Kaptur Lauds NASA Glenn and Department of Energy Innovation Partnership
CLEVELAND - Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (OH-09), Ranking Member on the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water, joined leaders of the Joint Center for Energy Storage Research (JCESR) and Cleveland’s NASA Glenn Research Center at the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding to collaborate on the development of next generation batteries for use in future space missions.
JCESR, located at the Argonne National Laboratory in Argonne, Illinois, holds particular specialty in next generation battery development. When coupled with NASA Glenn’s missions in aerospace propulsion and advanced materials, the two complement each other greatly, according to Kaptur.
“Storing energy presents challenges as we face rapid expansion of electronics for everything from cars to cell phones to lunar landers. Our region holds the potential to lead the world in battery storage innovation because of cooperative efforts such as this one between our national laboratories and the nation’s space agency,” said Kaptur.
According to materials released by the two federal facilities, JCESR and NASA Glenn will focus on developing next generation batteries with energy capacities beyond those of lithium-ion batteries to meet the aggressive goals of the space program. As part of the collaboration, NASA Glenn will serve as a potential “first adopter” of developed high potential battery technologies suitable for aerospace applications.
“We worked to forge this agreement to allow JCESR and NASA Glenn to advance research, testing, and prototype development of energy storage technologies that hold the potential to disrupt current battery storage methods,” commented Kaptur.
The Congresswoman lauded the partnership by NASA and the U.S. Department of Energy laboratory as “just one of the ways we can collaborate to anchor scientific advancement and production know-how in the region to create the jobs of the future.”
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Background:
NASA Glenn Research Center (GRC), in partnership with U.S. industry, universities, and other Government institutions, develops critical systems technologies and capabilities that address national priorities. GRC’s world-class research, technology and capability development efforts are keys to advancing space exploration of our solar system and beyond, while maintaining global leadership in aeronautics. Its work is focused on technological advancements in space flight systems development, aeropropulsion, space propulsion, power systems, nuclear systems, communications and human-related systems.
The Joint Center for Energy Storage Research (JCESR) is a major partnership that integrates researchers from many disciplines to overcome critical scientific and technical barriers and create new breakthrough energy storage technology. Led by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory, partners include national leaders in science and engineering from academia, the private sector, and national laboratories. Their combined expertise spans the full range of the technology-development pipeline from basic research to prototype development to product engineering to market delivery. Funding for JCESR is provided by the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science.