2007 NETL Accomplishments

U.S. Department of Energy • Office of Fossil Energy

National Energy Technology Laboratory
2

Mission

NETL implements 

research, 

development, and 

demonstration 

programs to resolve 

the environmental, 

supply, and 

reliability 

constraints of 

producing and 

using fossil 

resources.
Advancing Technology That Benefits Society —

Letter from the Director

NETL Innovation

Technology Transfer

Commercialization—Moving Innovation to the Marketplace

Patents—Safeguarding Invention

Noteworthy Publications—Sharing Our Expertise

Awards & Recognition

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74

78

79

80

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6

Environment & Economy

Air, Land & Water

Materials & Monitoring

Turbines

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38

42

Economy & Supply

Coal-to-Liquids

Energy Infrastructure

Methane Hydrate

Natural Gas & Oil

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11

15

19

8

28 Supply & Environment

Demand-Side Efficiencies

Fuel Cells

Gasification

Hydrogen

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50

54

58

44

64

66

Environment, Economy & Supply

Carbon Capture & Storage

Contents 3
4 Advancing Technology That Benefits Society

For 200 years, America’s economic prosperity has 

been built on its energy bounty. Today, however, 

increased competition for global supplies is 

leading to constrained resources and sharp 

escalations in energy prices—particularly 

in oil and natural gas. This presents a 

formidable challenge to our nation. 

Secure, reliable energy supplies at 

sustainable prices are essential to U.S. 

stability and growth.

Energy affordability and supply security make up 

two of the three overarching issues characterizing 

today’s energy situation in the United States. The 

third is environmental quality. As a nation, we strive 

to act responsibly by reducing the impact of energy 

production and use on our nation’s air, land, and 

waterways.

Many energy strategists regard these arenas 

as disparate challenges, one of which takes 

precedence over the other two. This produces 

a competitive tension that pulls the 

spheres in opposing directions. Significant 

improvements may be realized in the 

chosen area, but the others are left 

stagnant, or even severely damaged. 

An effective approach to meeting 

our nation’s energy needs depends 

on our giving equal attention to all 

three requirements, seeing them as a single issue that 

demands our immediate attention.

Since its inception in 1977, the Department 

of Energy (DOE) has consistently incorporated 

these areas into its strategic plans for public 

energy research and development. In support 

of the Department’s efforts, the National Energy 

Technology Laboratory
Carl O. Bauer - Director

National Energy Technology Laboratory

(NETL) and its predecessor 

organizations have 

pursued science and 

engineering solutions 

that drive the circles 

closer together, 

with the ultimate 

goal of finding 

tools and 

processes that 

hit the center 

mark by addressing all three areas concurrently. 

Whether our efforts are geared toward carbon 

management, enhanced oil and natural gas recovery, 

advanced materials, energy efficiency, or methane 

hydrate, we are finding economical solutions to 

environmental challenges, the means to expand our 

domestic energy sources without driving up costs, 

and methods for extracting resources with minimal 

impact to the environment.

America’s energy challenges are formidable, 

but they are also surmountable. The 

accomplishments NETL achieved in fiscal year 

2007 have created sound building blocks with 

which we can bring positive change to our 

nation’s energy structure. I am pleased and 

proud to be part of such an important endeavor 

and to work with exceptional colleagues who 

invest themselves in addressing the energy 

needs of the nation and the world.

5
6 NETL Innovation

The National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) is a 

U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) national laboratory—

one of the “crown jewels” of American science. Through 

basic research and technology development, the 

laboratory supports the Energy Department’s mission to 

advance the national, economic, and energy security of 

the United States.

The laboratory has five sites that span the Nation. NETL 

sites in Pittsburgh, Pa., and Morgantown, W.Va., conduct 

a broad range of research to increase the supply of 

traditional energy resources, improve the efficiency and 

environmental performance of power generation plants, 

and help end users to conserve energy. Researchers 

at NETL’s site in Albany, Ore., focus on developing 

advanced materials for use in the energy industry. 

Sites in Tulsa, Okla., and Fairbanks, Alaska, address 

challenges unique to those energy-rich regions. All five 

locations share the same goal: to advance science and 

technology for a clean, secure energy future.

As the only national laboratory owned and operated 

by the Energy Department, NETL is unique in how it 

conducts business and in the relationships it forms with 

industry, academia, research organizations, and other 

national laboratories. First and foremost, the laboratory 

conducts cutting-edge research and development 

(R&D) through its Office of Research and Development. 

About one quarter of NETL’s 1,200 Federal and 

contractor employees are directly engaged in research 

with industry, government, and academic partners 

to solve problems that would otherwise become 

barriers to commercializing power systems, fuels, and 

environmental and waste-management technologies.

As part of the executive branch of government, NETL’s 

research goals are exclusively determined by National 

needs. NETL’s approach to onsite research provides—

• A flexible, focused research effort that addresses 

national energy R&D needs.

• Impartial evaluation of new concepts and materials and 

expert authoritative review of external R&D proposals.

• A venue for universities, other Federal agencies, 

and other research organizations to participate in 

collaborative research.

• In-depth expertise in technologies and research 

methodologies for program planning and 

management purposes.

• Hands-on energy technology training for postdoctoral 

researchers, graduate students, visiting professors, and 

undergraduate students.

• A wide-ranging set of collaborations with regional and 

national universities on energy research issues.

Complementing NETL’s onsite research, the laboratory 

supports R&D that is conducted by other organizations. 

In these cases, NETL sets the direction for critical energy 

and environmental R&D, then solicits and selects 

projects for funding through a competitive process. Like 

NETL research conducted at the laboratory’s multiple 

sites, these “outside the fence” projects help provide the 

foundation for America’s national security and our way 

of life.

Much of this NETL-managed work is concentrated in the 

NETL Project Management Center. Offices within DOE, 

and a wide variety of other government organizations, 

routinely seek out the center’s project management 

capabilities and tap into its expertise in creating publicprivate partnerships. Organizations that the Project 

Management Center supported in fiscal year 2007 

included—

• DOE’s Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy 

Reliability.

• DOE’s Office of Engineering and Construction 

Management.

• DOE’s Office of Environmental Management.

• DOE’s National Nuclear Security Administration.

• U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Advanced 

Research Projects Agency.

• U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

• U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
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Other NETL-supported research arises through 

programs within the laboratory’s Strategic Center for 

Coal and its Strategic Center for Natural Gas and Oil. 

The Strategic Center for Coal supports technology 

development to improve the performance of the 

existing fleet of coal-fired power plants and to build 

the near-zero-emissions coal plant of the future. 

Examples include technologies to improve power 

plant efficiency, reduce air emissions, recycle coal 

utilization byproducts, and fight climate change by 

capturing carbon dioxide from flue gas and storing 

it safely and permanently in terrestrial biosystems 

and geologic formations. The Strategic Center for 

Natural Gas and Oil invests in projects that will lead to 

improved natural gas and oil production and use. An 

example is the center’s efforts to realize the potential 

of methane hydrate, an untapped resource that, 

globally, contains more energy than all of the world’s 

coal, oil, and conventional natural gas combined.

In addition to conducting and supporting farreaching R&D, NETL conducts studies of complex, 

large systems—such as industrial or ecological 

processes—and the interactions among those 

systems, including social, economic, political, 

regulatory, technological, design, and management 

institutions. This work is housed in NETL’s Office of 

Systems, Analyses, and Planning. Published results 

of the studies provide strategic information and 

analysis to the policy makers who are responsible for 

providing direction and funds to ensure that America 

has a continuing supply of clean, affordable energy.

Evaluating a national laboratory’s achievements can 

be difficult. Even measuring the success of a single 

research project or program can be elusive. Thomas 

Edison famously said, “If I find 10,000 ways something 

won’t work, I haven’t failed. I am not discouraged, 

because every wrong attempt discarded is another 

step forward.” But ultimately, Federal energy R&D 

must lead to results that benefit the American 

people.

One measure of NETL’s success this fiscal year is 

the seven R&D 100 Awards that NETL and NETLsupported technologies earned in 2007. These 

prestigious awards, which the Chicago Tribune 

dubbed “the Oscars of invention,” are given annually 

to the 100 most technologically significant new 

products to hit the market during the year. According 

to R&D Magazine, which selects the winning 

technologies, the goal of the award is “to spotlight 

major breakthroughs—products and processes with 

the capacity to improve the standard of living for 

many people.”

This year, three awards went to technologies 

developed by NETL scientists: a process to produce 

titanium products at significantly lower cost, 

software that can reduce the cost and time needed 

to develop and commercialize advanced coal 

technologies, and a surveying technique to help 

prepare abandoned oil and gas wells for carbon 

storage. Four more technologies that were honored 

with R&D 100 Awards were developed with support 

from NETL.

By almost any measure, NETL made great strides in 

fiscal year 2007, as the accomplishments outlined in 

the following pages will show. But the laboratory’s 

scientists, engineers, economists, and policy analysts 

won’t rest on their laurels. NETL is constantly looking 

to the future to anticipate energy issues that will arise 

and to provide analysis that will be important to the 

decision makers who establish our national energy 

research directions.

NETL’s progress and successes this year establish the 

foundation for the laboratory’s continuing efforts and 

new initiatives—all of which are designed to help 

America and the world address and solve the energy 

challenges we all face. 
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Not only do Americans need an 

ample supply of energy, we need 

energy to remain affordable. 

Through a variety of programs, NETL 

is fostering technologies that will 

help maximize our domestic energy 

supplies, modernize and protect our 

energy delivery system, enhance 

national energy security, and keep 

energy costs in check. NETL is finding 

ways to transform our nation’s 

vast coal resources into liquid 

fuels. We are designing strategies 

to modernize the U.S. electricity 

delivery system. We are developing 

advanced exploration, drilling, and 

recovery technologies for America’s 

oil and natural gas resources. And 

we are conducting methane hydrate 

exploration in both marine and 

Arctic environments.
Coal-to-Liquids Facilities Show Potential 

to Address National Concerns—An analysis 

conducted by NETL shows that coal-to-liquids (CTL) 

facilities processing America’s most abundant energy 

resource could provide a winning option for solving 

economic and national security concerns related 

to U.S. dependence on imported liquid fuels. NETL 

explored the feasibility of a commercial-scale, standalone CTL facility that would produce approximately 

50,000 barrels per day. Using coal gasification and 

Fischer-Tropsch synthesis, the facility would convert 

high-sulfur bituminous coal to diesel fuel, liquid 

naphtha products, and power for export to the 

U.S. electric grid. NETL also assessed smaller CTL 

plants that are similar in scale to a 600-megawatt 

IGCC plant and may provide better financing 

opportunities for developers, potentially making 

them more feasible for commercial development. 

Producing 10,000 barrels per day, both a small-scale 

stand-alone CTL facility and a CTL facility co-sited 

with an IGCC facility were evaluated. The economics 

of these commercial-scale and small-scale processes 

would provide a reasonable return on investment 

and payback period of about five and seven years, 

respectively, at full plant capacity.

Environmentally Friendly Jet Fuel Can Be 

Produced from Coal and Biomass—Teaming 

with the U.S. Air Force, NETL released a study that 

examines the feasibility of producing 100,000 barrels 

per day of jet fuel from a feedstock of approximately 

4,500 tons of high-sulfur bituminous coal and 

nearly 630 tons of corn stover. The base-case 

configuration would produce nearly 7,500 barrels 

per day of diesel or aviation jet fuel, more than 3,500 

barrels per day of liquid naphtha products, and 

11.1 megawatts of electricity that can be exported 

to the grid. An environmentally friendly energy 

producer, the conceptual plant is based on best 

available control technology guidelines for sulfur, 

NOx, particulate matter, and mercury. In addition, CO2

will be captured and compressed for injection into 

a pipeline terminating at a sequestration site. Using 

this performance baseline, the analysis shows how 

a coal-and-biomass-to-liquids plant with carbon 

capture and storage could not only capitalize on 

using domestic energy resources to shelter against 

rising petroleum and natural gas prices, but also 

mitigate output of CO2 as compared to conventional 

petroleum processes. 

Novel Nanocatalysts Synthesized at NETL—NETL 

researchers have generated nanoscale iron particles 

and analyzed them as part of initial experiments 

using a state-of-the-art surface-analysis-andimaging system that can image individual atoms to 

determine the elemental composition of the first few 

atomic layers of surfaces. Creating this nanocatalyst 

is significant for fossil energy applications, especially 

CTL, because iron is an important catalyst in that 

process. The fundamental project focused on 

fabricating iron and iron-oxide on a gold surface to 

produce model nanocatalysts. Success of this project 

can lead to better understanding of materials for 

Fisher-Tropsch applications, the process used to 

convert gasified CTL fuels. 

As the United States seeks to reduce its dependence on 

imported liquid fuel supplies, the option of producing 

liquid fuels via coal gasification is becoming more and 

more attractive. Using America’s most abundant energy 

resource in such a manner can help our nation combat 

rising oil prices, resolve the national security issues 

associated with imported fuels, and transform our vast 

coal reserves into a clean source of energy. A further 

consideration is coal-and-biomass-to liquids. This 

approach gasifies coal with biomass feedstock, with the 

added benefit of mitigating CO2 emissions via carbon 

capture and storage. 

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Coal-to-Liquids—

Reducing Import Reliance 
Report Shows Feasibility of CTL Plant in 

Alaska—The NETL Arctic Energy Office issued 

a July 2007 report titled “Alaska Coal Feasibility 

Studies—Healy Coal-to-Liquids Plant,” affirming 

the technical feasibility of siting a Fischer-Tropsch 

CTL plant at the Usibelli Coal Mine near Healy, 

AK. This interior Alaska site near the electric grid 

is serviced by rail and could supply coal for more 

than 50 years of plant operation. The proposed 

plant would process 4 million tons of coal per 

year, export 42.5 megawatts of electrical power 

to the grid, and supply Alaska refineries with 

14,600 barrels per day of low-sulfur feedstock for 

producing diesel, jet fuel, and gasoline. Preliminary 

financial analysis indicates that if the plant 

output sold for $64 a barrel, a 12 percent returnon-investment could be realized without tax or 

production incentives. The project was highlighted 

in the October 29, 2007, issue of Petroleum News, 

a weekly newspaper covering the oil and gas 

industry in Alaska and northern Canada.

Meeting America’s energy challenges demands 

attention to every phase of the energy cycle—not 

only production and generation, but also 

transmission and distribution. We must ensure 

the reliability, integrity, and security of our nation’s 

electrical transmission grid and natural gas pipelines, 

and we must coordinate the federal response to 

natural and man-made emergencies NETL lends its 

expertise on public and private efforts to build and 

protect the complex energy infrastructure on which 

our economy depends.

NETL Completes SEQURETM Survey for Gas 

Leaks—Utilizing a helicopter outfitted with the 

R&D 100 Award-winning SEQURETM technology—

developed and trademarked by NETL—more than 

1,500 line kilometers of magnetic and methane 

data were acquired from Naval Petroleum Reserve 

Number 3 (NPR-3), a 15-square-mile oilfield near 

Casper, WY. With boom-mounted magnetometers 

and a sensitive detector for identifying methane 

and other light hydrocarbons, the aircraft looked 

for leaks in the 100-year-old oilfield infrastructure. 

Preliminary analysis pinpointed locations of 

numerous well-type anomalies—early indications 

of survey success. Final processing of the data will 

result in geographic information system (GIS) maps 

with anomalous magnetic features and methanedata overlays, for use at the Rocky Mountain 

Oilfield Testing Center, the survey’s sponsor. 

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Energy Infrastructure—

Providing Definitive Solutions
NETL’s Modern Grid Strategy: Powering the Twenty-First Century Economy

Our nation’s economy and security—indeed, our lifestyles—depend on the quality of our electrical grid. But 

our electricity transmission and distribution system is aging, and its antiquated 1950s- and 1960s-vintage 

design no longer meets the needs of our twenty-first century economy. In fact, unreliability in the grid 

causes annual business losses of about $100 billion, due to power-quality events and power interruptions—

the economic equivalent of having an August 14, 2003, Northeast blackout every three weeks. The cost of 

electricity is increasing as well, largely due to transmission congestion and lack of diversity in fuel and power 

generation options. The inefficiency of our electrical grid results in increased greenhouse gas emissions 

as more fossil fuel is burned than should be needed to produce and deliver electricity to the customer. 

Furthermore, the United States is lagging behind other regions of the world that are rapidly modernizing 

their electrical grid, most notably Europe, China, India, and the Middle East. This poses a challenge for U.S. 

companies to economically compete in the global marketplace. 

The modern grid: incorporates new

 centralized plants along with renewables, 

distributed generation, “aggregated” backup 

generators, energy storage, and

 demand-response programs —

seamlessly and safely

The grid of the last century:

large, centralized plants ship

power in one direction —

to customers

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To counter these disturbing trends, NETL launched 

a Modern Grid Strategy (MGS) project in 2005 to 

assist the nation in accelerating the modernization 

of our nation’s electricity grid by confronting the 

barriers that slow progress. The MGS project has 

four main initiatives addressing these barriers:

• Aligning the power industry and its stakeholders 

to reach a consensus on the values, functional 

characteristics, key technology areas, and metrics 

of a modern grid—also known as the “smart grid.” 

• Encouraging large-scale field demonstrations of 

integrated suites of smart grid technologies to 

validate the business case for moving to a grid 

that will benefit all of us—utilities, consumers, 

and society. In most cases, the benefits of a smart 

grid outweigh its costs by at least four to one.

• Assisting state regulators, if requested, in 

implementing the regulatory and policy changes 

that are absolutely necessary for a move to a 

smart grid.

• Sharing successes of smart grid implementation 

to encourage further deployment.

The MGS project has been initiated at the right 

time in our nation’s history. We know that the 

electric power industry needs to expand the grid 

and replace aging components so that current 

and future demand for electricity can be met. Here 

are some of the MGS accomplishment highlights 

for 2007:

• The MGS team identified and facilitated 

the general adoption of seven functional 

characteristics and five key technology areas of a 

smart grid by the electric power industry and its 

stakeholders. This adoption lays the foundation 

for developing consensus on metrics to measure 

progress toward regional smart grids and toward 

a national smart grid. 

• Through its participation in six workshops, 

the MGS team assisted the Public Utility 

Commission of Ohio in moving toward statewide 

implementation of an advanced metering 

infrastructure and demand response as a first 

step in achieving modernization of the grid in 

the state of Ohio. 

• The MGS team initiated two field tests to evaluate 

the benefits of various approaches to achieving 

specific functional characteristics of a smart grid. 

One field test—a dynamic feeder reconfiguration 

system to improve circuit reliability—was initiated 

with Allegheny Power Company using selected 

distribution circuits in Morgantown, WV. The second 

field test was initiated with American Electric Power 

to evaluate “broadband over powerline” as an 

option for the two-way communications needed 

for operation of a smart grid. 

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NETL Team Responds in Support of FEMA—

NETL’s Energy Infrastructure Team (EIT), which provides 

key support to DOE during natural and humancaused emergencies, responded to the activation 

of FEMA during events to the nation’s energy 

infrastructure. By deploying enabling capability and 

contributing vital information, EIT makes it possible 

for DOE to thoroughly evaluate our national energy 

infrastructures and their interrelationships, thereby 

improving the ability of the energy sector to prevent, 

prepare for, and quickly respond to any threats to the 

domestic energy supply. EIT realized the following 

2007 accomplishments:

• As devastating wildfires swept through California, 

EIT supplied products to allow first responders to 

monitor wildfire migration toward existing energy 

assets, such as power and gas lines. Contextual maps 

were also compiled to assist with timely evacuations. 

• Throughout the six-month hurricane season, the 

team responded to several tropical systems that 

made landfall and caused disruptions to the U.S. 

coastal infrastructure. EIT also responded to severe 

hurricanes in Central America. 

• When ice storms paralyzed large areas of the Midwest 

last winter, EIT supplied critical analysis in response to 

extended power outages in multiple states. 

GIS Model Maps Vulnerabilities to Coal 

Transportation Infrastructures Across the 

Nation—Collaborators at NETL and Carnegie Mellon 

University have developed a GIS-based model for 

evaluating vulnerabilities of the coal transportation 

infrastructure as it relates to electric power generation. 

