) to produce electricity. These gensets are reliable, safe to operate, highly mobile and will supply much-needed power for emergency response teams.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is promoting the use of alternative fuels and alternative fuel vehicles (AFVs). The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has been directed to conduct projects to evaluate the performance and acceptability of light-duty AFVs. This fact sheet describes the test results on a pair of 1998 Dodge Grand Caravans: a flexible-fuel vehicle (FFVs) operating on E85 (85{percent} ethanol and 15{percent} gasoline) and the other on gasoline only.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is promoting the use of alternative fuels and alternative fuel vehicles (AFVs). The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has been directed to conduct projects to evaluate the performance and acceptability of light-duty AFVs. This fact sheet gives the results of tests performed on 1998 GM pickups (GMC Sierra): one bi-fuel CNG and a gasoline model as closely matched as possible.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is promoting the use of alternative fuels and alternative fuel vehicles (AFVs). The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has been directed to conduct projects to evaluate the performance and acceptability of light-duty AFVs. This fact sheet describes the test results on 1998 Honda Civics: one dedicated CNG and a gasoline model as closely matched as possible.

The Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP), part of the U.S. Department of Energy, helps agencies reduce their costs, increase energy efficiency, use renewable energy, and conserve water.

When generated from renewable sources, hydrogen production and use is part of a clean, cyclic process. Hydrogen can be used to generate electricity, heat homes and businesses, fuel vehicles, and produce commodities used every day. The Hydrogen Technical Advisory Panel's (HTAP) primary functions are to advise the Secretary of Energy on the implementation of the U.S.DOE programs in hydrogen RD and D and to review and make recommendations on the economic, technical, and environmental consequences of deploying safe hydrogen energy systems.

A survey of some of the different ways that synchrotrons x-ray beams can be used to study geological materials is presented here. This field developed over a period of about 30 years, and it is clear that the geological community has made major use of the many synchrotrons facilities operating around the world during this time period. This was a time of rapid change in the operational performance of the synchrotrons facilities and this in itself has made it possible for geologists to develop new and more refined types of experiments that have yielded many important results. The advance in experimental techniques has proceeded in parallel with a revolution in computing techniques that has made it possible to cope with the great amount of data accumulated in the experiments. It is reasonable, although risky, to speculate about what might be expected to develop in the field during the next five- to ten-year period. It does seem plausible that the rate of change in the performance of what might now be called conventional x-ray storage rings will slow. There are no new facilities that are superior to the ESRF, ALS, APS, or SPring8 facilities under construction or about to come into …

The focus of this Biofuels News is biodiesel. Biodiesel is a domestically produced renewable fuel that is made by reacting alcohol (usually methanol or ethanol) with vegetable oils, animal fats, or recycled cooking greases. It can be used neat (pure) or in blends (the most popular is 20% biodiesel blend) with any type of diesel fuel.

Declared a national user facility in 1993, NREL's Concentrated Solar Radiation User Facility (CSR) allows industry, government, and university researchers to examine the effects and applications of as much as 50,000 suns of concentrated solar radiation using a High-Flux Solar Furnace and long-term exposure using an ultraviolet (UV) concentrator.

Photovoltaic energy systems, which convert sunlight to electricity, can meet many different needs in Federal facilities. This fact sheet describes how photovoltaic (PV) energy systems can be used to provide electricity for lighting, communications, refrigeration, fans, signs, pumps, drilling equipment, emergency power packs, and cathodic (corrosion) protection, among others. Applications for PV power in Federal facilities include staff housing, parking areas, campgrounds, marinas, visitor centers, roadside communications equipment, ranger stations, underground pipelines, irrigation and disinfecting systems, and disaster response units. PV systems are particularly suitable and cost-effective for facilities that now use diesel power or that are in remote areas far from electric power lines.

This paper summarizes the current scientific and technological knowledge about greenhouse gas emissions from various agricultural practices and the manufacturing of food. The study also provides estimates that compare agriculture-related alternatives for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Energy Matters is an Office of Industrial Technologies bimonthly publication on energy efficiency opportunities. This issue's focus is on the future of industrial energy efficiency. The issue also contains articles on seven companies that are to receive cost-shared funding for plant-wide, energy efficiency assessments; submitting proposals to assess energy flow and steam system opportunities; partnering to save energy and money; and root cause failure analysis on AC induction motors. Also a special feature by Don Casada ''Lights that Shine Forever.''

This guidance document is a product of the Avian Subcommittee of the National Wind Coordinating Committee (NWCC). The NWCC was formed to better understand and promote responsible, credible, and comparable avian/wind energy interaction studies. Bird mortality is a concern and wind power is a potential clean and green source of electricity, making study of wind energy/bird interactions essential. This document provides an overview for regulators and stakeholders concerned with wind energy/bird interactions, as well as a more technical discussion of the basic concepts and tools for studying such interactions.