Electricity Storage Innovation Act

Summary: Electricity Storage Innovation Act (Sec. 2)This bill requires the Department of Energy (DOE)to establish the Electricity Storage Basic Research Initiative. The initiative is designed to expand knowledge related to thecontrol, storage, and conversion ofelectrical energy into chemical energy, and chemical energy into electrical energy. DOEmust support specific programs within its Office of Science and Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy as part of the initiative. In addition, DOE must organize activities under the initiative utilizing research teams consisting ofexperts from the national laboratories, universities, and theprivate sector.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Electricity Storage Innovation 
Act''.

SEC. 2. ELECTRICITY STORAGE BASIC RESEARCH INITIATIVE.

    (a) Amendment.--Section 975 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 
U.S.C. 16315) is amended to read as follows:

``SEC. 975. ELECTRICITY STORAGE BASIC RESEARCH INITIATIVE.

    ``(a) Initiative.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall carry out a research 
        initiative, to be known as the Electricity Storage Basic 
        Research Initiative, to expand theoretical and fundamental 
        knowledge to control, store, and convert electrical energy to 
        chemical energy and the inverse. This initiative shall support 
        scientific inquiry into the practical understanding of chemical 
        and physical processes that occur within systems involving 
        crystalline and amorphous solids, polymers, and organic and 
        aqueous liquids.
            ``(2) Leveraging.--The Secretary shall leverage expertise 
        and resources from the Basic Energy Sciences Program, Advanced 
        Scientific Computing Research Program, and Biological and 
        Environmental Research Program within the Office of Science, 
        and the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, as 
        provided under subsections (b), (c), and (d).
            ``(3) Teams.--The Secretary shall organize activities under 
        the Electricity Storage Basic Research Initiative to include 
        multidisciplinary teams leveraging expertise from the National 
        Laboratories, universities, and the private sector to the 
        extent practicable. These multidisciplinary teams shall pursue 
        aggressive, milestone-driven basic research goals. The 
        Secretary shall provide sufficient resources for those teams to 
        achieve those goals over a period of time to be determined by 
        the Secretary.
            ``(4) Additional activities.--The Secretary is authorized 
        to organize additional activities under this subsection through 
        Energy Frontier Research Centers, Energy Innovation Hubs, or 
        other organizational structures.
    ``(b) Multivalent Systems.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall, as part of the 
        Electricity Storage Basic Research Initiative, carry out a 
        program to support research needed to bridge scientific 
        barriers and discover knowledge relevant to multivalent ion 
        materials in electric energy storage systems. In carrying out 
        activities under this subsection, the Director of the Office of 
        Basic Energy Sciences shall investigate electrochemical 
        properties and the dynamics of materials, including charge 
        transfer phenomena and mass transport in materials. The 
        Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy 
        shall support translational research, development, and 
        validation of physical concepts developed under this 
        subsection.
            ``(2) Standard of review.--The Secretary shall review the 
        program activities under this subsection to determine the 
        achievement of technical milestones.
            ``(3) Authorization of appropriations.--
                    ``(A) Authorization.--Subject to subsection (e), 
                there are authorized for carrying out activities under 
                this subsection for each of fiscal years 2017 through 
                2020--
                            ``(i) $50,000,000 from funds within the 
                        Basic Energy Sciences Program account; and
                            ``(ii) $25,000,000 from funds within the 
                        Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy account.
                    ``(B) Prohibition.--No funds authorized under this 
                subsection may be obligated or expended for commercial 
                application of energy technology.
    ``(c) Electrochemistry Modeling and Simulation.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall, as part of the 
        Electricity Storage Basic Research Initiative, carry out a 
        program to support research to model and simulate organic 
        electrolytes, including their static and dynamic 
        electrochemical behavior and phenomena at the molecular and 
        atomic level in monovalent and multivalent systems. In carrying 
        out activities under this subsection, the Director of the 
        Office of Basic Energy Sciences shall, in coordination with the 
        Associate Director of Advanced Scientific Computing Research, 
        support the development of high performance computational tools 
        through a joint development process to maximize the 
        effectiveness of current and projected high performance 
        computing systems. The Assistant Secretary for Energy 
        Efficiency and Renewable Energy shall support translational 
        research, development, and validation of physical concepts 
        developed under this subsection.
            ``(2) Standard of review.--The Secretary shall review the 
        program activities under this subsection to determine the 
        achievement of technical milestones.
            ``(3) Authorization of appropriations.--
                    ``(A) Authorization.--Subject to subsection (e), 
                there are authorized for carrying out activities under 
                this subsection for each of fiscal years 2017 through 
                2020--
                            ``(i) $30,000,000 from funds within the 
                        Basic Energy Sciences Program and Advanced 
                        Scientific Computing Research Program accounts; 
                        and
                            ``(ii) $15,000,000 from funds within the 
                        Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy account.
                    ``(B) Prohibition.--No funds authorized under this 
                subsection may be obligated or expended for commercial 
                application of energy technology.
    ``(d) Mesoscale Electrochemistry.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall, as part of the 
        Electricity Storage Basic Research Initiative, carry out a 
        program to support research needed to reveal electrochemistry 
        in confined mesoscale spaces, including scientific discoveries 
        relevant to bio-electrochemistry and electrochemical energy 
        conversion and storage in confined spaces and the dynamics of 
        these phenomena. In carrying out activities under this 
        subsection, the Director of the Office of Basic Energy Sciences 
        and the Associate Director of Biological and Environmental 
        Research shall investigate phenomena of mesoscale 
        electrochemical confinement for the purpose of replicating and 
        controlling new electrochemical behavior. The Assistant 
        Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy shall 
        support translational research, development, and validation of 
        physical concepts developed under this subsection.
            ``(2) Standard of review.--The Secretary shall review the 
        program activities under this subsection to determine the 
        achievement of technical milestones.
            ``(3) Authorization of appropriations.--
                    ``(A) Authorization.--Subject to subsection (e), 
                there are authorized for carrying out activities under 
                this subsection for each of fiscal years 2017 through 
                2020--
                            ``(i) $20,000,000 from funds within the 
                        Basic Energy Sciences Program and the 
                        Biological and Environmental Research Program 
                        accounts; and
                            ``(ii) $10,000,000 from funds within the 
                        Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy account.
                    ``(B) Prohibition.--No funds authorized under this 
                subsection may be obligated or expended for commercial 
                application of energy technology.
    ``(e) Funding.--No additional funds are authorized to be 
appropriated under this section. This section shall be carried out 
using funds otherwise authorized by law.''.
    (b) Table of Contents Amendment.--The item relating to section 975 
in the table of contents of such Act is amended to read as follows:

``Sec. 975. Electricity Storage Basic Research Initiative.''.

            Passed the House of Representatives July 11, 2016.

            Attest:

                                                 KAREN L. HAAS,

                                                                 Clerk.