The model uses novel concepts to merge geospatial 

and non-geospatial data to quickly assess the degree 

of impact of natural or manmade disruptions to coal 

mines, rail lines, or coal-based power plants anywhere 

in the United States. Interactive analyses of this type 

can help senior department managers understand the 

impact disruptions can have on electricity production. 

A paper describing the model and its functions 

was accepted for a special issue of the Journal of 

Computing in Civil Engineering. 

Projects Make Significant Strides in Grid 

Modernization Research—Through transmission line 

losses, the U.S. power grid loses more than 10 percent 

of the electricity it carries, and transmission limitations 

contribute to frequent blackouts in many areas of the 

United States. High-temperature superconductivity 

(HTS) holds the promise of transmitting electricity with 

near-zero line loss and a capacity that is 2–5 times 

greater than that provided by today’s underground 

cables. Two projects managed by NETL for the Office 

of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability (OE) 

are making strides toward overcoming the primary 

technical hurdle to commercial HTS production: the 

ability to manufacture HTS wire that can transmit high 

current while maintaining that transmission over long 

distances.

• SuperPower, Inc., made significant progress in 

developing second-generation HTS tape by 

demonstrating a critical current of 173 amps per 

centimeter (width) over a 595-meter wire. HTS 

tape functions like a wire, is about the thickness 

of a human hair, and can be bundled into cables 

and coils. In the manufacturing area, SuperPower 

achieved wire production rates of over 300 meters 

per hour. 

• American Superconductor (AMSC) also 

achieved significant progress in developing 

second-generation HTS tape. Specifically, AMSC 

demonstrated a 40 percent increase in currentcarrying capacity, achieving a critical current of 92 

amps per centimeter (width) in 75-meter lengths of 

tape. 

• AMSC has also successfully installed new HTS tape 

production equipment in its Devens, MA, facility. 

AMSC will pilot the production of 4-centimeter-wide 

tape, an upgrade from its former 1-centimeter-wide 

production capacity. Because HTS tape is split to 

produce multiple lengths of second-generation 

conductor, the new equipment allows AMSC 

to immediately increase its capacity to produce 

individual pieces of conductor material.

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Methane hydrate—known as “fire in the ice”—has 

been found in the low-temperature, high-pressure 

conditions existing in the seafloor subsurface along 

continental margins as well as in the Arctic. NETL 

has made tremendous strides in methane hydrate 

research through the DOE-led National Methane 

Hydrate Research and Development program, an 

ongoing collaboration among industry, academia, 

and government. The program has advanced 

its research focus from establishing a basic 

understanding of hydrates to developing technologies 

that will enable gas hydrate exploration in both 

marine and Arctic environments. NETL and its partners 

have addressed concerns over the perceived threat 

posed by methane hydrate to conventional oil and 

gas drilling operations by demonstrating the benign 

nature of typical hydrate occurrence when drilling 

operations are properly prepared and managed in a 

hydrate environment. In addition, researchers have 

proven the feasibility of natural gas production from 

Arctic hydrate and are continuing to investigate the 

potential of methane hydrate to expand domestic and 

world energy resources. 

Methane Hydrate—

Taming “Fire in the Ice”

NETL Invests in Future Methane Hydrate 

Researchers—NETL has selected the first two 

recipients of the Methane Hydrate Fellowship 

program. The first fellowship award went to a 

doctoral student at the University of California 

at Santa Barbara, who will be characterizing 

the biological filter in the water column that is 

instrumental in controlling the amount and rate 

of methane flow as it reaches the atmosphere 

from the seafloor. The second award was made 

to a postdoctoral researcher at Scripps Institution 

of Oceanography, who will be investigating gas 

hydrate distribution and concentrations within the 

Krishna-Godawari Basin along the eastern margin 

of India. The Methane Hydrate Fellowship program, 

administered by the National Academy of Science, 

reflects NETL’s commitment to academic research 

and to increasing our understanding of methane 

hydrate as both a potential energy resource and a 

part of our natural environment. 

First-of-Its-Kind Seafloor Station Monitors 

Methane Hydrates—The geophysical team 

of the Gulf of Mexico Gas Hydrates Research 

Consortium, cosponsored by NETL, has tested 

a prototype geophysical sensing system that, 

combined with hydrophones and accelerometers, 

could lead to a passive seismic technology that 

will “listen” to natural surface and micro-seismic 

noise. This technology is part of a suite of novel 

visual, geochemical, geophysical, and biological 

sensors that together will comprise a first-of-itskind methane hydrate monitoring station. When 

the monitoring station, with all its many parts, 

is tested and operational, it will provide critical 

information about the behavior of gas hydrates 

and the interaction of hydrates with the ocean, 

seafloor, aquatic life, and atmosphere over an 

extended period of time. The National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration from the Department 

of Commerce and the Minerals Management 

Service of the U. S. Department of the Interior 

cosponsor the consortium. 

Combined Technologies Assess Gas Hydrate 

Area—Researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National 

Laboratory, working in cooperation with NETL, 

succeeded in joining a hydrate reservoir simulation 

code (Tough + Hydrate) with a geomechanical 

modeling program (FLAC 3D). Combining the 

models provides, for the first time, the ability 

to assess reservoir stability, ground subsidence, 

and other critical issues found at gas hydrate 

accumulations and contributes to a better 

understanding of their role in the environment and 

as a potential energy resource.
Processing a sediment core from a methane hydrate stratigraphic test well, Mt. Elbert, 

Alaska’s North Slope, Prudhoe Bay.

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Natural gas is our nation’s cleanest-burning 

fossil energy resource, yet the ever-increasing 

gap between its supply and demand is leading 

scientists increasingly to consider unconventional 

gas resources. One potential resource that may 

help close this gap is methane hydrate, an ice-like 

crystalline solid consisting of gas molecules 

surrounded by a cage of water molecules. 

Gas hydrates form naturally in geologic reservoirs 

under conditions of high pressure and low 

temperature. Known as “fire in the ice,” methane 

hydrates are gaining interest worldwide, for they 

may contain more in-place resources than all 

conventional fossil fuels in the world combined, 

according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). 

In September 2001, under a cooperative 

agreement between BP Exploration (Alaska), 

Inc., and NETL, researchers began the first of four 

phases to characterize the large in-place hydrate 

resource area on Alaska’s North Slope (ANS). 

During Phases 1 and 2 of this study, a team led 

by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) 

characterized 14 discrete hydrate accumulations 

within the Milne Point area through analysis of 

BP-supplied data. 

Phase 3 was highlighted, in February 2007, with 

the drilling of a well at the Mount Elbert site. The 

well encountered roughly 100 feet of gas-hydratebearing sandstone and enabled the acquisition of 

a state-of-the-art dataset, including well logging, 

whole core, and formation pressure-response data. 

Critical accomplishments from the well include— 

• Demonstration of the validity of the hydrate 

exploration methodology.

• Confirmation of ANS hydrate resources.

• Demonstration of safe operational approaches 

for scientific data acquisition.

First U.S. Arctic Methane Hydrate Test Well Confirms Potential for Natural Gas

• Collection of over 400 feet of whole core—the 

first hydrate and first wireline-core from ANS.

• Distribution of over 100 well subsamples to U.S. 

and Canadian scientists.

• The first open-hole pressure-transient test 

conducted in a hydrate-bearing interval.

• The first demonstration of gas production from

hydrate depressurization on the ANS.

Test results provided the critical information 

necessary for evaluating the technical and 

economical recoverability of Arctic hydrates. In 

March 2008, the project science team gathered 

in Denver, CO, to discuss scientific findings and 

to begin finalizing potential production-testing 

scenarios for the project’s Phase 4. 

Methane hydrate has an energy density 

approximately 164 times that of natural gas at 

normal surface temperature and pressure. Found 

beneath Arctic permafrost and under the seafloor 

along continental shelves, the estimated volume 

of methane contained in domestic hydrates is 

a staggering 200,000 trillion cubic feet. The Mt. 

Elbert well verifies the nature of one of more than 

a dozen prospects in the Milne Point field, which 

together could contain more than 600 billion 

cubic feet of gas-in-place.

The project is being conducted through the 

DOE-led National Methane Hydrate Research and 

Development program, which seeks to increase 

understanding of naturally occurring hydrate 

accumulations, their potential as a future energy 

resource, and their relationship to seafloor stability 

and global climate issues. Though methanehydrate recovery poses a major technical and 

commercial challenge, success of the program 

could potentially reshape national and global 

supplies of energy, resulting in a profound impact 

on the nation’s environmental quality, economic 

health, national security, and scientific leadership. 

17
18 Ensuring Ample, Affordable Energy

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Rock Physics Models Developed for Mapping and 

Quantifying Subsurface Methane Hydrates—

Researchers at Stanford University, working in 

cooperation with NETL, have developed rock physics 

models that relate seismic attributes to the physical 

properties of methane hydrate in a reservoir. The 

models produced can be used to explore for methane 

hydrate accumulations in marine and non-marine 

subsurface reservoirs and have been tested with 

borehole and seismic data from three hydrate study 

areas: Mallik in Canada’s Mackenzie Delta, Japan’s 

Nankai Trough, and Hydrate Ridge off the coast of 

Oregon. In an interactive mode, the models allow 

the user to vary the reservoir properties (e.g., hydrate 

saturation, porosity, and reservoir thickness) to match 

the observed seismic response at a particular site. 

Ultimately, the models will allow hydrate researchers 

to estimate hydrate and free gas saturations in porous 

reservoirs using seismic data.

Discovery Reveals Possible Role of Methane 

Hydrate in Gas Production in the Barrow Gas 

Fields—During the first phase of a project, the North 

Slope Borough was able to demonstrate a possible 

connection between the methane hydrate zone and 

the free gas reservoir in two of Alaska’s three Barrow 

gas fields. These fields, which have been operating 

since at least 1949, have shown little, if any, pressure 

reduction over their life and have had no water 

breakthrough, suggesting that dissociation of methane 

hydrates may be driving production. The success of this 

initial effort, which was accomplished in cooperation 

with NETL, resulted in a determination to continue 

to the next phase of the project, detailed reservoir 

modeling and formulating recommendations for the 

optimal location of a potential production test well. 

Unique Laboratory Will Help Unlock the Mystery 

of Hydrate Formation and Dissociation—In 2007, 

the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, supported by NETL, 

significantly expanded the capabilities of the Seafloor 

Process Simulator (SPS), a unique experimental facility 

designed to conduct experiments on natural and 

human-made sediments. The SPS allows researchers 

to bridge the gap between traditional molecular-scale 

laboratory experiments and extensive field-based 

production tests and experiments. With the addition 

of a fiber optics-based distributed sensing system, 

the SPS is now capable of measuring time-resolved 

temperature and stress changes in three dimensions 

at the centimeter scale. This new tool set makes it 

possible to monitor rates of methane formation 

and dissociation within large sediment volumes 

by measuring a combination of high-resolution 

temperature data and pressure observations in 

the system. Sediment stability during hydrate 

accumulation and dissociation can also be monitored 

using strain measurements collected by the new 

tool set, permitting better assessment of the seafloor 

stability issues associated with hydrate production or 

environmental changes. 

Researchers Investigate Biological Origins of 

Methane Hydrate and Its Role in the Global 

Climate Cycle—To better understand the role of 

methane in the global climate cycle, researchers at 

Oregon State University, with support from NETL, 

are investigating the biological production rates of 

methane in seafloor sediments. This work combines 

laboratory studies to derive a range of thermodynamic 

and kinetic conditions under which methaneproducing microbes may be active in the sub-seafloor 

sediments. These data will be integrated into numerical 

models that describe the formation and release of gas 

hydrate in marine sediments. 
19

U.S. natural gas and oil resources are tremendous 

energy assets to our nation, providing more than 60 

percent of the total energy used by our industries, 

businesses, and citizens. However, more than 

two-thirds of all the oil discovered in America to 

date remains in the ground, in geologically and 

operationally complex settings that are often 

economically unrecoverable with current technology. 

About 218 billion barrels of oil—a volume 

approaching the proven reserves of Saudi Arabia—lie 

at depths of less than 5,000 feet. Continued U.S. gas 

and oil production depends on locating fields among 

obscure geologic sources and advancing technology 

for recovering discovered resources as economically 

as possible. NETL is developing advanced exploration, 

drilling, and recovery technologies to ensure that 

America’s oil and natural gas resources are recovered 

to their fullest potential. New sensors and modeling 

techniques are helping to pinpoint supplies. 

Enhanced drilling techniques, such as the economic 

microhole technology, are reaching resources once 

deemed “not worth it.” Enhanced oil recovery (EOR) 

technologies are helping operators place wells more 

strategically, identify better injection schemes, and 

improve reservoir management practices.

Natural Gas and Oil—

Maximizing Our Supply

Exploring

Two NETL Studies Encourage Deep Gas 

Exploration—NETL has released two 

comprehensive reports that provide detailed 

geologic information of the northern Appalachian 

basin and northeastern Gulf Coast regions. 

Considered important resources of information 

for companies interested in exploring the regions 

for deep gas, these free-to-the-public reports 

enhance the likelihood that trillions of cubic feet of 

natural gas can be added to our domestic supply 

of energy. 

• The Geologic Play Book of Trenton-Black River 

Exploration in the Appalachian Basin incorporates 

regional geologic, geochemical, and geophysical 

data into a model that will be useful for 

exploiting the most promising reservoirs within 

the Trenton-Black River geologic formations. 

It was produced by the Trenton-Black River 

Appalachian Basin Exploration Consortium.

• Resource Assessment of the In-Place and Potentially 

Recoverable Deep Natural Gas Resource of the 

Onshore Interior Salt Basins, North Central and 

Northeastern Gulf of Mexico discusses a model 

for expanding exploration in the region that, 

according to the U.S. Geological Survey, ranks 

in the top 8 percent of the most petroleumrich basins in the world. This second report is 

the result of a study by NETL and University 

of Alabama investigators, who conducted a 

comprehensive basin analysis of the Mississippi 

Interior Salt Basin. 

Archive of Unconventional Gas Research 

Gives Wealth of Information to Aid Future 

Development—NETL has compiled on DVD the 

Natural Gas Program Archive containing reports 

and data produced during nearly two decades of 

research by the Office of Fossil Energy. Prepared 

in response to rising industry interest, the archive 

makes available nearly 1,400 documents and 

600 logs from 70 individual research wells. The 

two-DVD set covers such programs as Eastern Gas 

Shales, Western Gas Sands, Methane from Coal 

Seams, Methane Hydrate, Deep Source Gas, and 

Secondary Gas Recovery and represents a wealth 

of information that bears directly on development 

of future gas and oil resources to help meet the 

nation’s growing demand for natural gas.
20 Ensuring Ample, Affordable Energy

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Project Results Will Help Tap Huge Domestic 

Gas Reserve—University of Kansas researchers 

and collaborators at the Kansas Geological Survey 

and the Discovery Group, Inc., have provided 

comprehensive database and modeling algorithms 

for rock properties as a result of a study completed 

in cooperation with NETL. This information is 

critical to gas production because it supplies 

crucial information, such as relative permeability, 

capillary pressure, and electrical resistivity. The 

project has sparked considerable industrial interest 

and participation by major producers, including 

BP America, ExxonMobil, Kerr-McGee, Shell Oil 

Company, and the Williams Companies, Inc. 

Information in the study will help operators locate 

and tap the enormous unreached gas reserves—

estimated at 240 trillion cubic feet—located in 

the tight gas sandstones of Utah, Wyoming, and 

Colorado.

New Technology Could Sharpen Images of Deep 

Gas Prospects—Working in cooperation with 

NETL, product developers at Paulsson Geophysical 

Services, Inc., of Brea, CA, have developed the 

first all-fiber-optic seismic-receiver system that, 

unlike available technologies, will operate with no 

downhole electronics or power. The new sensor 

system is expected to withstand temperatures to 

400 oF and pressures to 25,000 pounds per square 

inch. It includes micro-electromechanical-system 

(MEMS) accelerometers to sense ground motion 

and an optical interrogation system to measure 

acceleration magnitude. The combined fiber 

optic-MEMS approach will allow a dramatic increase 

in the number of sensors that can be deployed 

simultaneously as a borehole seismic array and 

should result in better image quality, making it 

possible to more accurately assess deep gas targets. 

Novel Approaches Help Find More Oil—

Researchers from the Utah Geological Survey are 

applying nonintrusive, cost-effective techniques to 

find more oil in the northern Paradox Basin region 

of Utah and Colorado. By examining vegetation 

for compositional signatures of seepage and by 

analyzing for any hydrocarbons contained in the 

air from extracted soil, the techniques—which are 

particularly useful to independent producers—can 

be used to identify or eliminate areas and 

exploration targets before investing significant 

financial resources in seismic data acquisition and 

environmental concerns. The techniques, developed 

in a cooperative agreement with NETL, have benefits 

that could apply to other high-risk, sparsely drilled, 

environmentally sensitive, or poorly researched 

regions where similar reservoirs may be found. A 

feature article covering this new approach appeared 

in the August 2007 issue of the American Association 

of Petroleum Geologists monthly, AAPG EXPLORER. 

New Technique Makes Finding Bypassed Oil 

Faster and Cheaper—Working in cooperation 

with NETL, researchers at Texas A&M University 

have developed a new method for rapid history 

matching of high-resolution geologic models. 

“History matching” is the adjustment of reservoirmodel predictions based on past production 

behavior. Used in conjunction with tracer tests 

that monitor the paths and velocities of certain 

injected gases or liquids as they move through the 

reservoir, this novel approach can reduce the time 

for history matching from several months to a week 

or less and save significant manpower—a boon 

to small independent producers, who account for 

a significant share of domestic crude oil supplies. 

This new technique has stimulated formation of an 

industrial research and development consortium 

funded by eight oil production and service 

companies. 

State-of-the-Art Technology Targets Hidden 

Hydrocarbon Prospects—Collaborators at 

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the 

University of Texas have developed an innovative 

data-acquisition and modeling technique for 

integrating seismic and electromagnetic (EM) data. 

Successful integration of borehole sonic and EM 

measurements considerably improves assessments 

of petrophysical properties and the hydrocarbon 

potential of rock formations tens of meters from a 

wellbore, making it possible to efficiently produce 

oil from highly heterogeneous and bypassed 

hydrocarbon reservoirs. The technique was 

developed in cooperation with NETL.
21

Novel Seismic Technology Provides Way to Detect 

and Validate New Hydrocarbon Reserves—

Collaborative research conducted in cooperation 

with NETL at the University of Houston and University 

of California at Berkeley has resulted in an innovative 

Frequency-Dependent AVO technique for locating 

new hydrocarbon reserves. The seismic-based 

technology correlates and quantifies hydrocarbon 

saturation and fluid-mobility properties as well as 

their spatial distribution in reservoirs. It has been 

successfully applied to both water-saturated sands 

and gas-saturated zones. By mapping fluid contacts 

and mobility, the technique provides a way to 

recognize, delineate, and validate new hydrocarbon 

reserves—especially important in areas that have 

subtle or no seismic expression. It also assists in the 

development of producing fields and represents a 

major step toward the goal of developing a seismicbased method for mapping reservoir permeability. 

Projects Advance State-of-the-Art Seismic 

Imaging—Working in cooperation with NETL, two 

Houston-based research teams have developed 

improved technologies for imaging deep structures 

and detecting deep hydrocarbon accumulations—a 

critical capability for pre-drill evaluation of a 

prospect’s location, size, and deep hydrocarbon 

charge.

• Rock Solid Images developed the Direct 

Hydrocarbon Indicator, which employs seismicattenuation attributes calibrated to well logs. It is 

expected to be more effective than the traditional 

AVO (amplitude versus offset) analysis for detecting 

hydrocarbons in deep reservoirs.

• 3DGeo Development, Inc., developed a technology 

that more completely incorporates available 

seismic-wave information to optimize image 

resolution in areas of deep and complex geology. 

This technology has clearly improved image quality 

for some commercial datasets, especially for depths 

greater than 10,000 feet. 

Results of these state-of-the-art imaging techniques 

were widely publicized at the 2006 annual meeting 

of the Society of Exploration Geophysicists held 

October 1–6 in New Orleans, LA. 

