Interview with accountant and Army veteran Frederick R. Freeman. The interview includes Freeman's personal experiences about the European Theater during the World War II, basic training, advanced infantry training, initial combat on the front lines in France, survival techniques under combat conditions, the Ardennes Offensive, and the Battle of the Bulge. Freeman also talks about the effects of combat losses and acclimation of individual replacements, his bout with combat exhaustion and reassignment to a replacement depot as a clerk, his participation in the Army of Occupation, and postwar adjustments to civilian life.

New airfoils have substantially increased the aerodynamic efficiency of wind turbines. It is clear that these new airfoils substantially increased energy output from wind turbines. Virtually all new blades built in this country today use these advanced airfoil designs.

The Sun's Joules is a CD-ROM that mixes interactive exercises, videos, photographs, and text to provide a comprehensive encyclopedia on renewable energy.

Thin-film photovoltaic (PV) cells are now doubling as rooftop shingles. PV shingles offer many advantages. The energy generated from a building's PV rooftop shingles can provide power both to the building and the utility's power grid.

DOE contributed markedly to the geothermal, oil, and gas industries through the development of the advanced polycrystalline diamond compact (PDC) drill bit. Diamond-cutter drill bits cut through tough rock quicker, reducing the cost of drilling for energy resources.

This long-distance solar car race provides a unique opportunity to increase America's awareness of a variety of important issues: renewable energy sources and technologies, environmentally clean energy options, improvements in transportation and opportunities in new, fast-growing energy-related businesses.

Power towers convert the thermal energy of the sun to electricity. They are large-scale power plants producing clean energy and suited for operation in sunny, semi-arid regions of the world.

As part of its energy management program, the National Park Service (NPS) has been actively promoting energy conservation and the greater use of renewable energy technologies such as photovoltaics (PV). PV is proving to be a very effective way to produce electricity in our parks.

The United States and Brazil are collaborating to bring electricity to some 5 million households in rural Brazil. Over the next decade, there is a potential to install approximately 500 megawatts (MW) of solar home systems and 1000 MW of community systems, bringing light to households, schools, and health clinics throughout rural Brazil.

Many energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies were featured at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. Most of the projects that contributed to the Olympics continue to provide a meaningful demonstration and learning experience for the people of Atlanta.

Photovoltaics (PV) is a modern energy technology that makes use of semiconductor materials to convert sunlight directly to electricity. The idea of thin film technology is to produce truly low-cost PV devices by using pennies worth of active semiconductor materials.

A 3.5-megawatt valve-regulated lead-acid (VRLA) battery system installed at a lead recycling plant in California provides one hour of energy storage for both peak-shaving and uninterruptible power. It incorporates improvements in battery materials, manufacturing processes, and quality control.

DOE research helped develop the large, untapped geothermal resource beneath the Salton Sea in California's Imperial Valley. The very hot brines under high pressure make them excellent for electric power production. The brines are very corrosive and contain high concentrations of dissolved silica. DOE worked with San Diego Gas and Electric Company to find a solution to the silica-scaling problem. This innovative brine treatment eliminated scaling and made possible the development of the Salton Sea geothermal resource.

Geothermal heat pumps (GHPs) are one of the most cost-effective heating, cooling, and water heating systems available for both residential and commercial buildings. GHPs extract heat from the ground during the heating season and discharge waste heat to the ground during the cooling season.

With funding from the DOE National Biofuels Program, NREL has constructed a fermentation pilot plant facility. The plant was explicitly designed to assist industry and outside researchers develop commercial bioprocessing technology. Companies that are exploring biofuels technologies can utilize the facilities and expertise of NREL through a variety of flexible business-venture arrangements.

The government and industry are successfully partnering to improve and expand domestic photovoltaic manufacturing processes and products. The Photovoltaic Manufacturing Technology (PVMaT) Project was initiated in 1990 and is a research and development partnership between the US Department of Energy and members of the US PV industry.

Cost-shared projects with the U.S. Department of Energy and the wind industry have produced new, commercially available turbines that generate power at low costs. Advanced wind turbine technologies will be instrumental for the United States and other countries in meeting their commitments to reduce greenhouse gases.

The world's first demonstration of an efficient, low-pressure biomass gasifier capable of producing a high-quality fuel is now operating in Vermont. The gasifier converts 200 tons of solid biomass per day into a clean-burning gas with a high energy content for electricity generation.

The National Magnetic Field Exposure Facilities program is regarded internationally as the standard of excellence for EMF research. Results of research conducted with the four exposure systems have been included in a 1998 report to Congress. The program has already produced a steady improvement of exposure systems and methodology for EMF experiments.

Bringing electric power to thousands of people in India allows them to pump water electrically and to light their homes at night. For these applications, photovoltaic (PV) electricity is often the least expensive and most reliable power alternative. This market represents one of the largest and fastest growing sectors for renewable energy technology.

DOE's Office of Utility Technologies celebrates 20 years of success in renewable energy research, development, and deployment.

Solar hot water technology was made great strides in the past two decades. Every home, commercial building, and industrial facility requires hot water. DOE has helped to develop reliable and durable solar hot water systems. For industrial applications, the growth potential lies in large-scale systems, using flat-plate and trough-type collectors. Flat-plate collectors are commonly used in residential hot water systems and can be integrated into the architectural design of the building.

Twenty years of government and industry collaboration have decreased wind energy costs more than sevenfold. Productivity and reliability of the turbines have increased dramatically. Millions of hours of operating experience have been recorded. The cost of energy from wind has been reduced to the point where it can begin to compete with conventional sources of electricity.

The National Wind Technology Center (NWTC) is the U.S. Department of Energy's national center for wind turbine research and development. The unique wind characteristics at the NWTC provide an ideal environment for testing wind turbines in power-producing modes as well as in extreme, high-wind conditions.