U. announces new energy-based research projects

The University has announced five new environmental and energy based research projects in joint release with the Princeton E-ffiliates Program and ExxonMobil.

The Princeton E-ffiliates Partnership, founded in 2011, is an opportunity for corporate members to explore research possibilities engaging students and faculty to tackle energy and environmental issues through “technological advances and policy measures that can achieve these objectives cost-effectively.” The University and ExxonMobil announced the partnership last year and it is administered by the Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment in collaboration with the Princeton Environmental Institute, the School of Architecture, and the Wilson School.

Lynn Loo, director of the Andlinger Center, said that it is important to collaborate with practitioners outside academia to have an impact on energy and environmental challenges.

“These challenges are complex and touch a variety of scientific, technological, economic, and social issues. You need people from many disciplines and professions working together in order to bring about substantive, concrete solutions that address our growing need for energy while mitigating the effects of climate change,” Loo added.

ExxonMobil currently holds the largest financial commitment in the E-ffiliates Partnership. The company began a partnership with the E-ffiliates Program in June 2015 and committed to invest $5 million over the next five years.

“I am very excited that we are collaborating with ExxonMobil scientists. ExxonMobil will learn about the development of emerging energy technologies happening on campus. Princeton researchers, including students, will understand how industrial practitioners balance meeting the world’s energy needs and concerns for the environment,” Loo said.

Over the past year, ExxonMobil scientists have worked closely with University professors and students to identify project areas that offer the most scientific potential while utilizing the University’s existing strengths in emerging energy. Now, five projects, each headed by University Professors and graduate students to be named ExxonMobil Emerging Technology Fellows, have been announced.

“Each of the five selected projects is a potential game-changer in terms of new energy development and better understanding of our natural environment. For example, we will examine whether photovoltaic properties can be embedded directly into polymers that could be used as coatings on building materials. Such technologies could complement current roof-mounted solar technologies and build upon our leadership in the chemical industry,” Eric Herbolzheimer, senior scientific advisor at ExxonMobil and liaison between the University and the company, said in a press release.

The five chosen projects are as follows:

Organic Photovoltaics: The project attempts to study photovoltaic materials and how those substances can be applied to coating and building materials. Loo will lead the project.

Extending Battery Lifetime and Cycle Efficiency: The project will incorporate the University's recently developed diagnostic tools to study degradation pathways of electric-vehicle batteries. Daniel Steingart, assistant professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering will coordinate the study, and it will be used to understand “second life” applications on the power grid.

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Arctic Sea-Ice Modeling: The project will be conducted in conjunction with the University's Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory and focus on sea-ice models that can help scientists better understand the factors controlling the Arctic sea-ice cycles. The University has been developing sea-ice modeling tools for many years. Alistair Adcroft and Olga Sergienko, researchers at the University's Atmospheric and Ocean Sciences Program/NOAA-Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory, will lead the project.

Role of the Ocean in the Future of Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide Levels: The project focuses on reconstructing the ocean carbon cycle changes to explore how the ocean absorbs carbon dioxide. The project will be led by professor of geological and geophysical sciences Daniel Sigman.

Plasma Physics: The project explores the effectiveness of low energy plasmas to control energy-related chemical processes. Egemen Kolemen, assistant professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering, and Yiguang Ju, professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering will lead the project studying the conversion of natural gas to larger molecules.