Model for Oklahoma Oil Reservoir Shows Ways 

to Increase Production—Working in cooperation 

with NETL, University of Tulsa scientists have 

developed a reservoir model to explain the 

principal mechanisms by which oil and gas are 

produced from the West Carney field of the 

Hunton formation. One of the biggest commercial 

discoveries in Oklahoma in the last decade, the 

Hunton formation exhibits unique production 

characteristics, such as a large production of 

water, unusual gas-oil ratios, and poor geologic 

continuity. Results of the study, however, indicate 

that use of CO2 flooding and fracture treatments 

will increase production so that additional oil 

can be recovered by applying surfactants and 

gravity-drainage methods. The findings and 

recommendations of the study should lead to 

the production of additional oil and/or gas from 

the West Carney field, as well as from similarly 

complex, tight reservoirs with poor porosity and 

permeability. 

Major Oil Plays in Utah and Vicinity Help 

Companies Plan Oil Well Development—

In an effort to increase recovery of oil reserves 

from existing reservoirs and from new discoveries, 

the Utah Geological Survey has developed play 

portfolios for the major oil-producing provinces 

in Utah and adjacent areas in Colorado and 

Wyoming (Paradox Basin, Uinta Basin, and 

the thrust belt area). The Utah play portfolios 

produced by this project in cooperation with 

NETL provide easy-to-use geologic, engineering, 

and geographic references to help petroleum 

companies plan exploration, land-acquisition 

strategies, and field development. These portfolios 

may also help pipeline companies plan future 

facilities and pipelines. 
22 Ensuring Ample, Affordable Energy

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Proven Ultra-High-Speed Drilling Provides a 

Technical Breakthrough—Using a special rig 

able to withstand extreme vibrations, investigators 

at Salt Lake City-based TerraTek Inc. achieved a 

penetration rate of almost 600 feet per hour with 

an 0.8-inch-diameter diamond coring bit rotating 

at speeds up to 50,000 revolutions per minute. 

Surprisingly, the energy necessary to penetrate 

rock is much less at these record-breaking speeds 

than theoretical predictions, forecasting dramatic 

cost reductions when the technology is applied in 

drilling deep, directional wells to reach prolific gas 

reserves. The data indicate that, when drilling with a 

full-faced bit less than 1 inch in diameter, there is an 

optimum combination of drilling speed and loading 

(weight-on-bit) that could produce the greatest 

rate of penetration. This would be particularly 

significant to decreasing weight-on-bit drilling 

trajectories that are deviated, horizontal, small, 

and deep. With the concept proven, scale-up can 

proceed to ultra-high-speed drilling with bits up to 

3.5 inches in diameter. Success of this project part of 

a cooperative agreement with NETL, could provide 

a technical breakthrough not only for the Office of 

Fossil Energy’s Microhole Development program but 

also for the mining, geothermal, and other industries 

with deep and hard rock drilling applications. 

Major Milestone in Technology Can Reduce 

Costs and Risks of Deep-Well Drilling—Product 

developers at Honeywell International Inc. have 

developed four electronic components that 

will help downhole instrumentation and other 

“smart” well-production applications to function 

reliably in deep, high-temperature, high-pressure 

environments. The suite development was guided 

by a joint industry partnership of petroleum service 

companies and operators organized by Honeywell 

under the NETL-managed Deep Trek program, which 

is aimed at reducing the costs and risks involved 

with characterizing, quantifying, and recovering 

deep domestic natural gas reserves—estimated 

at hundreds of trillions of cubic feet. The hightemperature suite consists of an operational 

amplifier, a field-programmable gate array, a firstof-its-kind electrically erasable and programmable 

read-only memory, and an 18-bit analog-to-digital 

converter.

Microhole Wireless Steering-While-Drilling 

System Tested Under Laboratory Conditions—

INTEQ engineers, in cooperation with NETL, have 

produced and tested three prototype bidirectional 

communications and power modules designed for 

use with INTEQ’s 23/8 -inch CoilTrak® drilling bottomhole assembly. Each module features an alternator 

that uses the flow of drilling fluid to generate 

electrical power for the other measurement-whiledrilling and logging-while-drilling components of 

the assembly. Using pressure pulses in the drilling 

fluid, a module can encode and transmit data from 

downhole to operators on the surface. With the 

capability to receive and demodulate returning 

instructions, the technology eliminates the need for 

an expensive coil with an electric wire connection 

and enables “smart” well drilling in locations where 

an electric line is not affordable. 

Microhole Tool with Lower Environmental Impact 

Demonstrated—Product developers at Western 

Well Tool, Inc., have completed a field demonstration 

of the Microhole Drilling Tractor (MDT) with a major 

oil company operating in Alaska. Operating inside 

41⁄2-inch tubing at depths of 800–950 feet, the MDT 

successfully demonstrated on-off capability, pulled 

with up to 1,465 pounds of force, and verified its 

capability to transmit torque. The MDT is designed to 

provide forward thrust for the drill bit at the end of a 

coiled tubing drill string to overcome the tendency 

for locking up or delivering insufficient weight-on-bit 

to drill ahead. The hydraulically powered device will 

allow producers to economically and effectively drill 

shallow holes with long horizontal well sections up 

to 3,000 feet beyond existing technology, which will 

require fewer wells and thereby minimize surface 

environmental impacts. Developed in cooperation 

with NETL, this technology was a finalist for World Oil 

magazine’s 2007 New Horizons Idea Award.

Drilling
23

Self-Expanding Wellbore Casing Technology 

Demonstrated—A project team led by Dynamic 

Tubular Systems, Inc., completed all essential steps 

in the development of an innovative technology 

that is applicable to microhole drilling but can also 

be used to case any size drilling well, production 

well, or borehole. As part of an NETL-managed 

project implemented under the Office of Fossil 

Energy’s Microhole Technology Initiative, the 

split-tube casing system’s technology evolved 

within two years from a broad concept through 

development and manufacture to the placement 

of two self-expanding tubulars in a field test. 

Applicable to a variety of extraction industries, the 

new technology has attracted industry interest as 

an affordable approach for maintaining borehole 

stability and well control and could extend the 

reach of traditional telescoping designs that would 

otherwise fall short of target. 

Self-Expanding IdealfloTM Sandscreen 

Expected to Significantly Lower Well-Drilling 

Interruptions—As part of a cooperative 

agreement with NETL, a project team led by 

Dynamic Tubular Systems, Inc., developed and 

tested an innovative, self-expanding, controlscreen technology that can be applied in 

producing resources from wells of all types. The 

technology is of particular use with micro-wells, 

solving the unique problems that small-diameter 

wellbores encounter because of the plugging and 

erosion caused by the increased sand movement 

created by high fluid velocities. The new 

sandscreen features a highly supported, grid-type 

construction of close tolerance and slotted panels 

that can be tuned to provide detailed control over 

well hydraulics and particle filtration. As a result, 

the tubular grid can screen sand particles of any 

size, thereby improving hydraulic efficiencies. It 

is also constructed from alloys of higher strength 

and wear resistance than screens available today, 

so it is particularly erosion-resistant. This unique 

sandscreen design has attracted international 

interest in its potential for significantly reducing 

production interruptions. 

Automation Improves Directional Drilling 

Efficiency in Field Tests—As part of a joint 

industry project funded by NETL and the Drilling 

Engineering Association, engineers from Slider, 

LLC, increased by 60–200 percent the rate of 

penetration that can be achieved when using a 

downhole motor to drive a drill bit. Demonstrated 

in Texas oilfield tests, the new technology 

incorporates an automated rocking feature for 

moving the drill assembly fractionally above and 

below the desired drilling target to keep it from 

“sticking” to the formation. The achievement could 

save 11–23 percent of total well costs.

New Tool Helps Small Oil and Gas 

Producers—A software program designed for 

the personal digital assistants used by pumpers 

and well-tenders is now available online at the 

Oklahoma Marginal Well Commission website. 

The program will allow small producers to 

electronically record and track basic well 

management, reporting, and archiving information 

while in the field for later downloading to a main 

database or office computer. Developed through 

a grant from the Stripper Well Consortium, which 

is partially funded by NETL, the tool represents 

a dramatic improvement over the unreliable 

yet time-consuming hard-copy record keeping 

prevalent in the field. The consortium, managed 

by The Pennsylvania State University, offers 

small, independent operators the opportunity 

to work together with technology developers 

and researchers from across the country to solve 

production problems. 
Microhole Drilling Rig Demonstrated Successfully

An NETL-managed project some people call “the little mouse that roared” could change the way America’s 

oil and natural gas wells are drilled. A specially designed hybrid “microhole” coiled tubing rig was successfully 

demonstrated in the nation’s midcontinent region. The field demonstration included the drilling of 25 test 

wells to penetrate a particularly intractable natural gas formation called the Niobrara in western Kansas and 

eastern Colorado. Today, the microhole drilling rig continues to be used to drill Niobrara wells and is being 

considered for coalbed methane drilling.

This microhole drilling bit—part of BakerHughes Inteq’s CoilTrack microhole drilling system—

has been integrated with a small motor and is able to drill boreholes as small as 3 1⁄2-inches in diameter.

24

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Image courtesy of BakerHughs
The effort delivered a cost savings of 25–35 percent 

per well drilled compared with conventional drilling 

equipment. As a result, about 1 trillion cubic feet of 

shallow gas that had been bypassed by conventional 

drilling have now been made economic. That 

volume equates to about 5 percent of America’s 

annual natural gas consumption.

While coiled tubing rigs are frequently used to 

service or stimulate production in problematic oil 

and natural gas wells, operators have only recently 

begun drilling more “grassroots” exploratory and 

development wells with them. That effort has largely 

been limited to higher-cost operating areas such as 

Alaska and Canada.

The commercial Niobrara drilling program—in 

which 3,000-foot wells were drilled in as little as 19 

hours from rig move-in to move-out—followed 

a Department of Energy-funded research project 

undertaken by Gas Technology Institute (GTI), 

Des Plaines, IL. In that effort, GTI partnered with 

two small firms—Advanced Drilling Technology 

LLC (ADT), Yuma, CO, and Rosewood Resources 

Inc., Dallas, TX—to demonstrate a new, high 

efficiency, hybrid rig (combining rotary and coiled 

tubing technologies) for drilling exploratory and 

development wells with ultra-small diameters.

The GTI project received funding from the Energy 

Department’s Microhole Technology Initiative. 

Managed by NETL, the initiative seeks to develop 

the tools and techniques for drilling ultrasmall 

boreholes (generally, 1 3⁄4 to 4 1⁄2 inches in diameter) 

and related downhole micro-instrumentation, using 

coiled tubing drilling rigs that are small and easily 

transportable. These rigs—some small enough 

to mount on a trailer pulled by a standard pickup 

truck—employ solid tubing coiled around a spool 

on the trailer to drill boreholes with well casing 

diameters of less than 4 1⁄2 inches. Such rigs can 

drill shallow wells very quickly, saving substantially 

on daily rig costs and dramatically improving the 

economics of drilling.

GTI’s microhole project was meant to pioneer the use 

of an experimental, “built-for-purpose” coiled tubing 

rig designed to drill exploratory and development 

wells with ultrasmall diameters in the lower 48 states. 

ADT and its predecessor, Coiled Tubing Solutions, 

Inc., designed and fabricated the rig specifically for 

microhole coiled tubing drilling to depths as great as 

5,000 feet. Earlier Energy Department research had 

proven this capability to only a few hundred feet.

GTI and partners field tested this state-of-the-art 

hybrid coiled tubing rig by drilling a few inexpensive 

microbore wells to 1,200–1,400 feet in the Niobrara 

chalk formation along the Kansas-Colorado border. 

The results far exceeded expectations, with drilling 

cost savings averaging 38 percent. The project’s 

success garnered nominations as a finalist for the 

2005 World Oil Award and for 2005 Operator of the 

Year by the Colorado Oil and Gas Commission.

The project’s initial success and strong commercial 

follow-up also demonstrated the potential for coiled 

tubing drilling of exploration and development wells 

in the lower 48 states.

Microhole coiled tubing drilling technology has 

the kind of game-changing potential that could 

be applied to bypassed resources in thousands 

of oil and natural gas reservoirs across the nation, 

particularly for shallow reservoirs in mature or even 

apparently depleted fields. The Energy Department 

estimates the volume of bypassed oil in U.S. oilfields 

at less than 5,000 feet subsurface at more than 218 

billion barrels. Recovering just 10 percent of this 

targeted untapped resource equates to an amount 

equal to 10 years of OPEC oil imports at current rates. 

25
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Innovative Motor Designed for Ultra-High-Speed 

Drilling—In cooperation with NETL, engineers 

at Impact Technologies LLC, have designed an 

advanced permanent-magnet synchronous machine 

that has potential to achieve rotational speeds up 

to 10,000 revolutions per minute for microhole and 

other drilling applications in deep, hard rock. In 

addition to the faster rates of penetration enabled 

by the ultra-high speeds, the sealed direct-current 

motor could also be used in conjunction with 

abrasive and/or corrosive fluids or other high-energy 

processes that are used to increase penetration rate. 

The patented design can provide a tremendous 

improvement in drilling and boring processes, 

allowing attempts at targets that are not possible or 

economic with today’s technology. 

New Tool Raises Output of Unconventional 

Natural Gas—Pinnacle Technologies, Inc., of San 

Francisco, CA, has demonstrated a new technology 

that can use hydraulic fracturing to help optimize 

the output of natural gas from often-grudging 

unconventional reserves, such as tight sandstone 

formations, gas shales, and coal seams. In fracturing, 

fluids are pumped into reservoirs under pressure to 

crack open new pathways for increased flow of oil 

and natural gas to the well. Applicable to oil or gas 

production, the Pinnacle technology is an advanced 

mapping system that delivers a more accurate 

picture of underground conditions than previous 

technologies and also allows improved alignment 

of induced fractures with natural fractures in ways 

that optimize flow. Benefits include higher quality 

data, fewer mapping failures, better understanding 

of fracture behavior in a reservoir, and improved 

well spacing and placement. Prototype arrays of this 

technology, which was developed in cooperation 

with NETL, were demonstrated in a Colorado 

coalbed-methane well and in a Barnett shale test. 

The technology also provided valuable information 

while monitoring California’s San Andreas Fault 

during a long-term test funded by the National 

Science Foundation in partnership with the U.S. 

Geological Survey.

Groundbreaking Oil Recovery Project Revives 

Aging California Oilfield—Working in cooperation 

with NETL, Tidelands Oil Production Company 

operators experienced the most successful drilling in 

25 years at the Wilmington onshore oilfield (owned 

by the City of Long Beach)—surprising in an area 

that had been virtually given up as depleted. The 

Wilmington project was instrumental in advancing 

technologies for modeling, reservoir characterization, 

horizontal well drilling, completion, and heavy oil 

thermal-production operations in an environmentally 

sensitive coastal area. If new technologies and 

techniques developed under the project are applied 

field-wide, it could boost Wilmington’s ultimate oil 

recovery by 525 million barrels of oil. This jump in 

production from a single oilfield could translate to a 

2.5 percent increase in total U.S. proven oil reserves. 

Partnership Demonstrates Technology That 

Gives New Life to Marginal Oil Wells—Field 

demonstrations, conducted as part of an NETLmanaged project awarded under the Office of Fossil 

Energy’s PUMP III program, show that microturbines 

and other technologies can turn stranded gas—gas 

unfit for commercial pipelines or located too far 

from the needed infrastructure—into a resource for 

distributed power generation. Because electricity 

is one of the highest expenses in producing from 

marginal oil wells, the resulting improved economics 

at two demonstration sites—one with high-Btu gas 

and the other with medium-Btu gas—have returned 

previously idle fields back to production. In addition 

to reducing production cost, a third demonstration 

has brought a field with harsh gas (gas contaminated 

with high levels of nitrogen, CO2, and hydrogen 

sulfide) into compliance with air emissions regulations 

by scrubbing hydrogen sulfide from the gas with a 

patented sulfur-treating system, thus eliminating the 

need for flaring. NETL demonstration partners include 

the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission, 

California Oil Producers Electrical Cooperative, 

California Energy Commission, and California South 

Coast Air Quality Management District. Preventing 

the waste of valuable domestic oil resources through 

premature plugging and abandonment of marginal 

oil wells could add 75,000 barrels of domestic 

oil production per day—28 million barrels per 

year—within the next 10 years. An article coauthored 

Enhanced Recovery
27

at NETL highlights the project in PennWell 

Corporation’s November 2007 issue of Cogeneration 

and Onsite Power Production. 

Project Identifies Means to Economically 

Recover More Oil from Utah Basin—Investigators 

at the Utah Geological Survey have indicated 

through models and calculations that horizontal 

wells drilled from existing vertical wells in two San 

Juan County fields would likely encounter bypassed 

oil that could be economically recovered. The study, 

undertaken in cooperation with NETL, examined 

representative cores, geophysical logs, and thin 

sections of rock to grade the potential for additional 

oil recovery using the technique. If applied to the 

approximately 100 similar fields in the Pennsylvania 

Paradox Formation spanning Utah and Colorado, 

the method could recover an additional 25–50 

million barrels of oil. 

Many Industry Firsts Attained by Model for 

Enhanced Oil Recovery—Researchers at Stanford 

University, working in cooperation with NETL, 

are developing a novel reservoir simulator that 

promises to provide quick and reliable performance 

assessments for a wide range of reservoirs involving 

multiphase flows. The Stanford team achieved 

many “firsts,” including:

• A new research tool for gas injection and 

two-phase compositional flow that will allow 

very large, complex computational simulation 

problems to be run on desktop computers. 

• The first equations describing two-phase, fourcomponent flow, with adsorption and volume 

change, that can be used to describe subterranean flue gas injection. 

• Methods tailored to describe flow in space and 

time with efficient integration of kinetics and 

phase behavior in reactive porous media. 

Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) is one of the most 

effective methods for recovering much of the more 

than 400 billion barrels of discovered oil remaining 

in the United States. Faster, more accurate EOR 

models can maximize oil recovery by helping 

operators place wells and surface facilities more 

strategically, identify better gas and water-and-gas 

injection schemes, and improve reservoir management practices.management practices.

EOR Research and Development Identifies 

Additional Recoverable Oil Reserves in 

Michigan—A research team led by Pittsburghbased Schlumberger Data and Consulting Services 

has injected more than 500 million cubic feet of 

CO2 into the Charlton 30/31 oil field, a field in the 

northern flank of the Michigan Basin that contains 

approximately 700 Silurian-age reef structures. The 

researchers, working in a cooperative agreement 

with NETL, verified a correlation between low 

instantaneous seismic frequency and high reservoir 

porosity, making possible a highly accurate 

reservoir simulation that can lead to greater reserve 

recovery while simultaneously providing for the 

sequestration of more CO2. There are an estimated 

one billion barrels of oil remaining in Michigan’s 

Silurian reefs and 351 billion barrels in mature 

fields nationwide. Stripped from locally produced 

natural gas (to meet pipeline quality specifications), 

the anthropogenic CO2 from the project is being 

injected back into the reef rather than released to 

the atmosphere. 

Microbial EOR Produces More Oil—Investigators 

at the University of Oklahoma, working in 

cooperation with NETL, have obtained positive 

results by using microbial-enhanced oil recovery 

(MEOR). In field tests at two sites operated by 

independent producer Arrow Holding, Inc., 330 

barrels above normal production were recovered 

by MEOR. The investigators developed and applied 

technology for inoculating oil reservoirs with a 

mix of bacterial strains that produce viscositylowering surfactants. These allow oil to flow more 

easily out of the rock pores trapping it. The DOE 

Reservoir Database identifies more than 600 

reservoirs representing upwards of 12 billion barrels 

of currently unrecoverable oil that are potential 

targets for the technology. These results were 

reported in the “What’s New in Production” section 

of World Oil’s August 2007 issue. 
28 Developing Affordable Alternatives 

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29

In the foreseeable future, the 

United States and indeed the 

world will continue to rely on fossil 

fuels to produce the vast majority 

of the energy we consume. 

Because of this, NETL will continue 

to play a critical and unique role 

in the science and technology 

of affordable alternative 

applications for traditional fossil 

fuels—applications that are 

essential to the environmentally 

responsible use of America’s coal, 

natural gas, and oil resources. 

NETL is developing new 

technologies and processes that 

slash emissions, make beneficial 

use of waste products, improve 

materials and monitors for 

advanced combustion systems, 

and complete the drive toward 

advanced power turbines—the 

heart of nearly all the world’s 

electricity generation systems.
30 Developing Affordable Alternatives 

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NETL Research Reveals Sulfur Trioxide Interferes 

with Mercury Capture—Test results obtained at NETL 

suggest that mercury and sulfur oxides compete for 

the same binding sites on the surface of activated 

carbon, a widely used mercury-capture sorbent. 

Further, the presence of sulfur trioxide inhibits mercury 

capture even at the lowest concentration tested (20 

parts per million). While difficult and costly to mitigate, 

poisoning of activated carbon by sulfur trioxide can be 

reduced by coinjection of alkaline sorbents along with 

the activated carbon, flue gas desulfurization upstream 

of the point of injection, and the use of alternative 

fly ash conditioning agents. These results have been 

reported in the American Chemical Society journal 

Environmental Science & Technology.

National Laboratories Investigate the 

Interdependency of Energy and Water— In 

response to a request from the House and Senate 

Subcommittees on Energy and Water Development 

Appropriations, NETL and two other national 

laboratories have evaluated the impact that limited 

water supplies could have on energy production. The 

report, titled “Energy Demands on Water Resources—

Report to Congress on the Interdependency of Energy 

and Water,” contains valuable background information 

detailing the connections between energy and water, 

in particular fossil-based electricity generation. It 

provides a summary of concerns regarding the water 

demands of energy production, and it discusses the 

science and technologies needed to address national 

water use and management in the context of domestic 

energy production and use. NETL, Sandia National 

Laboratories, and Los Alamos National Laboratory were 

the three lead laboratories that authored the report.

NETL Researchers Develop Efficient Technique for 

Enhancing Worth of Fly Ash—An NETL-developed 

method of combining mechanical sieving and an 

electrical separation technique called “triboelectrostatic 

separation” has proven effective and efficient for 

separating and concentrating the carbon and mineral 

components of fly ash. Carbon and low-carbon fly ash 

are saleable commodities, but high-carbon fly ash is 

not. Fly ash generally has over 6 percent unburned 

carbon, which makes it unusable for cement. Removal 

of minerals from the fly ash benefits the power 

industry, the cement and other industries, and the 

environment because a waste product is transformed 

into a useful product. The new separation method 

can be adjusted to the relative carbon and mineral 

contents of the feed material as well as for various 

industrial end products, such as specialty carbon or 

cement. The process is described in the February 2007 

issue of Chemical Engineering & Technology. 

Long-Term, Full-Scale Test Achieves 90 Percent 

Mercury Emission Reduction—We Energies, at its 

Presque Isle Plant in Marquette, MI, is demonstrating 

the TOXECONTM mercury and multi-pollutant control 

system. Operating under NETL’s Clean Coal Power 

Initiative, the project logged 48 consecutive days that 

achieved 90 percent or greater reduction in mercury 

emissions. Total boiler load ranged from roughly 165 

to 250 megawatts of electricity, and temperature 

generally varied in the range of 325 °F to 346 °F, with 

brief periods near 285 °F during low-load operations. 

The outlet mercury emissions measurements 

consistently showed a 90 percent mercury emission 

reduction, proving the TOXECON system’s capability 

Air, Water, and Land—

Reducing Our Footprint

Air, water, and land are the most basic of America’s 

abundant resources. The conservation of these resources is 

a major focus for NETL, whose research achieved singular 

accomplishments in 2007 in its pursuit of technologies that 

tackle the environmental impacts of energy production 

on America’s air, water, and land. As Benjamin Franklin 

wrote in Poor Richard’s Almanac, it is when “the well runs 

dry, we know the worth of water.” However, NETL is not 

waiting for that to happen. NETL researchers in the Office 

of Systems Analyses and Planning are conducting research 

and analyses to reduce the electric power sector’s use of 

freshwater. Our mercury program—the largest research 

program in the country for studying fossil-combustionbased mercury emissions—announced its successful 

achievement of the mercury-reduction goals established 

by the Office of Fossil Energy a decade ago. In addition, 

our Strategic Center for Coal and Strategic Center for 

Natural Gas and Oil made great strides in 2007 in research 

and analyses to reduce the electric power sector’s use of 

freshwater; to better manage water produced during oil 

extraction, gas extraction, and carbon sequestration; and 

to reduce impacts to our nation’s land resources. 
31

for achieving the project goal of 90 percent mercury 

reduction during a full-scale test for a long-term 

duration and over the wide variation of operating 

conditions typically experienced at a commercial 

power plant.

Mercury Oxidation Demonstrated Using 

Subbituminous Coals—Under an NETL cooperative 

agreement, the University of North Dakota’s 

Energy and Environmental Research Center (EERC) 

completed the Large-scale Testing of Enhanced 

Mercury Removal project. The objective of this 

project was to evaluate additives alone or in 

combination with activated carbon to control 

mercury emissions from units firing Powder River 

Basin subbituminous coals. The results indicate 

that calcium chloride added to the W.A. Parish and 

Hawthorn stations increased mercury oxidation 

across the selective catalytic reduction (SCR) units. 

The increased amount of oxidized mercury was 

then captured in the wet scrubbers at each of the 

plants. Mercury removal at W.A. Parish increased to 

94 percent when using the additives, compared 

to a baseline removal of 32 percent. The results are 

important because previous research has shown 

that only units burning bituminous coal can oxidize 

mercury across the SCR. Additional research must 

be conducted to determine if the calcium chloride 

additive could cause corrosion issues over an 

extended test period.

Spectroscopic Methods Have Potential to 

Improve Performance of Mercury Monitors 

in Flue Gas—In separate projects conducted in 

cooperation with NETL under the Office of Fossil 

Energy’s Advanced Research program, Sandia 

National Laboratories, and Purdue University 

have demonstrated the potential of applying 

spectroscopic techniques to measure mercury in flue 

gas from coal-fired power plants. These techniques 

eliminate error introduced by the extensive sampleconditioning required with conventional methods 

by placing the instrument near the sampling probe 

for rapid analysis under conditions comparable to 

process conditions. Under laboratory conditions 

at Sandia National Laboratories, a detection limit 

of one part per billion of mercuric chloride—the 

most abundant form of oxidized mercury emitted 

from coal-fired boilers—was demonstrated in 

the presence of sulfur dioxide (SO

2

) using photo 

fragment fluorescence. Purdue researchers, using 

two diode lasers on a pilot-scale combustor, 

demonstrated detection of atomic mercury to the 

part-per-billion level in the presence of SO

2

. Laser 

light sources have the potential to positively impact 

the overall performance of continuous-emissions 

mercury monitors for coal-fired power plants.

Test Site Chosen for Water-Saving Technology 

for Power Plants—SPX Cooling Technologies, 

Inc., developer of Air2AirTM, a patented new waterrecovery technology, has partnered with PNM, the 

operator of the San Juan Generating Station in 

New Mexico. PNM has given SPX permission to use 

a part of the generating station’s 1,800-megawatt 

coal-fired plant’s Unit 4 cooling tower to perform 

full-scale testing of the novel technology in actual 

field conditions. The Air2Air Condensing Module, 

developed under the NETL-sponsored Innovations 

for Existing Plants program, has the potential to 

reduce the water usage of an evaporative cooling 

tower by 20 percent, which could result in saving 

600,000 gallons of freshwater per day for a typical 

300-megawatt coal-fired power plant. A traditional 

evaporative cooling tower at a thermoelectric power 

plant uses the latent heat of water vaporization 

to transfer heat. By evaporating a small portion 

of the circulating water flow through the tower, 

the remaining water is cooled. The Air2Air water 

conservation cooling tower has been developed 

to recover part of the evaporate by condensing it 

with relatively cool ambient air and retaining water 

that would otherwise be lost to the atmosphere. 

Throughout an annual cycle, the testing at San Juan 

Generating Station will validate water savings and/or 

collection, the durability of the modules to withstand 

hot and cold temperatures, and the preservation of 

thermal performance integrity of the wet cooling 

portion.
NETL Concludes Its Successful Mercury Control Program

Coal-fired power plants, municipal waste combustors, and medical-waste incinerators—those are just some of 

the manmade sources of mercury emissions that have raised environmental concern for decades. Scientists have 

known for some time that those sources emit mercury into the atmosphere that can eventually be converted 

into methyl mercury, posing a significant threat to people and animals.

The threat arises when mercury accumulates in the food chain, moving from plants to small animals to large 

animals and finally humans. Human exposure largely derives from the consumption of fish with high levels 

of mercury, as evidenced by the fact that at least 43 states at one time or another have issued food advisories 

regarding high levels of mercury in fish.

Recognizing the potential implications of mercury for fossil-fuel-based power generation, DOE embarked on 

a comprehensive research program a little more than 15 years ago to develop and demonstrate cost-effective 

technologies to control mercury emitted from the nation’s coal-fired power plants. This program, which has been 

the premiere mercury research and development initiative for coal-fired plants in the world, was carried out as 

part of NETL’s Innovations for Existing Plants research area that is directed at improving the overall environmental 

performance of the current fleet of coal-fired power plants. With a portfolio of successful mercury control 

We Energies, at its Presque Isle Plant in Marquette, MI, is demonstrating the TOXECONTM mercury and 

multi-pollutant control system. 

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technologies developed under the NETL program 

and the establishment of a federal mercury 

regulatory framework well underway, future 

enhancement of mercury capture technology has 

been transitioned from government to private 

sector leadership. 

Over the 15-year period, NETL cooperatively 

worked with the U.S. Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA), the Electric Power Research Institute 

(EPRI), power plant operators, state and local 

agencies, as well as academic institutions and a 

host of research organizations, to identify factors 

associated with mercury speciation and capture 

in the coal combustion process, then develop a 

successful suite of technologies to address the 

problem.

The collaborative effort has led to the 

accomplishment of the goal of DOE’s program 

to bring technology to a commercial readiness 

that can achieve high levels of mercury removal 

at costs considerably less than 1999 baseline 

estimates. The achievement of this goal 

culminated with the success of DOE’s recent fieldtesting effort initiated in 2000. Coal type and other 

plant-specific factors determine what percentage 

of each form of mercury—element, oxidized, and 

particulate— will be released and how it will be 

controlled. Therefore, it was critical that the fieldtesting effort encompass a broad suite of power 

plant configurations and coal types, particularly 

those plants burning lower-rank coals that 

produce the more difficult to capture elemental 

form of mercury. In response, DOE conducted 

large-scale field testing of the most promising 

advanced mercury control technologies on more 

than 40 coal-fired boilers burning a range of coal 

types, including bituminous, subbituminous, and 

lignite, and equipped with a variety of air pollution 

control devices. 

A major focus of DOE’s field testing was on the 

development of activated carbon injection (ACI) 

technology. ACI involves injecting powdered 

carbon into the flue gas to grab hold of the 

mercury. The activated carbon is then captured 

and removed from the flue gas using the plant’s 

particulate control device. The field program also 

tested technologies that would enhance the 

capture of mercury in a power plant’s SO2 control 

system. 

The success of DOE’s mercury research and 

development program is best demonstrated by 

the fact that over 80 full-scale ACI systems have 

been ordered by U.S. coal-fired power generators. 

These contracts include both new and retrofit 

installations and represent over 41 gigawatts 

of coal-based electric generating capacity. 

Approximately 30 gigawatts of existing electric 

generating capacity (about 9 percent of total U.S. 

coal-based capacity) will be retrofitted with ACI to 

control mercury emissions. This includes DOEdeveloped halogen-treated carbon systems that 

can capture the elemental form of mercury. The 

ACI systems have the potential to remove 70–90 

percent of the mercury in most applications, at 

a cost that can dip below $10,000 per pound of 

mercury removed. By comparison, the cost of 

technology to capture mercury available in 1999 

was estimated to be about $60,000 per pound.

In addition to the commercial success of the 

technologies developed by DOE’s external 

research teams, researchers at NETL developed 

and patented two new methods for controlling 

mercury. In the first patent, researchers extracted 

partially combusted coal from a boiler and used 

the unburned carbon as a mercury sorbent. The 

second patent uses ultraviolet light to convert 

elemental mercury into an oxidized form that can 

be captured more readily by existing air pollution 

control devices.

NETL has taken seriously its role as manager of the 

federal government’s mercury control program 

over the past 15 years and successfully guided 

it toward the goal of bringing low-cost capture 

technologies to the marketplace. Now the “baton” 

has been passed on to the private sector to 

continue to improve performance and reduce 

costs as the nation moves forward in controlling 

emissions of mercury from coal-fired power plants. 

33
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Produced-Water Management Information 

System Launched—Argonne National Laboratory, 

working in partnership with NETL, has created a 

comprehensive new Web tool that will help oil 

and natural gas producers tackle produced water 

challenges. Produced water accounts for 98 percent 

of all waste generated by U. S. oil and natural gas 

operations. Since much of the produced water 

contains high levels of mineral salts, it is unsuitable 

for beneficial uses or even as surface discharge. 

The new website contains three modules, one of 

which directs inquirers to water regulations for more 

than 30 states and three federal agencies; a second 

module contains 25 fact sheets describing different 

technologies used to manage produced water; and 

the third module contains a question-and-answer 

tree where yes-and-no answers to questions direct 

the user to technologies that would be most useful 

to the inquirer’s work site. During the first three 

weeks the program was open to the public, 57,000 

hits were logged, along with nearly 3,300 visitor 

sessions. This project will enable the oil and gas 

industry, DOE, and other stakeholders to be aware of 

water and waste regulatory issues and assist them in 

responding to these concerns. 

Milestone Reached in Produced-Water 

Reclamation Technology—A significant milestone 

has been reached toward the goal of developing 

an economic membrane system that can reduce 

the salt content of oil-field produced water to the 

extent that it is suitable for agriculture and other 

beneficial uses. The new process for improving 

the synthesis of hydrophilic zeolite membranes 

was developed in cooperation with NETL at the 

Petroleum Recovery Research Center in Socorro, 

NM. A two-step hydrothermal crystallization process 

resulted in a highly efficient membrane with good 

reproducibility. Test results show high efficiency for 

produced water samples, both actual and simulated. 

A patent application was filed for the breakthrough 

technology.

Condensing Heat Exchangers Indicate Potential 

to Recover Water from Coal-Fired Power Plant 

Flue Gas—As part of a cooperative agreement 

with NETL, Lehigh University has developed new 

designs for condensing heat exchangers to recover 

water from power plant flue gas while concurrently 

evaluating the heat rate and emissions co-benefits 

of installing the exchangers at coal-fired power 

plants. Initial tests were completed using a smoothtube heat exchanger bundle with flue gas from 

an oil-fired boiler located at Lehigh University’s 

powerhouse. The boiler generates flue gas with 

approximately 14 percent water vapor and sulfuric 

acid concentrations of approximately 18 parts per 

million. Data revealed that the sulfuric acid and water 

vapor condensation processes occurred separately 

in different exchangers, which indicates that it could 

be possible to customize the design of each heat 

exchanger, allocating some for acid removal and 

others for water vapor condensation. The technology 

developed in this project will provide coal-fired 

utilities with a means of producing freshwater from 

flue gas that would normally be evaporated from 

the stack. The produced water would be available for 

power plant operations with an additional potential 

to remove emissions and increase boiler efficiency 

by utilizing the rejected heat in the turbine cycle.

State-of-the-Art Technology Makes Produced 

Water Usable—As part of a cooperative agreement 

with NETL, collaborators at the University of Texas, 

Los Alamos National Laboratory, and the New 

Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology have 

developed an integrated treatment process that 

removes more than 90 percent of the organic acids 

in produced water. The process combines a filtrationand-sorption step using an innovative medium 

produced from naturally occurring zeolites and a 

commercially available surfactant combined with a 

biodegradation step to treat off-gas from medium 

regeneration. The greatly reduced level of dissolved 

organics enables downstream demineralization by 

economical reverse osmosis, making the produced 

water clean and suitable for power utilities and many 

other uses. 
35

Moisture from Flue Gas Could Provide Power 

Plant Cooling Water—As part of a cooperative 

agreement with NETL and industrial partners, 

investigators at EERC have demonstrated at pilot 

scale the recovery of water from flue gas using 

an aqueous solution of calcium chloride as a 

desiccant (moisture-removing agent). The liquid 

desiccant dehumidification system recycles a 

desiccant solution between an absorber tower 

(packed bed or spray) for contacting the desiccant 

with the flue gas, and a vacuum flash vaporization 

and condensation stage for recovering water 

and re-strengthening the solution. Test results 

show that the amount of water recovered could 

allow air-cooled plants to operate at 100 percent 

capacity during peak periods with sufficient 

high-quality water for misting the coolers, boiler 

makeup, and other plant requirements.

Methodology Improves Accuracy Assessment 

of Toxicity in Coal-Tar-Contaminated Soil—

As part of a joint venture with NETL, collaborators 

at RETEC (which later merged with ENSR) and 

the University of North Dakota’s EERC have 

demonstrated that the predicted toxicity of 

polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in soil 

is more accurately determined when based on 

PAH concentrations in pore-water measurements 

rather than in sediments, as currently practiced. 

A paper concerning the findings appeared 

in the Society of Environmental Toxicology 

and Chemistry’s September 2007 publication 

of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry. 

The method could lead to an improved U.S. 

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) standard 

as well as a standard method from the American 

Society for Testing and Materials for predicting 

and measuring the effectiveness of remedial 

approaches for coal-tar-contaminated sites, 

such as those where aluminum, steel, and 

manufactured gas are produced. 

Recommendations Incorporated into 

Environmental Guidelines—Following the 

initial presentation of the EPA’s draft guidelines 

for pilot-scale geologic carbon sequestration 

activities, the Ground Water Protection Council, 

working in cooperation with NETL, formed a 

small work group of state regulatory officials to 

review the guidance draft and collect stakeholder 

input. EPA incorporated several stakeholder and 

council recommendations into final guidance, 

demonstrating that input from multiple 

stakeholders can successfully affect the regulatory 

process and lead to more cost-effective regulatory 

approaches. 

NETL Partners Make Gains in Electronics 

Recycling—The Mid-Atlantic Recycling Center for 

End-of-Life Electronics (MARCEE) has announced 

its collection of more than 500,000 pounds of 

electronics waste across the state of West Virginia 

in 2006 and 2007. Operated by West Virginia 

University and the National Center for Electronics 

Recycling and supported by NETL, MARCEE 

develops methods for separating plastics from 

end-of-life electronics, examines separation 

economics, and evaluates the performance of 

plastic artifacts extruded from recycled plastics. 

In West Virginia, it has spurred the local recycling 

industry and increased public awareness of the 

need for electronics recycling. MARCEE’s activities 

are part of a wider nationwide effort to establish 

viable electronics recycling options. According to 

the Consumer Electronics Association, each U.S. 

household contains more than two dozen pieces 

of electronics equipment, many of which contain 

hazardous components. Without programs like 

MARCEE, most of these products will be discarded 

in landfills where they leach hazardous waste into 

the soil and water supply. 
Freshwater withdrawal is essential to power production for cooling and other processes. Although the majority of 

withdrawn water is returned to its source, power plants can have a profound impact on local and regional supplies.

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Water is a pivotal issue in the nation, since 

economic development hinges on the availability 

of freshwater. Public water systems, agriculture, 

power generation, and other industries all 

compete for limited water supplies.

In the United States, the power industry is 

responsible for a surprising 40 percent of the water 

withdrawn from freshwater sources each year—

about as much as the farming industry uses for 

irrigation. While the vast majority of this water is 

eventually returned to its source, power plants still 

have a profound effect on local and regional water 

supplies. In several recent cases, construction of 

new plants has been shelved because water-use 

permits were not available, and existing plants 

During the last week of September in 2007, with nearly 60 percent of the nation facing drought conditions 

and cities from California to Florida facing water rationing, NETL released an update to its groundbreaking 

2006 report, “Estimating Freshwater Needs to Meet Future Thermoelectric Generation Requirements.” The 

update was the first-ever examination of how technologies to combat climate change could place further 

pressures on freshwater demand.

have been “de-rated,” reducing their power output 

due to low river flows brought on by drought.

The updated NETL report examined what may 

happen if future policies to combat climate 

change result in the addition of carbon capture 

technologies to coal-fired power plants. Since 

these technologies often require additional water, 

the report included case study scenarios to predict 

how much more water could be needed.

Four of the five cases presented in the report 

predict that, without carbon capture, total water 

withdrawals by the power industry across the 

nation will decrease by 2030; however, water 

consumption—water withdrawn but not returned 

to the source—is predicted to grow by about a 

third. With carbon capture technologies added, 

water withdrawals by coal-fired power plants 

are projected to increase slightly, while water 

consumption could nearly double.

The report provides input for future research and 

development aimed at reducing water use by 

the power industry. Recognizing the importance 

of water to the economy, power generation, 

and life itself, NETL has joined with Sandia 

National Laboratories to advance research and 

development leading to the commercialization 

of technologies to reduce freshwater usage by 

thermoelectric power plants and minimize the 

plants’ impact on water quality. 

Thermoelectric

All Other

Irrigation

U.S. Freshwater Withdrawal 

0 10 20 30 40 50

Percent of Use

Power plants are second only to irrigation in the 

percent of annual withdrawal in the United States. 

“Other” withdrawal is made for public supply, 

industry, mining, etc.

37

NETL Conducts First-Ever 

Analysis of the Impact of Carbon Capture Technologies on Water Use
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Advanced materials and processes will be vital to future 

power and fuel-production plants. Researchers in NETL’s 

Advanced Research Materials program, in partnership 

with Oak Ridge National Laboratory, address the need 

for new materials that can withstand the corrosive, 

high-temperature environments of advanced powergeneration technologies such as ultra-supercritical 

power plants, coal gasifiers, turbines, combustors, 

and fuel cells. The strides NETL is making in system 

monitoring and nanoscience are also critical to bringing 

these systems to fruition.

Reduced Costs Possible with Model That Predicts 

Corrosion in Gasifier Refractory Material—

Collaborators at NETL and Oak Ridge National 

Laboratory have developed a thermochemical 

model for predicting corrosion in slagging coal 

gasifier refractory materials. The average service 

life of these materials is approximately one year, 

with some failures as soon as three months. 

Understanding the corrosive attack mechanisms 

existing between coal slag and gasifier refractories 

will help researchers design refractory linings with 

improved lifetimes, thereby reducing the costly 

downtime needed for refractory replacement. 

Initial results were presented at the 21st Annual 

Conference on Fossil Energy Materials in Knoxville, TN.

Five-Month Field Test of NETL-Designed 

Corrosion Probes Completed—NETL scientists 

employed four air-cooled probes of their own design 

to monitor real-time fireside corrosion in a boiler 

environment at a commercial waste-to-energy 

combustion facility owned and operated by Covanta 

Energy, in Brooks, OR. Results from the five-month 

field-test demonstrated the following: 

• Corrosion rate sensors were able to follow changes 

accompanying process operations.

• Corrosion rates can be calibrated to mass change 

measurements.

• Corrosion rates of a nickel-base alloy can be 

calibrated to corrosion rates of carbon steel.

This technology could allow plant operators to 

identify process conditions that result in lower 

wastage of critical boiler components and ultimately 

facilitate more efficient scheduling of maintenance 

shutdowns.

Work in Computational Chemistry Promises FarReaching Results—Computational and experimental 

work at NETL, in collaboration with the University of 

Pittsburgh, has produced the first solid microscopic 

evidence of “gold-adatom-mediated” bonding in the 

self-assembly of chemical compounds containing 

sulfur and alkyl groups on a gold surface. This is a type 

of bonding where some of the metal molecules—in 

this case gold—actually insert themselves into the 

sulfur-sulfur bond of the organosulfur compound. 

The discovery—achieved through the combined use 

of low-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy 

and density functional theory calculations—holds 

great promise for the development of the field 

of heterogeneous catalysis and nanoscience. The 

bonding properties of organosulfur compounds, and in 

particular of the self-assembled molecular monolayers, 

are of interest in many areas of fossil energy research 

and development, such as improved lubricants, 

chemical sensors, nanocatalysts, and moleculary 

electronics. The finding was presented in a paper 

published in the October 6, 2006, issue of Physical 

Review Letters. 

New Technology Has Potential to Significantly 

Impact Nanoscience—Collaborators at NETL 

and the University of Pittsburgh achieved a record 

spatial resolution in imaging chemical species—10 

nanometers—which is a thousand times better than 

previously possible. By being able to identify the 

chemical nature of these nanoscopic objects from 

their spectral “fingerprints,” this breakthrough can 

have significant impact in fossil energy applications, 

advancing the understanding of chemical and 

morphological changes in materials composed 

of diverse ingredients, such as fossil sediments. 

Researchers used advanced apertureless nearfield scanning infrared microscopy to identify iron 

Materials & Monitoring—Making 

Advanced Systems Possible
39

carbonyl isomers by imaging bridging carbonyl 

vibrations induced by a carbon dioxide (CO2) laser 

in nanoparticles. By using these results to model 

the spectral properties of much larger organic 

and organometallic systems, the technique will 

potentially further the development of nanoscience, 

especially microbiology and nanoelectronics. A paper 

describing the research appeared in the American 

Chemical Society’s February issue of Langmuir.

New Alloys Offer Lower-Cost Alternative to 

Nickel-Based Superalloys for Advanced CoalFired Boilers—A family of inexpensive, highly 

stress-resistant stainless steels composed mostly 

of austenite has been developed by researchers at 

Oak Ridge National Laboratory in cooperation with 

NETL. The alloys develop a protective scale formation 

that was achieved when the development team 

reduced their aluminum content by substituting 

niobium carbide for the usual strengthening agents 

of titanium and vanadium. Smaller amounts of 

aluminum permitted stabilization of the matrix 

structure while providing excellent stress resistance. 

As described in the April 20, 2007, issue of Science 

magazine, these alloys offer a lower-cost approach 

to substantially increasing temperature limits for 

structural components operating in the aggressive 

oxidizing environments encountered in energyconversion systems.

New Micro-Indentation Method Requires Only 

Small Samples to Determine Alloy Properties—

Researchers at West Virginia University, participating 

in the University Coal Research program managed 

by NETL, have developed and validated a simple 

micro-indentation test method that characterizes 

material hardness using small samples in situ. The 

technique was developed as part of a project aimed 

at enhancing the ductility of molybdenum- and 

chromium-based alloys by the addition of metal 

oxide dispersions. The novel method eliminates 

the need for sophisticated displacement sensors 

for indentation depth measurement and could 

provide the basis for a portable micro-indentation 

instrument for onsite component inspection and 

surface mechanical property evaluation while the 

component is in service.

NETL-Administered Grants Yield Advances in 

Sensor Technology Development—Research 

in sensor technology, conducted under NETLadministered grants for the Office of Fossil 

Energy’s University Coal Research/Historically 

Black Colleges and Universities program, was 

successfully concluded at four universities: 

• A project team at the University of Alabama, 

Birmingham, developed an online capacitancebased corrosion-monitoring technology for 

rapid determination of fireside corrosion rates in 

coal-fired boilers.

• The Pennsylvania State University researchers 

developed and patented an intelligent 

distributed sapphire fiber optic sensor system 

for real-time monitoring of boiler furnace 

temperature. 

• Morgan State University researchers designed 

and tested a novel temperature measurement 

system featuring a thermocouple coated with 

a protective intermetallic ceramic coating and 

uniquely equipped with high-pressure oxygen 

cleaning and ultrasonic dirt-peeling capabilities 

to improve performance and longevity. 

• A research team at the University of Connecticut 

examined the feasibility of using sapphire fibers 

for optical sensing when placed directly in the 

harsh environment of advanced coal conversion 

processes.
Pouring a cast steel P-900 hatch for the Bradley Fighting Vehicle.

40

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To protect U.S. soldiers and military vehicles from 

improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and explosivelyformed penetrators, the Department of Defense 

is purchasing ten million pounds of a unique cast 

steel armor called P-900, developed over the past 

two decades by NETL researchers. This cast armor 

will retrofit certain military vehicles to protect the 

soldiers riding in them. A number of foundries will 

need to produce over 100,000 castings within the 

Defense Department’s specified period. 

Over the course of the last 20 years, NETL scientists 

have worked with the Army Tank and Automotive 

Command (TACOM), one of the Army’s largest 

weapon systems research, development, and 

sustainment organizations, and the Army Research 

Laboratory (ARL) to develop and continuously 

improve P-900. The research team has used a 

modified steel casting process called the “lost 

foam process” to produce cast-slotted steel armor. 

Recently, NETL scientists and technicians have 

produced castings for ARL using a new heat 

treatment to optimize ballistic performance against 

IEDs. When ARL engineers performed ballistic 

testing and evaluation on 

a series of test plates, they 

proved so successful that TACOM immediately put 

out the market call. 

TACOM and NETL contacted foundries throughout 

the United States to produce the armor. To lay the 

groundwork for full-scale production, NETL met 

with various Defense Department offices to ensure 

that selected foundries meet program goals and to 

help the Department prepare the specifications. 

Because the need for the armor is pressing, NETL 

has helped some foundries qualify to produce 

large quantities of castings by providing technical 

expertise and polystyrene patterns for making 

test targets. NETL is also helping jump-start the 

production process by furnishing TACOM with 

pattern tooling to make additional patterns while 

the foundries await full-size patterns. 

Once the selected foundries are deemed qualified, 

the Army will proceed with full-scale production at 

a rate of 100–600 castings per day at each foundry. 

Foundries using NETL’s lost foam process will 

produce a significant portion of the 100,000-plus 

initial castings required by the Department of 

Defense. 

41

U.S. Army Using Cast Steel Armor to Protect Troops
From the in-depth understanding of flame dynamics 

to the design and engineering of leading-edge 

turbomachinery, NETL researchers are at the forefront 

of the science and technology of turbines—the heart 

of nearly all the world’s electric generating systems. 

Because of their potential for higher performance 

and their adaptability to fossil-fuel-based power 

systems that capture CO2, turbines will remain a prime 

component in providing secure domestic power 

production that is clean, efficient, and affordable. NETL 

manages a research, development, and demonstration 

project portfolio designed to develop high-performance, 

near-zero-emission turbine technologies that 

eliminate environmental concerns with future coal 

use. Researchers at NETL also have the use of—and 

make available to others—their unique laboratory 

facilities and equipment to evaluate new concepts in 

combustion, sensors, and turbine materials. 

Dilute-Combustion Concept Demonstrated at 

NETL—A dilute hydrogen-diffusion combustion 

concept is being developed as an approach for 

reaching the Office of Fossil Energy’s nitrogen oxide 

(NOx) emissions target level of 2 parts per million. 

Initial test results showed that combining nitrogendiluted hydrogen fuel with diffusion combustion—a 

process in which the fuel and air are not premixed 

before combustion—lowers the flame temperature, 

thus appreciably reducing NOx formation and 

emissions. Researchers conducted the tests in NETL’s 

Simulation Validation optical combustor, which uses 

high-fidelity optical instrumentation and high-speed 

video imaging to observe combustion phenomena 

at realistic turbine operating conditions.

Next-Generation Combustion Control and 

Diagnostics Sensor Enables Improved 

Turbine Control—NETL’s Combustion Control 

and Diagnostics Sensor, a first-generation flame 

ionization sensor, detects flame flashback and 

lean blow-out (flameout due to insufficient fuel) 

by measuring resistance across the flame inside 

the turbine combustor. The newest-generation 

sensor, the Time Varying Combustion Control and 

Diagnostics Sensor, uses the flame capacitance to 

provide an improved estimate of the fuel-to-air 

equivalence ratio—a key parameter for ultra-low 

emissions performance. Both sensor systems provide 

real-time in situ monitoring of combustion to allow 

sustained ultra-low emissions performance with 

flame stability over a wide operating margin and will 

enable improved control for turbines operated with 

coal-derived synthesis gas and hydrogen fuels.

Laser Spark Plug Prototype Successful in 

Proof-of-Concept Tests—Using a natural gas-fired 

single-cylinder test engine, researchers at NETL have 

shown that a miniaturized laser can function as a 

rugged spark ignition source. This project was aimed 

at producing an ignition source that could extend 

the operational limit of traditional spark plugs. Early 

tests with a lab-scale laser system demonstrated 

that using a laser as an ignition source can greatly 

reduce NOx emissions by utilizing a leaner fuel and 

air mixture. Thermal efficiency of the engine can also 

be increased by increasing the working pressure. The 

laser igniter overcame severe ignitability issues that 

traditional spark plugs face in operating under leanburn and high-pressure conditions. NETL researchers 

focused on the optical design of the laser spark plug 

to provide spark performance that exceeds that of a 

traditional spark plug, with comparable input power 

levels. Since the initial tests, the research group has 

developed and is presently testing a more rugged 

design that improves spark consistency. The group 

is also developing a spark distribution system for 

multicylinder engines and is currently looking for 

and working with commercial partners. 

Fuel-Flexible Gas Turbine Passes the Test—In 

cooperation with NETL, engineers at the GE Energy 

gas turbine technology laboratory in Greenville, 

SC, demonstrated stable performance and low NOx

emissions in a full-scale combustor test rig running 

on a fuel mixture of 90 percent hydrogen and 10 

percent nitrogen. This first-in-a-series test confirmed 

that the low NOx levels previously achieved by a 

single-nozzle combustor running on high-hydrogen 

fuels can be replicated at full scale. The success 

of the test represents a significant milestone in 

42 Developing Affordable Alternatives 

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Turbines—

Targeting Ultra-Low Emissions
developing fuel-flexible integrated gasification 

combined cycle (IGCC) applications. 

Revolutionary Compressor Concept 

Demonstrates World-Record-Breaking 

Performance—As part of a cooperative 

agreement with NETL, engineers at Ramgen Power 

Systems, Inc., of Bellevue, WA, have demonstrated 

a simpler, more efficient air compressor design 

based on supersonic flight intake technology. 

“Ramjet shock wave compression” can achieve 

pressure ratios near 8:1, which is twice the world 

record for a single-stage axial design. Developing 

higher-pressure ratios per stage decreases 

aerodynamic loss, project costs, and number of 

stages. At approximately 5 percent the size, 33 

percent the cost, and with higher heat recovery 

than current designs, the novel design offers 

significant support of national goals for low-cost, 

high-efficiency carbon capture.

Wireless Sensors Prove Themselves in 

Industrial Gas Turbines—As part of a Small 

Business Innovation Research grant managed by 

NETL, MesoScribe Technologies, Inc., Stony Brook, 

NY, created an innovative method for embedding 

wireless temperature and strain sensors in the 

thermal barrier coatings that protect intricate 

turbine parts from extremely harsh operating 

conditions. The method attracted the attention 

of Siemens Power Generation, Inc., which joined 

with MesoScribe to demonstrate the sensors in 

industrial gas turbine engines. The technology 

provides industry an improved process for 

remotely monitoring the structural health of 

turbine blades in real time. Its deployment will 

increase the time between maintenance intervals, 

thereby reducing overall maintenance costs. 

Modification Allows Commercial Microturbine 

to Burn Very Low Btu Fuel Successfully—

Investigators at the University of North Dakota’s 

EERC fired a modified version of a Capstone 

MicroTurbineTM C30 on gases having a low heating 

value—below the 350 Btu per standard cubic 

foot that is the manufacturer’s lower limit. As the 

fuel-energy content decreased, NOx emissions 

also decreased, but unburned hydrocarbons 

remained below 0.2 parts per million. Although 

carbon monoxide emissions increased, catalytic 

converters can be applied to remove it where 

that is a concern. Breaking the lower-energy 

barrier unlocks many opportunities not previously 

considered feasible, such as using normally flared 

waste gases associated with oil production to 

produce valuable electricity for oilfield operations 

while releasing considerably less NOx. Part of a 

larger cooperative agreement, this subtask is 

managed by NETL.

43
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Every study and forecast shows 

that supplying America’s growing 

power demands will—in the 

foreseeable future—rely on fossil 

fuels. Around 80 percent of the 

world’s energy is expected to come 

from fossil fuels until at least 2030. 

How will we supply our growing 

energy needs while protecting 

our environment? One way is 

through moderating energy use 

by improving energy conservation 

in our homes, vehicles, and 

businesses. NETL lends its expertise 

to a diverse selection of projects 

focused on advanced conservation 

technologies, state energy and 

weatherization assistance programs, 

and technologies that supply clean 

power from fossil energy. Another 

way to conserve our resources is 

by developing energy-efficient and 

emission-free ways to use abundant 

U.S. coal resources, including coal 

gasification and fuel cells that run 

on coal-derived synthesis gas. 

45
NETL pursues a broad array of methods to help 

consumers conserve our national energy supply. 

Economic and effective methods to reduce power 

consumption and save costs are at the forefront of 

the laboratory’s research. These methods range from 

helping low-income families reduce heating bills to 

supporting companies that provide breakthrough 

technologies to burn diesel fuel more efficiently. An 

additional benefit of NETL’s focus on assisting consumers 

is the generation and maintenance of thousands of 

jobs through direct and indirect employment. Involving 

consumers in the energy conservation process is a winwin situation for all involved. 

and cooling systems that recirculate exhaust gas 

have been the primary enabling technologies for 

achieving these outstanding results. Cummins 

estimates that, through the design of additional 

subsystem technology, it has achieved additional 

efficiency improvements of up to 5 percent for both 

engines. These improvements will be evaluated in 

subsequent engine testing. 

Locomotive Fuel Injection Advances into the 

21st Century—With NETL support, General 

Electric (GE) has developed and demonstrated an 

advanced fuel injection system for locomotives that 

consumes 2–3 percent less fuel and meets EPA 2010 

emissions targets. To achieve these improvements, 

GE successfully scaled up the common rail injection 

system, which is used in today’s top-of-the-line 

automotive diesel engines. With its breakthrough 

technology, GE achieved system pressures reaching 

more than 1,800 bars, increased process control, and 

attained faster injection rates, all leading to a cleaner, 

more efficient burn than traditional production unit 

pump systems can produce. Results were confirmed 

at GE’s Global Research Center using the center’s 

locomotive single-cylinder test engine. The test 

engine permits real-time measurement of particulate 

emissions and is equipped with a visualization 

system that allows researchers to see spray and 

flame characteristics first hand. In future work, GE 

will seek to increase fuel savings even further by 

optimizing the system’s multiple injection strategy. 

Clean Cities Coalitions Displace Gallons of 

Gasoline by the Millions—In June 2007, Clean 

Cities Coalitions around the nation reported they 

had displaced the equivalent of 375 million gallons 

of gasoline in 2006, a 50 percent increase from 

their 2005 displacement of 250 million gallons. The 

coalitions are on track to displace 3.2 billion gallons 

of gasoline per year starting in 2020, exceeding 

their established goal by 700 million gallons. The 

results, which are typically published in June of 

the calendar year following the reporting period, 

indicate the impact of the Office of Energy Efficiency 

and Renewable Energy’s Clean Cities program. 

Through almost 90 locally based coalitions, the 

program works with government and industry 

partners to reduce petroleum consumption in the 

Advanced Tractor Trailers Use Less Fuel—

With support from NETL, the Truck Manufacturers 

Association has developed a variety of unique 

aerodynamic devices and concepts that significantly 

reduce aerodynamic drag on commercial-line 

tractor trailers. The association achieved a 23 percent 

reduction in drag and an 11 percent improvement 

in fuel economy by outfitting demonstration 

vehicles with advanced mirrors, underbody trays, 

tractor-trailer gap devices, trailer tails, and trailer side 

skirts. Association members involved in the project, 

including Freightliner, International Truck, Mack, 

and Volvo, focused their efforts on modifications 

that are practical, serviceable, and effective in order 

to maximize their potential for incorporation into 

production vehicles. 

Cummins Improves Diesel Engine 

Efficiency—Cummins Inc., in cooperation with 

NETL, is making great strides toward improving 

diesel engines for tractor-trailers and pickup 

trucks. In its 6.7-liter light-duty ISB diesel engine, 

Cummins demonstrated a greater-than-target 10 

percent efficiency improvement and met the U.S. 

Environmental Protection Agency’s 2010 target of 

0.2 grams per mile NOx emissions without aftertreatment. Cummins also saw 7 percent efficiency 

improvements and met the EPA target of 0.2 grams 

per brake-horsepower-hour with its 15-liter ISX 

heavy-duty diesel engine. Advanced turbocharging 

Demand-Side Efficiencies—

Helping Consumers Save Energy

46 Conserving Our Resources

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increasing energy efficiency, reducing energy use 

and costs, pursuing alternative and renewable 

energy sources, promoting environmental quality, 

stimulating economic development, and reducing 

U.S. reliance on imported oil. In one example of 

the program’s success, Pennsylvania awarded 

a total of $5.4 million to 28 participants in its 

Energy Harvest program, which seeks to develop 

innovative environmental and energy solutions. 

The grants will leverage almost $14 million in 

private investment and create or retain more than 

100 jobs throughout the state. Individual projects 

are expected to generate 18.5 million kilowatt 

hours of clean electricity, replace 3.1 billion Btu 

of natural gas and 225,000 gallons of petroleumbased fuel, reduce CO2

 emissions by 29 million 

pounds, and prevent 204,000 pounds of SO2 and 

56,000 pounds of NOx emissions. 

transportation sector. Clean Cities Coalitions are 

composed of local, state, and federal agencies; 

public health and transportation departments; 

transit agencies and other government offices; 

and auto manufacturers, car dealers, fuel 

suppliers, public utilities, public and private fleets, 

community business groups, and professional 

associations. NETL provides guidance and support 

to the Clean Cities Coalition programs. 

Weatherization Assistance Program Grants 

Total $242 Million in Federal Funds—

On average, low-income families spend 15 

percent of their income on energy, compared 

to the 3 percent average nationwide. Through 

DOE’s Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy’s 

(EERE) Weatherization Assistance program, NETL 

and EERE’s Golden Field Office collaborate with 

state and local agencies to help these families 

make their homes more energy efficient, thus 

reducing energy bills by an average of $403 per 

year. Weatherization programs operate in all 50 

states, the District of Columbia, and among Native 

American tribes. Approximately 900 local agencies 

deliver weatherization services to eligible residents 

in every county in the nation. In the 2006 program 

year, which ended September 2007, $242 million 

in federal funds were used to help weatherize 

104,125 homes. On average, participant heating 

bills were reduced by 32 percent, and each dollar 

invested returned $2.69 in energy- and nonenergy-related benefits. Across the nation, the 

Weatherization Assistance program generates 

8,000 direct jobs and thousands more through 

indirect employment. It also decreases overall U.S. 

energy use by the equivalent of 18 million barrels 

of oil annually. 

State Energy Program Promotes Clean Energy, 

Creates Jobs—Co-managed by NETL and the 

Golden Field Office—the primary field agent 

for EERE—the State Energy program distributed 

$45.5 million in fiscal year 2007 across all 50 U.S. 

states, plus its territories, the Commonwealth 

of Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia. By 

adding an additional $150 million in cost share 

and leveraged funds, recipients developed 

and expanded state energy programs aimed at 

47
NETL Supports “Brightest Ideas” in Solid-State Lighting Technologies

Just as integrated circuits replaced electron tubes some 50 years ago, the traditional incandescent light bulb—

and even fluorescent bulbs—are poised to be upstaged in the next few years. DOE has set a target date of 2015 

to replace many of today’s incandescent and fluorescent lighting systems with solid-state lighting technologies. 

Such a “revolution” in lighting could ultimately cut the global use of electricity for lighting in half and at the same 

time— dramatically reduce the amount of carbon emissions by reducing the amount of electricity generation 

required of fossil-fuel-based power plants. 

The VioTM high-power white LED by GE Lumination utilizes proprietary phosphors to create a warm, 

white light.

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Image courtesy of GE Lumination
NETL researchers believe that the new revolution 

in lighting is a “bright idea” and thus managed a 

number of projects in fiscal year 2007 to move that 

idea toward fruition. In cooperation with the SolidState Lighting program, administered through EERE, 

NETL set its sights on the broad mission of creating 

energy-efficient, long-lasting lighting technologies that 

are cost-competitive with conventional fluorescent 

lighting and that emit a warm, white light comparable 

to incandescent lighting. 

Solid-state lighting refers to a variety of light-producing 

semiconductor devices, including light-emitting diodes 

(LEDS) and organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). 

While LEDs have historically been found in devices 

such as digital clocks, watches, and remote controls—

and more recently in exit signs, traffic signal, and 

vehicle brake lights—OLEDs are more typically found 

in commercial products such as mobile phone screens, 

portable digital music players, and digital cameras.

Four LED and OLED projects managed by NETL in fiscal 

year 2007 have helped to illuminate the breakthrough 

potential of solid-state lighting.

Building on research sponsored by NETL, GE 

Lumination, LLC, has marketed an advanced light LED, 

called VioTM, for use in landscaping, commercial displays, 

and other applications. Compared to today’s cool LEDs, 

Vio’s light is warm and white, very similar to a soft, white 

incandescent light. The commercial success of Vio 

moves this LED technology a step closer to replacing 

less-efficient incandescent and fluorescent light 

sources. NETL sponsored the research of advanced 

ultraviolet LED and phosphor combinations developed 

by the University of Georgia in collaboration with GE 

Global Research and GE Lumination that led to Vio.

In another project managed by NETL, researchers at 

Los Alamos National Laboratory developed a novel 

technique to grow various crystalline materials from 

a liquid base and applied that technique to the 

development of OLEDs. The liquid-based technique 

is used to quickly test the suitability of crystal 

compositions for critical use as a highly transparent, 

electrically conductive OLED layer. Solid-state, mercuryfree OLEDs are more environmentally friendly than 

fluorescent tubes and can be up to 10 times more 

efficient than conventional incandescent light bulbs. 

Also, OLEDs can be arranged in aesthetically pleasing 

configurations, and the spectral properties of their light 

can be electrically controlled.

Working under an NETL-managed Small Business 

Innovation Research grant, researchers at the 

Universal Display Corporation demonstrated an allphosphorescent white OLED, a significant achievement 

because it represents a milestone toward DOE’s goal. 

The warm, white emission from this OLED renders a 

color that closely resembles the light of incandescent 

lamps, which the OLED is expected to replace.

Cree, Inc. fabricated a white multi-chip LED array 

prototype that delivers a luminous rate that exceeds 

DOE’s milestone for fiscal year 2007. Cree’s LED array 

is based on a chip called EZBrightTM combined with 

prototype packaging technology that uses improved 

materials and optimized circuit design layout. The 

EZBright chip was developed in part by DOE funding.

The continued development and commercial use of 

solid-state lighting is expected to have a significant 

future impact. In the United States, lighting accounts 

for more than 8 percent of all the energy used, the 

equivalent of 22 percent of all the electricity produced. 

Consumers pay an estimated $58 billion a year for 

lighting. 

49
NETL’s vision for fuel cells is to develop the ultimate 

power system with essentially zero emissions, the 

highest efficiency, and overall lowest cost. NETL’s fuel 

cell research is conducted under the banner of the Solid 

State Energy Conversion Alliance (SECA), a collaboration 

managed by NETL that brings together government, 

the private sector, and the scientific community. The 

fuel cell technologies that are being developed and 

demonstrated today will ensure that economical, 

environmentally friendly electricity will be available to 

America for the foreseeable future

New Processes Revitalize an Old Metallurgy, 

Improve SOFC Performance and Cost Efficiency—

In an inter-agency collaboration, researchers at 

Allegheny Technology Inc. (ATI), NETL, and Pacific 

Northwest National Laboratory have successfully 

modified the metallic alloy AISI 441 to help achieve 

SOFC electrical interconnect requirements for lifetimes 

of 40,000 hours or more. AISI 441 is an inexpensive 

ferritic stainless steel that, with the addition of a 

manganese cobalt spinel coating, hinders chrome 

depletion and reduces oxidation. Recent experiments 

at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory indicated that 

testing on coated AISI 441 exhibited a very low and 

constant area-specific resistance over 1,000 hours of 

testing. A rare earth treatment that reduces oxidation 

without vacuum melt and a manufacturing process 

that reduces silica formation, also without vacuum melt, 

have been developed by NETL and ATI respectively. In 

addition to these breakthroughs, the cost of large-scale 

manufacturing and processing of AISI 441 is predicted 

to be 10 times lower than the cost of producing stateof-the-art, high-temperature metal alloys suitable for 

SOFC electrical interconnect service.

Sorbent Captures Both Sulfur and Fuel Cell System 

Market—Under a Phase II Small Business Innovation 

Research grant administered by NETL, product 

developers at TDA Research, Inc., in Wheat Ridge, CO, 

have developed a low-cost, high-capacity sorbent that 

can reduce the concentration of sulfur species to partsper-billion levels in natural gas and liquefied petroleum 

gas. With a high capacity and removal efficiency for 

naturally occurring sulfur compounds and sulfurbearing odorants, the SulfaTrapTM sorbent can be used 

to prevent SOFC performance degradation or catalyst 

poisoning in fuel processors that generate hydrogen 

from natural gas.

SECA Fuel Cell Development Program Surpasses 

Phase I Targets— The SECA program is designed to 

drive down the cost of solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) by 

developing new high-tech materials and processes. 

The program is focused on developing commercialgrade fuel cells with a market-competitive $400-perkilowatt manufactured cost by 2010 producing fuel 

cell technology usable in virtually any size application 

that requires electricity or combined electricity and 

heat. Concurrently, the scale-up, aggregation, and 

integration of SECA’s technologies are leading to the 

validation of prototype megawatt-class products in 

2012 and 2015. SECA’s coal-based fuel cell system 

projects are developing megawatt-class fuel cell power 

systems that will produce affordable, reliable, efficient, 

and environmentally-friendly electrical power from coal.

Six SECA industry teams have completed tests of the 

first SOFC prototypes that can be manufactured at 

costs approaching those of conventional stationary 

power-generation technology. Managed by NETL 

and led by Acumentrics, Cummins Power Generation, 

Delphi Automotive Systems, FuelCell Energy, General 

Electric, and Siemens Power Generation, respectively, 

each team designed and manufactured SOFC electrical 

power generators in the 3–10 kilowatt range. The 

generators then underwent a series of rigorous tests 

to evaluate system performance with respect to 

efficiency, endurance, availability, and production 

cost. Results were verified by independent audits, and 

additional validation testing was performed at the NETL 

fuel cell test facility. The prototypes exceeded Phase I 

programmatic targets by demonstrating the following: 

• An average efficiency of 38.5 percent, with a high of 

49.6 percent; the target was 35 percent. 

• Average steady-state power degradation of 2 percent 

per 1,000 hours during steady-state operation; the 

target allowed 4 percent per 1,000 hours. 

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Fuel Cells—

Clean, Economical Electricity from Coal 
• System availabilities averaging 97 percent; the target 

was 90 percent. 

• Projected system costs ranging from $724–$775 per 

kilowatt, positioning the teams to meet the 2010 

target of $700 per kilowatt (2007 dollars). 

Efficiency Goal Exceeded in Power Electronics 

Technology Development—In cooperation with 

NETL, researchers at Virginia Polytechnic Institute 

and State University have developed a device 

that enhances the efficiency of power conversion. 

Employing high-performance digital control 

techniques and advanced high-power solid-state 

switches with high-efficiency switches that sense 

when energy losses are at a minimum, the device 

can boost 50 volts direct current to 400–460 volts 

direct current with energy efficiency greater than 97 

percent. Subsequently, this advancement enabled 

the development of a compatible 99 percent 

efficient direct-current-to-alternating-current inverter 

to convert the 400–460 volts direct current to 120 

and 240 volts alternating current suitable for multiple 

power applications. This energy-efficient power 

electronics technology reduces fuel consumption 

as well as the size of fuel cell systems, helping to 

meet the performance and cost targets of the SECA 

program. 

Propane-Powered Fuel Cell Operates for 1,100 

Hours in Remote Alaska—A 5-kilowatt SOFC 

system, supplying electrical power and heat to 

the visitor center at the Exit Glacier Nature Center 

at Kenai Fjords National Park, AK, operated for 

1,100 hours with no notable degradation in 

performance. This feat was achieved by researchers 

at the University of Alaska Fairbanks in cooperation 

with NETL. The demonstration test displayed 

improvements resulting from SECA support in 

reforming both technology and stack design by the 

fuel cell system supplier, Acumentrics Corporation 

of Westwood, MA, which is one of six SECA industry 

teams. The National Park Service’s use of fuel cell 

systems in a remote setting also demonstrates the 

remarkable versatility and fuel flexibility of SECA 

systems developed for coal applications.

51
Conservatory Turns to “Green” Power

Siemens Power Generation (SPG) engineers recently installed a 5-kilowatt solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) system in 

the Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens in Pittsburgh, PA—the first conservatory in the world to use such 

a power source. The SPG-developed and manufactured SOFC system in the conservatory is a highly visible public 

demonstration of the high-efficiency, low-emission SOFC technology developed in cooperation with NETL. 

SOFCs are among the most energy-efficient and environmentally clean technologies available today.

Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, Pittsburgh, PA, is a recognized leader in green building practices 

and sustainable operations. 

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Photo by Alexander Demarsh, courtesy of Phipps Conservatory & Botanical Gardens
Phipps Conservatory recently opened the Tropical 

Forest Conservatory, a 12,000-square-foot, 60-foot tall 

addition to its Victorian glasshouse that was originally 

built in 1893. While the Tropical Forest Conservatory 

boasts many green attributes—such as passive solar 

climate control, double-pane glass in the north sloping 

roof to reduce heat loss, and remotely controlled 

cloth energy blankets that provide summer shade and 

prevent heat loss in cold weather—the SOFC is the 

crowning “green” technology, generating electricity 

as well as thermal energy for the in-house hot water 

system from natural gas—without combustion. 

The SOFC system at the Phipps Conservatory, which 

is located near the campuses of both Carnegie 

Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh, has 

accumulated over 8,000 hours of operation to date, 

with an availability of more than 85 percent, delivering 

4 kilowatts of electrical power and providing 4 kilowatts 

for heating water. The primary by-products of the fuel 

cell are heat, water, and CO2, which are later used in 

adjacent production greenhouses. Phipps plans to 

keep the quietly operating SOFC on public display to 

educate visitors on the benefits of fuel cells.

The Phipps officials ultimately plan to fuel an SPG 100 

kilowatt class SOFC system with gas generated from 

the Conservatory’s decomposing biomass—such as 

plant cuttings, waste paper, etc. SPG, leader of one of 

six SECA coal-based systems industry teams managed 

by NETL, is assisting the program by focusing on 

developing of SOFC technology suitable for large fuel 

cell power systems (greater than 100 megawatts) that 

will produce affordable electrical power from coal with 

45–50 percent overall efficiency.

The project was co-funded by the Department of 

Energy. Cost-sharing was provided by Phipps, the 

Pennsylvania Energy Development Authority, and SPG. 

An NETL-sponsored solid-oxide fuel cell system powers 

the newly built Tropical Forest Conservatory at Phipps.

Phipps Conservatory is the first conservatory in the 

nation to install a “green” solid oxide fuel cell that 

provides electrical power without byproducts such as 

nitrous or sulfur dioxide. A second fuel cell is planned 

that will run on methane generated from an anaerobic 

waste generator, with its only emission—CO2— 

pumped back into the greenhouse to be sequestered by 

plants.

53

Photo by Alexander Demarsh 

Courtesy of Phipps Conservatory & Botanical Gardens
Gasification—

Coal Power with Near-Zero Emissions

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Gasification is a method for converting carbon-based 

materials (“feedstocks”), such as coal, biomass, petroleum 

coke, etc., into synthesis gas, which can then be used to 

produce clean electrical energy, transportation fuels, and 

various useful chemicals. NETL’s gasification program 

is developing advanced technologies that will reduce 

gasification’s relatively high cost, improve its thermal 

efficiency, increase its reliability, and broaden its ability to 

operate economically on multiple feedstocks. Gasificationbased plants of tomorrow will produce power and other 

products with near-zero emissions of criteria pollutants 

while simultaneously capturing CO2 for safe and permanent 

storage in geologic formations far underground. By using 

coal—our country’s most abundant energy resource—as 

the main fuel, these gasification-based plants will 

contribute to enhancing our nation’s energy and economic 

security..

Supported Liquid Membrane Promising for HighTemperature Capture of CO2

—NETL researchers have 

successfully fabricated and tested a supported liquid 

membrane that remains stable at temperatures greater 

than 300 °C, which is far in excess of the usual 100 °C 

limit for such systems. The high-temperature membrane 

system promises to be useful for carbon capture in 

integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) power 

plants. The membrane consists of an advanced polymer 

substrate and an ionic liquid and was developed under 

a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement 

with the University of Notre Dame. 

New Material Has CO2-Separation Potential—Using 

a sophisticated analytical technique involving infrared 

spectroscopy, NETL researchers have found a new 

adsorbent that has a greater preference for CO2

than hydrogen—a property that could be of use in 

gas separation applications. The new adsorbent is a 

microporous inorganic crystal similar to the industrial dye 

Prussian Blue. These materials are relatively easily made 

and quite stable. Results of this basic science study in 

gas adsorption were published in the highly regarded 

scientific publication Journal of Physical Chemistry C in the 

January 2007 issue. 

Nanocatalysts Nearly Five Times More Effective 

in Producing Synthesis Gas—NETL researchers 

collaborating with University of Pittsburgh faculty 

have completed a detailed study of a novel catalyst 

that demonstrates enhanced synthesis gas-producing 

capabilities. Previous work has shown that with 20 times 

less platinum, this nanocatalyst is nearly 5 times more 

effective than conventional alumina-supported catalysts 

in producing synthesis gas from the partial oxidation 

of methane. The nanocatalyst consists of a barium 

hexa-aluminate support embedded with platinum 

nanoparticles.

Industrial-Size Gasification Investigated as a Means 

to Refuel U.S. Industries—NETL performed an analysis 

to evaluate the technical and economic merit of using 

coal-derived synthesis gas and substitute natural gas 

(SNG) to refuel U.S. industries that have been challenged 

by the volatility of and increase in domestic natural gas 

prices. The application of industrial-sized gasification 

to provide SNG, synthesis gas, steam, and/or power 

to energy-intensive U.S. industries was assessed to 

help guide further research and development. The 

study included an investigation of the energy-demand 

profile of potential U.S. industrial customers that could 

benefit from coal gasification, identifying more than 

300 industrial facilities with energy needs that have the 

potential to be satisfied by industrial-sized gasification. 

Technical analysis indicates that the gasification 

technology considered, the BGL 1000, could be viable for 

33–66 percent of those facilities under specific economic 

scenarios. Since publication of the report, Great Northern 

Power Development, L.P., and Allied Syngas Corporation 

announced the development of a $1.4 billion coal 

gasification project in North Dakota based on the BGL 

1000 technology. 

Process for Low-Cost Oxygen Production Reaches 

Operational Milestone—Engineers at Air Products and 

Chemicals, Inc. (APCI), cycled two oxygen-production 

modules with commercial-scale ion transport membranes 

(ITM) between “idle” and “full” operating conditions in 

the five-ton-per-day subscale prototype facility. The 

ability of membrane modules to cycle between these 

operating conditions without experiencing structural or 

mechanical failure or performance degradation indicates 

that the materials and architecture for the technology 

can withstand the necessary stresses of operation. The 
55

ITM oxygen process is being developed by APCI of 

Allentown, PA, in cooperation with NETL. The new 

process will produce oxygen at a nearly 33 percent 

lower cost and energy requirement than conventional 

cryogenic processes. It can be used in advanced power 

generation systems, including IGCC plants and standalone plants.

Significant Progress Made in Gasification of Lignite 

Coals—Developed in cooperation with NETL and 

Kellogg Brown & Root, a semiworks-scale transport 

gasifier operated successfully during tests using both 

Powder River Basin (PRB) subbituminous coal and 

high-sodium (greater than 7 percent by weight) North 

Dakota lignite coal supplied by the Lignite Energy 

Council. During 180 hours of operation using PRB coal, 

carbon conversions exceeded 98 percent, a significant 

increase from prior tests. In the lignite test, which 

spanned 301 hours of operation, the addition of kaolin 

to the coal feed resulted in the elimination of previously 

observed fouling and agglomeration problems in the 

gasifier; consequently, a more stable operation and a 

significant increase over previously possible carbon 

conversion—reaching 90–98 percent—resulted. The 

success of these tests corroborates that transport 

gasification technology can effectively gasify the 

low-rank coals that account for half of the world’s coal 

reserves but whose high moisture and ash content 

have made them much less economical as energy 

sources. 

Prototype Microsensors Could Help Achieve Low 

Emissions and Optimum Efficiency—

A prototype array of 16 independent microsensors, 

each uniquely responsive to one of the gases common 

to coal combustion and gasification systems, was tested 

at the Pilot Scale Development Facility in Wilsonville, 

AL. While exposed to clean synthesis gas, the system 

accurately identified carbon monoxide, CO

2

, SO

2

, and 

NO

x

. Developed in cooperation with NETL at Sensor 

Research and Development Corporation in Orono, ME, 

the metal-oxide-based microsensors will be evaluated 

for responsiveness to ammonia and hydrogen 

chloride injected upstream as well as for accurate 

determination of individual gas concentrations. When 

fully developed, the sensor system will eliminate 

errors inherent to existing techniques by taking direct 

measurements from hot, corrosive combustion gas 

streams without sample transport or cooling. Precise 

determination of gas stream composition is essential to 

achieving optimum efficiency and low emissions from 

gasification processes. 

New Hydrogen and Hydrogen Sulfide Sensors 

Developed for Next-Generation Clean Coal 

Technology—Researchers at Mississippi State 

University, working in cooperation with NETL, have 

developed two new chemical sensors compatible with 

the harsh environments of IGCC power plant processes: 

a cadmium-oxide-doped silica optical fiber sensor for 

hydrogen sulfide measurement and a tin-oxide-coated 

silica optical fiber for hydrogen measurement. Made 

by the relatively inexpensive sol-gel process for glass 

and ceramics, the sensors are sensitive to the partsper-million level and resistant to temperatures of at 

least 600°C, even in reducing atmospheres. Accurate 

measurement and control of gaseous species in IGCC 

products is essential for achieving the highest process 

efficiency and lowest pollutant emission. 

Sensor Outlasts Thermocouples in Gasifier—

In a test that began in 2006 and concluded in 2007, 

the sapphire temperature sensor installed at the Tampa 

Electric Polk Power Station IGCC plant in Lakeland, FL, 

remained in continuous operation for seven months 

under cyclic conditions. Thermocouples located in 

parallel service failed after only two or three months. 

Developed at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State 

University specifically for harsh, high-temperature 

service, the instrument design exploits fundamental 

relationships among light, material, and temperature 

changes. The next sensor is being installed closer to 

the high-temperature region of the gasifier where 

traditional thermocouples usually fail rapidly. Longterm, reliable temperature measurements will enable 

improved gasifier-control schemes that achieve higher 

operating temperatures and less recycle. The project 

is funded by the Office of Fossil Energy and being 

managed by NETL.
This direct sulfur recovery system test skid was integrated with a high-temperature desulfurization process unit 

(not shown) to convert recovered sulfur into a pure product for beneficial use. 

56

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DOE and Research Triangle Institute (RTI) 

partnered to develop technologies designed to 

reduce the cost of gasification and make it more 

thermally efficient. 

Cleaning of conventional synthesis gas, the 

product of gasification technology, requires 

the energy-losing step of cooling the fuel-gas 

product as it leaves the gasifier and reheating the 

gas prior to its use in a turbine. When the gas is 

cooled, the heat losses that occur result in a lower 

efficiency for the process—less power for the 

same amount of coal. RTI, however, has developed 

two technologies that work in concert to increase 

efficiency: the high-temperature desulfurization 

system (HTDS), which operates at high 

temperatures to remove sulfur from the synthesis 

gas, and the direct sulfur recovery process (DSRP), 

which converts the recovered sulfur compounds 

into a pure sulfur product. 

The HTDS, a sorbent-based technology for 

removing hydrogen sulfide and carbonyl sulfide 

from synthesis gas, was successfully field tested 

by RTI for over 3,000 hours on a coal gasifier 

slipstream at the 1,200 ton-per-day Eastman 

Chemical Company plant in Kingsport, TN. 

Testing was carried out with a General Electric 

quench gasifier fed with high-sulfur Eastern 

coals. RTI’s HTDS unit consists of two integrated 

transport reactors (a sulfur absorber and a 

sorbent regenerator) that have achieved stable 

operation and ease of control—exceeding the 

most optimistic expectations. RTI used their highly 

reactive and attrition-resistant RTI-3 sorbent, 

which won an R&D 100 award in 2004. This 

effective sorbent reduced synthesis gas sulfur 

Warm Gas Cleanup Technology Gives Boost to Gasification

concentrations to as low as 0.5 parts per million by 

volume from a feed stream that typically contains 

about 8,000 parts per million by volume of sulfur 

compounds (hydrogen sulfide and carbonyl 

sulfide), without requiring a separate carbonyl 

sulfide hydrolysis step. Test conditions ranged from 

700–900 °F and from 300–600 psig. 

RTI developed the direct sulfur recovery process 

to operate in concert with the HTDS in order to 

treat the SO2 in the regeneration of tail gas at 

similar temperatures and pressures. In the DSRP, 

SO2 is partially reduced (using a small slipstream 

of synthesis gas) to elemental sulfur. In over 

100 hours of integrated operation, the DSRP 

successfully converted over 90 percent of the SO2

into elemental sulfur. 

RTI’s detailed technical gasifier-based and 

economic evaluation that compared the HTDS 

and DSRP technologies to a General Electric 

reference plant using Selexol, another sulfurremoving system, showed that—for a 600 

megawatt (nominal) IGCC plant—the HTDS with 

DSRP could increase the overall thermal efficiency 

by a 3.6 efficiency point over conventional 

technologies. It could also reduce the overall 

capital cost of the entire IGCC system by $269 per 

kilowatt over current technology and reduce the 

cost of electricity by 9.6 percent.

The next development step is to build a 

50-megawatt electric facility for demonstrating 

this appealing technology to bring it to the 

marketplace. 

57
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Hydrogen, which burns so cleanly that water is its only 

by-product, is the ultimate clean energy source for 

producing power, both for electricity production and 

as a replacement for liquid fuels. Making hydrogen 

from coal—via gasification technology with carbon 

capture and sequestration—is one route for using 

America’s fossil fuels without contributing more CO2

to the atmosphere. NETL is exploring ways in which to 

centrally produce great volumes of ultra-pure hydrogen 

primarily through advanced separation techniques 

from coal-derived gases. Additionally, NETL is driving 

to reduce costs and improve process efficiency to allow 

hydrogen production to be economically competitive 

in today’s markets. Technically and economically viable 

coal-to-hydrogen production would ultimately enable 

transition to a hydrogen-energy economy based on 

abundant domestic coal

Hydrogen-Selective Membrane Nearly 

Doubles Equilibrium Value of Water-Gas Shift 

Reaction—NETL researchers conducted a study 

of the first water-gas shift reaction performed 

without added catalyst particles in the presence of 

a hydrogen-selective membrane. The membrane 

reactors, consisting of an external shell and an 

internal tube bundle, were composed of palladium 

and a palladium-based alloy. By facilitating removal 

of hydrogen as it formed from reacting water and 

carbon monoxide at high temperature, the materials 

and configuration of the reactors allowed a shift 

in reaction equilibrium, causing more hydrogen to 

be produced. The study showed that the modest 

catalytic activity of the membrane surface, combined 

with the high rate of hydrogen extracted through 

the membranes, resulted in a dramatic shift in the 

conversion of carbon monoxide (up to 93 percent)—

well above the equilibrium value of 54 percent 

associated with a conventional, non-membrane 

reactor. Results from the approach, which could 

enhance the production of both hydrogen and 

sequestration-ready CO2 from coal, appeared in the 

July 2007 issue of the Journal of Membrane Science.

NETL Completes Study on the Hydrogen 

Permeability of Palladium Sulfide—NETL and 

Carnegie Mellon University researchers collaborated 

to study the rate of hydrogen diffusion through the 

palladium sulfide (Pd4S) corrosion often observed 

on palladium-based membranes. Membrane 

durability is essential to successful gasification, and 

this is the first time that the growth of Pd4S and its 

transport properties have been measured. Though 

the amount of hydrogen penetrating the Pd4S layer 

varies according to layer thickness, the hydrogen 

permeability of the Pd4S itself is approximately 10 

times less than that of pure palladium. In addition 

to providing guidance for ongoing membrane 

development, the computational and experimental 

results obtained are instrumental in quantifying 

the corrosion that can develop on membranes, 

particularly when used in sour synthesis gas streams. 

Research results were presented in a paper for the 

August 2007 issue of the American Chemical Society 

journal Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research.

NETL-Developed Metal Organic Frameworks 

Ideal for Adsorption of Gases—Basic research 

at NETL has developed metal organic frameworks 

that appear to be ideal agents for adsorbing gases, 

such as hydrogen or CO2. Making hydrogen with 

coal is one route for using this abundant fossil fuel 

without contributing to the burden of CO2 in the 

atmosphere. However, storage and transport of 

hydrogen have been a problem. In order to improve 

hydrogen storage material, it is necessary to explore 

the chemical and physical means by which the gas 

is adsorbed on the surface of microporous materials. 

A surprising discovery from new experimental 

data is that quantum effects play a major role in 

the adsorption of hydrogen at low temperatures. 

These data compare favorably with theoretical 

simulations conducted as part of the study, which 

were completed in collaboration with the University 

of Pittsburgh, Advanced Materials Corporation, and 

the University of Trento, Italy. An article published 

in the highly regarded Journal of Physical Chemistry C 

in July 2007 describes this as a better means for 

both synthesizing and activating metal organic 

frameworks for maximum gas storage capacity.

Hydrogen—The Fuel of the Future 
59

Large-Volume Fuel Samples Isolate and 

Identify Nitrogen Species in Jet and Diesel 

Fuels—NETL has developed a novel method for 

separating polar nitrogen-containing species from 

jet and diesel fuels. Unlike limiting methods of 

analysis that use only microliters of fuel, the NETL 

method uses milliliter quantities of fuel samples 

and thus can detect species that would normally 

remain undetected, producing a matrix that can 

be analyzed directly using gas chromatography. 

Analysis of nitrogen compounds is important for 

understanding fuel properties, such as lubricity 

and thermal stability, as well as emissions from 

diesel-powered engines. A paper outlining 

the improved method appeared in the June 

2007 issue of the American Chemical Society 

publication Energy & Fuels.

Major Milestone Reached in Coal-toHydrogen Process—NETL, in partnership with 

engineers at Eltron Research, Inc., of Boulder, 

CO, completed initial experiments utilizing a 

process demonstration unit (PDU) designed to 

produce hydrogen at practical rates from coalderived synthesis gas. A significant milestone in 

developing a technically and economically viable 

coal-to-hydrogen process, the achievement is 

seen as a step toward transition to a coal-based 

hydrogen energy economy. The PDU is the first 

scale-up of novel hydrogen separation materials 

that in bench-scale tests has met or exceeded 

target values for sulfur tolerance, economic life, 

hydrogen production rate, product purity, and 

cost. PDU experiments show that the robust 

membrane materials attain production flux goals 

at the engineering research and development 

scale.
60 Conserving Our Resources

Supply & Environment

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One-Step Process Maximizes Hydrogen 

Production—Western Research Institute, in 

cooperation with NETL, designed and fabricated a 

device that removes hydrogen while simultaneously 

converting synthesis gas through a water-gas shift 

reaction. With a total of 60 square centimeters of 

membrane surface area, the device will be used to 

design a full-scale modular unit with 1,000 square 

centimeters or more of membrane area. Completing 

the water-gas shift reaction and product gas removal 

in one step will maximize hydrogen production and 

reduce associated capital and operating costs.

Simulations Show Feasibility of Novel

Coal-to-Hydrogen Concept—A simulation 

conducted at Lehigh University in cooperation with 

NETL shows that high-purity hydrogen and CO2 can 

be simultaneously produced from clean synthesis 

gas in a single unit operation. In the conceptual 

Thermal Swing Sorption Enhanced Reaction process, 

desulfurized synthesis gas is introduced to a reactor 

packed with a mixture of water-gas shift catalyst and 

a special adsorbent that primarily captures CO2 in 

the presence of excess steam. Continuous removal 

of CO2 from the reaction zone will produce fuel 

cell-grade hydrogen while delivering a pure CO2

stream. The single unit process will also eliminate 

elaborate separation equipment needed in other 

coal-to-hydrogen approaches, reducing the plant’s 

environmental footprint and lowering costs. A paper 

describing the concept and its successful simulation 

was published in the November 2007 issue of the 

AIChE Journal, an official publication of the American 

Institute of Chemical Engineers.

Modeling Studies Suggest Improved 

Hydrogen Transport Materials—Using a 

combination of scientific models (e.g., atomistic 

and thermodynamic), investigators at the United 

Technologies Research Center in East Hartford, 

CT, have identified alloying agents needed to 

maintain the hydrogen permeation of sulfur-tolerant 

membranes despite repeated heating and cooling. 

The studies, performed in a cooperative agreement 

with NETL, show the potential of several alloys to 

remain stable while separating hydrogen in the 

presence of typical gasified coal emissions. The team 

has filed an invention disclosure on its palladiumbased alloy, which consists of three different metals. 

Investigators have also applied a similar modeling 

approach to increase the stability of water-gas shift 

catalysts in sulfur and chlorine environments. Sulfur-, 

chlorine-, and carbon monoxide-tolerant materials 

for a membrane reactor with compatible catalyst 

compositions would enable researchers to combine 

water-gas shift reaction and hydrogen separation 

into a significantly simpler process. If the process is 

successful, high-purity hydrogen would be produced 

in a smaller, single-stage reactor with less catalyst. 

Unique System Exhibits Excellent Hydrogen 

Storage Capacity—Working under an NETLadministered University Coal Research grant, 

investigators at Alfred University in Alfred, NY, 

have demonstrated that hydrogen can be stored 

and delivered with superior efficiency using 

hollow microspheres made of glass doped with 

iron, nickel, or cobalt oxide. The tiny structures 

can contain hydrogen at pressures up to 10,000 

pounds per square inch until it is released upon 

exposure to intense light of appropriate wavelength. 

Demonstration of photo-induced diffusion in sample 

microspheres made with conventional technology 

provides the first proof-of-concept for their use as 

a safe, large-scale, high-capacity, low-cost storage 

medium in a hydrogen-economy infrastructure. 

New Metal-Organic Frameworks Are Inexpensive, 

Recyclable, and Environmentally Safe—Working 

in cooperation with NETL, researchers at Advanced 

Materials Corporation have developed a new class 

of inexpensive, recyclable, and environmentally safe 

microporous metal-organic framework materials. 

Preliminary lab-scale testing on the composition is 

promising, with the materials exhibiting hydrogen 

storage capacities as high as 4.5 percent by weight in 

early trials. As DOE has targeted a hydrogen storage 

capacity of 6 percent by weight for 2010, these lowcost, high-capacity storage materials will help enable 

a coal-based hydrogen economy.
61

NETL’s “Single Battlefield Fuel” Research 

Supports National Long-Range Initiative—

A “single battlefield fuel” could help the nation’s 

armed services meet the goal of significantly 

reducing battlefield fuel consumption of 

petroleum-derived fuel by 2020. A new 

microreactor designed to accelerate the effects 

of thermal stress observed in fuel systems of 

advanced military aircraft was commissioned 

by NETL researchers. The microreactor is being 

used to determine how prospective seal-swelling 

additives would affect the thermal stability 

of synthetic jet fuels. The research supports a 

Department of Defense long-range initiative to 

develop a single, fully synthetic, hydrogen-rich 

fuel, capable not only of powering fuel cells but 

ground vehicles, aircraft, and ships as well. 
Powered by hydrogen fuel cells, the eP-ICEBEAR ice resurfacer is safe to use in an enclosed ice rink because it 

emits no dangerous exhaust fumes.

62

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Photo courtesy of the University of North Dakota’s Energy & Environmental Research Center
In 2006 and 2007, thanks in part to NETL, skaters at 

select ice rinks in North America could take a break, 

sip their hot chocolate, and watch the ice being 

resurfaced without any of the noise and fumes 

associated with the usual propane-powered ice 

resurfacers. At these rinks, the machine restoring 

the ice to a shine was the eP-ICEBEAR, the world’s 

first fuel cell–powered ice resurfacer.

The eP-ICEBEAR sprang to life when commercial 

partners ePower Synergies Inc. and Resurfice 

Corporation teamed with the National Center for 

Hydrogen Technology at the University of North 

Dakota’s Energy and Environmental Research 

Center. NETL helped fund the ice resurfacer’s 

development—and its tour of ice rinks across the 

United States and Canada—through its financial 

support for the National Center for Hydrogen 

Technology. 

Hydrogen is envisioned to be the primary energy 

carrier of the future, driving the energy security 

of the United States. Secretary of Energy Samuel 

Bodman has said, “Hydrogen fuel cells are one of the 

technologies that, if we are successful, could totally 

transform the way we use energy. . . . [W]e believe 

hydrogen fuel cell technology remains a viable 

long-term solution to end petroleum dependency 

and minimize carbon emissions.”

Fuel Cell–Powered Ice Resurfacer Smoothes the Way to a Hydrogen Economy

The crowded, enclosed space of an ice arena 

made a perfect venue for the introduction of 

hydrogen-powered vehicles. While on exhibition, 

the eP-ICEBEAR proved much quieter and safer 

than other ice resurfacers, which have sometimes 

caused dangerous carbon monoxide buildups on 

the ice while resurfacing. With its fuel cells running 

on pure hydrogen, the eP-ICEBEAR has no harmful 

exhaust at all—plain water is the only emission.

Supporting the eP-ICEBEAR project is just one 

of many NETL activities to advance fuel cell 

development and promote a future hydrogen 

economy. Working with private industry and 

other research partners, NETL is a leader in 

the development and demonstration of high 

efficiency solid oxide fuel cells and fuel cell/

turbine hybrid power-generation systems. 

63
AWARD

64 Hitting the Target

Environment, Economy & Supply
NETL provides the advanced 

scientific and technological tools 

to ensure an abundant supply of 

clean, affordable, and abundant 

energy. The goals—providing 

environmentally friendly energy, 

affordable energy, and abundant, 

secure energy—are often at 

odds with one another. For 

instance, the most efficient and 

economic ways of producing 

energy are not generally the most 

environmentally acceptable. NETL, 

however, consistently targets the 

area where these three goals 

intersect—affordable technologies 

that protect our air, water, and 

land while providing an abundant, 

secure energy supply for the nation. 

The carbon capture and storage 

technologies being developed 

under NETL management are 

hitting the bull’s eye. 

65
66 Hitting the Target

Environment, Economy & Supply

NETL Invents Novel Method for Measuring 

Sequestration Rates—NETL researchers have 

invent-ed and tested a method for measuring 

isotherms and diffusion rates for CO2 sequestered in 

coal seams. Such data are needed for engineering 

computations of reservoir sequestration capacities 

and field-project design. Sorption isotherms are 

conventionally measured on powdered coal by a 

pressure-drop method, but diffusion rates obtained 

from powdered samples may give unrealistic sorption 

capacities. In the NETL technique, a pre-weighed 

sample of centimeter-sized pieces of coal is exposed 

in a high-pressure cell to CO2 (or other gas) at a 

specified pressure and temperature. Following the 

desired period of exposure, the sample is removed, 

and the change in sample weight is automatically 

recorded on a conventional laboratory balance over 

the next hour. 

Computational Experiments at NETL Validate 

Sequestration Predictions—Using the NETLdeveloped computer code NETfLowTM, NETL scientists 

have shown that equations describing CO2 flow when 

CO2 is injected into brine-saturated geologic formations are also valid under laboratory conditions for a 

large range of fluid parameters and porous materials. 

This “cross-over” behavior had been predicted in the 

theoretical literature and could serve to accelerate 

the development of carbon sequestration methods 

and practices. A paper describing the results was 

published in the October 2007 issue of the peerreviewed American Physical Society publication

Physical Review E.

NETL Develops New Approach for Modeling 

CO2 Sequestration in Coalbeds—NETL has 

developed a framework for improving conventional 

geomechanical approaches to modeling carbon 

sequestration in coalbeds. By considering coal 

properties at the macromolecular level, this approach 

is a major improvement over the mechanical 

engineering models that have been used in 

simulating CO2 sequestration in coal seams. The crossscale theory, published in the American Chemical 

Society’s 2007 May issue of Energy & Fuels, describes 

the structural rearrangement of coal after injection 

of high pressure gaseous or supercritical CO2, which 

was previously ignored or incorrectly accounted 

for by the mechanistic models. Improved modeling 

could avoid costly and unexpected problems, such as 

coal swelling around injectors and reduced injection 

efficiency that can stall or even terminate site 

development.

NETL Model Helps Predict Sequestration Behavior 

for CO2 Injected into Coal Seams—An advanced 

model developed at NETL to describe the shrinkage 

and swelling of coal caused by methane and CO2 has 

been used to fit field data from the Allison Field in 

northern New Mexico. Carbon dioxide was injected 

for more than 10 years in the field to enhance 

Carbon Capture & Storage—

Curbing CO2 Emissions

Because CO2 is closely linked with global climate 

change, solutions must be found to stabilize 

atmospheric CO2 . One way to do this is to capture 

anthropogenic CO2 at its source—such as coal-fired 

power plants—and permanently store it in deep 

geologic formations and terrestrial sinks. Current 

technologies used for CO2 need to be improved. Since 

1997, NETL has been exploring many facets of carbon 

sequestration, including capture and separation 

technologies for CO2 ; direct and indirect storage 

options; mitigation of non-CO2 greenhouse gases; 

monitoring, mitigation, and verification for ensuring 

permanent storage; and breakthrough concepts for 

reducing the cost of capture. 

NETL also manages DOE’s seven Regional Carbon 

Sequestration Partnerships, a collaboration of regional, 

state, and local governments, universities, and private 

companies that determine the best approaches for 

capturing and permanently storing greenhouse gases 

in each region of the country. These partnerships 

pull together the efforts of nearly 350 organizations 

spanning 41 States, 3 Indian nations, and 4 Canadian 

provinces to advance the understanding and 

infrastructure development of carbon capture and 

storage. Collectively, the seven partnerships represent 

regions encompassing 97 percent of U.S. coal-fired 

emissions, 96 percent of our nation’s total land mass, 

and essentially all of the geologic storage formations 

available in the United States for carbon storage. 
67

coalbed natural gas production, and the data are 

being used to help predict the behavior of CO

2

when sequestered in coal seams. NETL research 

has shown that the effect of CO

2

 sorption on coal 

properties can vary depending on an interplay of 

factors not fully realized. In some cases, sorption 

causes the coal to swell, reducing its permeability 

and making injection difficult; in other cases, CO

2

sorption causes fractures to develop in the coal, 

making injection easier. Results from simulations 

using the NETL model, which appeared in both the 

Journal of Petroleum Technology and SPE Reservoir 

Evaluation & Engineering, were comparable to or 

better than other simulators and swelling models.

New NETL Adsorbent Exhibits Exciting 

Possibilities for CO

2

 Capture—NETL researchers 

have engineered an absorbent material with an 

unusually flexible structure that offers exciting 

possibilities for separating CO

2

 from other gases. 

The material is composed of sheets of an ionic 

nickel complex that is interlayered with pillars 

of a specially selected organic compound to 

form galleries of open chan-nels into which gas 

molecules can fit. In the presence of CO

2

 at a 

certain threshold of pressure, the structure flexes 

open to accommodate more gas molecules. 

Despite depressurization, once full the opened 

structure retains the CO

2

 until a very low pressure 

is reached. At that point, the structure collapses 

again and the CO

2

 exits. Achieving such a degree 

of control over the properties of a family of porous 

materials represents a real advance in adsorption 

science. 
NETL Releases Groundbreaking Carbon Sequestration Atlas

In March 2007, NETL released the first-ever Carbon Sequestration Atlas of the United States and Canada. Developed 

jointly by NETL, DOE’s Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships, and the National Carbon Sequestration 

Database and Geographical Information System (NATCARB), the atlas is proving to be a critical tool in the 

research and development of carbon sequestration technologies. 

Captured CO2 may be stored safely and permanently in underground formations (geologic sequestration); stored 

in trees, vegetation, and soil (terrestrial sequestration); or put to use in manufacturing or enhanced oil and natural 

gas production.

68

Environment, Economy & Supply
Emissions of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide 

(CO2) have increased from an insignificant level 

two centuries ago to more than 30 billion tons 

worldwide today. If no effort is made to reduce 

CO2 emissions, yearly release from the United 

States could increase by one third from 2005 to 

2030. Carbon capture and sequestration could 

slow or even reverse this growth by capturing 

CO2 before it is emitted into the atmosphere and 

safely storing it in geologic formations, soils and 

vegetation, or in other environmentally safe forms. 

Sequestration is a key component of U.S. efforts to 

combat global climate change.

DOE’s Office of Fossil Energy and NETL support 

a number of carbon sequestration initiatives, 

including the Regional Carbon Sequestration 

Partnership program. The program was started 

in 2003 in response to geographic differences in 

fossil fuel use and sequestration potential. The 

seven regional partnerships include members 

from more than 350 government agencies, 

universities, and private companies spanning 41 

states, 4 Canadian provinces, and 3 Indian nations.

The atlas, which will be updated annually, aids 

carbon sequestration research and technology 

development by providing maps and information 

at both the national and regional levels. It has 

three main purposes:

• Present an overview of the lifecycle of CO2

through the capture and sequestration 

processes.

• Summarize DOE’s and NETL’s sequestration 

research and development efforts.

• Present information about the Regional Carbon 

Sequestration Partnerships’ activities.

The 2007 atlas documented U.S. and Canadian 

stationary sources—such as power plants, 

refineries, and other fossil-fuel–consuming 

industries—that release 3.8 billion tons of CO2

each year. It also identified potential storage sites 

across the United States and Canada for more than 

3,500 billion tons of CO2.

The atlas is available in both online and print 

versions. The online version, an interactive and 

frequently updated resource, is located at the 

NATCARB website. The print version can be 

downloaded from the NETL website.

69
70 Hitting the Target

Environment, Economy & Supply

NETL Work on Metal Organic Frameworks Yields 

New Way to Evaluate Adsorbent Materials—

NETL research on metal organic frameworks, a new 

type of porous material useful as an adsorbent, 

has yielded a novel method for evaluating the way 

in which vapors desorb from any type of porous 

adsorbent. The NETL method will help evaluate the 

performance of metal organic frameworks, which 

are expected to be of value in many applications, 

including the separation of CO2 from other gases. 

Potentially, the new materials will be useful for 

capturing CO2 in power plants and similar facilities 

prior to sequestration or for purifying other gases or 

liquids. 

NETL-Developed Power Plant Cost-andPerformance Data Made Available to the 

Public—A 500-page NETL report, Cost and 

Performance Baseline of Fossil Energy Plants, contains 

the most comprehensive set of publicly available 

data to date for comparing the types of technology 

that are available for future power plants and for 

estimating the cost and performance of pulverized 

coal, natural gas combined cycle, and integrated 

gasification combined cycle power plants, both with 

and without carbon capture and sequestration. Plant 

efficiencies, busbar cost of electricity, and the cost of 

carbon mitigation were estimated using computerbased models developed from information from 

published reports, vendor quotes, technology-user 

comments, and data from recent utility projects. 

The report was peer-reviewed by industry experts, 

academia, and government research and regulatory 

agencies and is proving valuable to decision-makers 

as they evaluate the trade-offs of various power 

options. This study has been highlighted at several 

international conferences and published in Gas 

Turbine World. 

NETL and Argonne National Laboratory 

Identify an Energy Security Pathway Based on 

Clean Coal Fuels and Efficient Vehicles—The 

Hydrogen Economy Scenario Modeling project, 

jointly undertaken by NETL and Argonne National 

Laboratory, has concluded that petroleum 

consumption can be reduced by 11 million barrels 

per day and carbon emissions by 500 million metric 

tons per year by 2040—energy and climate security 

goals announced by President Bush in 2003. These 

results can be accomplished by dovetailing supplyside initiatives based on clean coal technologies 

with demand-side vehicle efficiency improvements. 

Critical technologies include transportation 

fuel substitution from coal-based liquids, the 

sequestration of CO2 by 10–20 percent of new coal 

power plants, and the proliferation of high-efficiency 

vehicles powered by hybrid engines or hydrogen 

fuel cells. 

NETL Evaluates Impacts of Capturing CO2 from 

Existing Coal-Fired Power Plants—NETL analysts 

evaluated the technical and economic impacts 

of removing CO2 from an existing U.S. coal-fueled 

power plant using an advanced amine-based 

postcombustion CO2 capture system. The study 

is unique as it investigates the performance and 

economic impact of retrofitting an existing plant for 

various levels of CO2 capture, ranging 30–90 percent. 

The results establish performance benchmarks for 

reducing greenhouse gas emissions and will serve as 

a foundation for exploring the impact of widespread 

CO2 capture across the entire U.S. fleet of coal-fueled 

power plants. 

NETL Identifies Critical Study Areas for CO2

Capture at Pulverized Coal Plants— NETL has 

established a baseline for the cost and performance 

of new pulverized coal-fired power plants and 

next-generation ultra-supercritical power plant 

designs that capture CO2 using either oxy-fuel 

combustion or one of a variety of postcombustion 

capture technologies. Study results establish a point 

of reference to which research and development 

progress in the areas of oxy-fuel combustion and 

postcombustion can be compared. Improved 

oxygen production, advanced boiler materials, 

advanced boiler designs, and improved CO2 

compression were identified as critical areas of study 

necessary to decrease CO2 mitigation costs from new 

pulverized coal plants.
71

NETL Develops Capability to Model Market 

Penetration of Capture Technologies Using 

CO2 Supply-and-Demand Curves—NETL’s new 

version of its CarBen desktop model includes 

CO2 supply curves that constrain the potential 

contribution of capture technologies based 

on capacity estimates. CarBen was originally 

developed to evaluate the environmental 

benefits derived from carbon capture generation 

technology development. Now, the model 

can also translate the opportunities for CO2

enhanced oil recovery (EOR) into the number of 

power plants that capture carbon and supply it 

to the EOR industry. This step is accomplished 

by aligning CO2 demand from state-of-the-art 

CO2-EOR applications with CO2 supply from power 

plants. The research effort determines what is 

economically feasible by considering demand 

constraints based on economically recoverable 

resources and supply constraints based on powerplant deployment economics. As a result of this 

research and model enhancement, NETL now has 

the capability to model the market penetration 

of capture technologies based on economic 

incentives and constraints. 

Deep-Well Drilling Completed for Geologic 

Sequestration Pilot Test at FirstEnergy Power 

Plant—An 8,500-foot well in Shadyside, OH, is 

one of the first wells drilled into a U.S. basin by 

the seven NETL-managed Carbon Sequestration 

Partnerships. As part of a demonstration 

conducted by the Midwest Regional Carbon 

Sequestration Partnership led by Battelle 

Columbus Laboratories, technicians began 

deep-well testing into the formations underlying 

FirstEnergy Corporation’s R. E. Burger electric 

gen-erating facility. After the well was drilled, 

cored, and logged, results of the pilot-scale test 

were reviewed to determine if the core samples 

showed sufficient permeability and porosity 

for geologic sequestration. Once approval for 

injection is received, an amount of CO2 equivalent 

to two days of plant emissions (3,000–10,000 tons) 

will be injected into the test well over a period 

of several months. Results from the injection will 

help determine the suitability of regional geologic 

formations for perma-nently storing CO2

Marsh Restoration Shows Carbon 

Sequestration Potential—Researchers at the 

University of Maryland are helping to mitigate 

the effects of anthropogenic greenhouse gases 

by restoring carbon-capturing marshes in the 

Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge on the eastern 

shore of the Chesapeake Bay. So far, 27 acres have 

been restored with clean dredge that is annually 

removed to keep Port of Baltimore channels clear. 

Revegetation of the dredge represents part of a 

terrestrial sequestration project being conducted 

in cooperation with NETL by the Midwest Regional 

Carbon Sequestration Partnership.

New Process Produces Oxygen Without 

Cryogenics—In a sub-pilot-scale test, a Ceramic 

Autothermal Recovery (CAR) unit produced seventenths of a ton of oxygen per day at Western 

Research Institute in Laramie, WY. Expected to 

require less energy and capital than cryogenic 

approaches, the CAR process adsorbs oxygen 

from air in a fixed bed containing calcium titanium 

oxide. The bed then releases the oxygen into a 

sweep gas, such as recycled flue gas or steam. 

Dual beds are cycled between these two modes 

of operation to provide a semicontinuous process. 

The mixture of oxygen and recycled flue gas could 

replace air in combustion processes, producing a 

CO2-rich flue gas that can be readily conditioned 

for sequestration or enhanced oil recovery (EOR) 

operations. BOC Gases—part of the Linde Group 

that is now the largest industrial gas company in 

the world—is partnering with Western Research 

Institute, Alstom Power, Inc., and NETL to assess 

the technical and economic merits of CAR 

technology for supplying oxygen instead of air to 

coal-fired boilers.
72 Innovation, Invention & Commercialization

Technology Transfer
Technology transfer is central to 

NETL’s mission. NETL’s inventions 

and innovations cannot effect 

a positive change until they are 

brought into the public realm to 

aid in the discovery, recovery, and 

use of America’s energy resources 

economically and with proper 

environmental stewardship. NETL 

dedicates significant efforts to 

transferring information and 

technologies to private-sector 

companies, colleges and universities, 

and other government entities to 

accelerate the advancement and 

commercialization of valuable 

technologies and maximize returns 

to the American people. Some of 

the primary vehicles that are used to 

move NETL’s new technologies into 

the private sector are Cooperative 

Agreements (CAs), Cooperative 

Research and Development 

Agreements (CRADAs), patents and 

licensing, and publications. 

73
74 Innovation, Invention & Commercialization

Technology Transfer

Through CAs and CRADAs, NETL partners with private 

companies, colleges, universities, and state and local 

governments to develop and advance new energy and 

environmental technologies. By providing partners 

with a portion of the funding for development of 

new technologies, NETL decreases the time it takes 

for the partners to advance the new products toward 

commercialization.

NETL Licenses Mercury-Capture Technology 

That Preserves Thermal Efficiency at IGCC Power 

Plants—NETL has licensed a high-temperature 

palladium metal sorbent to Johnson Matthey, a 

world leader in catalyst manufacture, for commercial 

development. The sorbent captures larger quantities 

of mercury from simulated synthesis gas than 

sorbents made from platinum. The palladium-based 

technology was invented by NETL researchers for use 

in IGCC power systems to capture mercury, arsenic, 

and selenium. Capturing these trace elements 

at high temperature will help preserve the high 

thermal efficiency of IGCC plants more effectively 

than the low-temperature activated carbons used to 

capture mercury in many of today’s power systems. 

The sorbents are described in the June 21, 2006, 

edition of Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, 

as well as in the September 2007 Elsevier journal 

Fuel.

NETL Refractory Material Prolongs Service Life 

of Coal Gasifiers, Now Licensed for Production—

Harbison and Walker Refractories Company of 

Pittsburgh, PA, is producing an NETL-developed 

refractory material for coal gasifiers under the 

marketing name Aurex® 95P. Field trials show that the 

refractory liner, which is composed of a phosphatemodified high-chromia-and-alumina matrix, either 

reduced or eliminated wear caused by fragmenting 

and flaking, thus extending the refractory service 

life an estimated 50 percent beyond that normally 

achieved by conventional materials. The refractory 

also was found to have equivalent or better 

resistance to chemical deposition, the other primary 

wear mechanism that impacts refractory service 

Commercialization—Moving Innovation

to the Marketplace 

life. Refractory brick with greater longevity will help 

gasification become a more reliable and economic 

technology for coal-based power and hydrogen 

production. 

Oil and Gas Exploration Software 

Commercialized—New modeling software 

developed at Houston-based Rock Solid Images 

(RSI) in cooperation with NETL confirms or disproves 

the presence of oil or gas better than conventional 

seismic attribute analysis. The new software can 

significantly reduce the risk of drilling a dry hole 

and causing financial losses of millions of dollars. 

Now available commercially from RSI as part of the 

company’s iMOSS software package, the technology 

has been adopted by several major oil companies 

and successfully applied offshore in West Africa and 

Norway as well as in the deep Gulf of Mexico of the 

United States. 

“Super-Cements” Now Available for Reducing 

Deep Well Maintenance Costs—Two supercement 

formulations with patents pending—one epoxybased, the other Portland-cement-based—are now 

commercially available for improving long-term 

sealing integrity in high-pressure, high-temperature 

wells. Developed and field-tested in cooperation 

with NETL by Houston-based CSI Technologies, 

LLC, these formulations will significantly reduce 

maintenance costs for highly productive wells in 

deep, hot environments where cement failures are 

expensive to repair and result in costly well closings 

that average $200,000 onshore and $1,000,000 

offshore. This project outcome is another significant 

success for NETL’s Deep Trek program, the goal of 

which is the development of advanced technologies 

to tap the nation’s large deposit of technically 

recoverable gas trapped in reservoirs below 15,000 

feet. 

Capstone Microturbine Meets Stringent 

Regulations of the 2007 California Air Resources 

Board—Capstone Turbine Corporation has put into 

commercial production a 65-kilowatt microturbine 

that meets the stringent emission requirements 

established by the California Air Resources Board 

(CARB). “CARB 2007” regulations set emissions 

standards for NOx, carbon monoxide, and volatile 
75

organic compounds and are part of California’s 

regulations governing the certification of 

distributed generation resources. Capstone’s new 

microturbine is sold as part of the company’s 

integrated combined heat and power package, 

which achieves a minimum 60 percent efficiency. 

The system combines ultra-low-emission leanpremix combustion technology with a catalyst 

that requires no scheduled maintenance for 

the life of the system. Capstone developed the 

package through an Advanced Microturbine 

Systems project aimed at developing a 

200-kilowatt advanced microturbine. NETL 

manages this project for the Office of Electricity 

Delivery and Energy Reliability (OE).

Breakthrough NOx Management Technology 

Commercialized—Fossil Energy Research 

Corporation of Laguna Hills, CA, is now offering 

a non-intrusive monitoring system that provides 

a real-time view of catalyst deactivation within 

selective catalytic reduction (SCR) units used to 

control nitrogen oxides (NOx) in coal-fired power 

plants. Developed by Fossil Energy Research in 

collaboration with NETL, Southern Company, 

and the Electric Power Research Institute, the 

Knoxcheck Online Catalyst Activity Test system 

predicts remaining catalyst life and evaluates 

catalyst replacement options without requiring 

a unit outage to obtain and analyze catalyst 

samples. Such in situ monitoring permits the 

SCR to remain in operation the year around, 

significantly reducing maintenance costs. The 

system proved successful in field tests conducted 

during the 2005 and 2006 ozone seasons at 

Alabama Power Company’s Plant Gorgas near 

Parrish, AL. 

Results of Advanced Microturbine Project 

Adopted Commercially—United Technology 

Corporation’s UTC Power unit has introduced 

PureCycleTM to the marketplace. PureCycle is a 

closed-cycle system that uses hot water from 

underground to generate electrical power with 

no emissions. The newly commercialized system 

is a result of work performed by engineers at 

the United Technology Corporation Research 

Laboratory in cooperation with NETL for OE. The 

research boosted microturbine system efficiency 

more than 5 percentage points using an Organic 

Rankine Cycle, a closed system that uses a working 

fluid to convert waste heat into electricity without 

producing pollutants. PureCycle garnered a 2007 

R&D 100 Award for recovering geothermal energy 

at Chena Hot Springs Resort near Fairbanks, 

AK—site of the lowest-temperature geothermal 

resource (165 °F) ever used for commercial power 

generation. 
Techniques for Mercury Capture Extend Success by Transferring Technology

NETL has patented three inventions that have been recently licensed to industry to remove mercury from power 

plant gas streams.

Energy security means having reliable and affordable energy now and in the future. Because NETL’s research 

portfolio is aligned to address both immediate and anticipated needs of the U.S. energy sector, technology 

transfer is an important component of all of our research.

Our research and technology innovations in mercury capture are evidence of NETL’s success in its important 

national mission. Mercury is a neurotoxin, and can accumulate in the food chain. The United States Environmental 

Protection Agency issued the Clean Air Mercury Rule, which is in the process of being revised, regulating the 

mercury emissions from coal-utilizing facilities such as coal-burning power plants. In addition, at least 26 states 

have legislation or pending legislation requiring the removal of mercury from coal-derived flue gases.

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76

Technology Transfer
NETL’s trace metal capture efforts focus on 

developing low-cost and effective mercury 

removal solutions to meet the goal of capturing 

more than 90 percent of mercury emissions from 

U.S. coal-fired plants by 2010.

Researchers Evan Granite and Henry Pennline 

have been active in developing techniques for 

mercury capture. Three of those techniques are 

in the early stages of commercial development, 

with three commercial license agreements, 

and a cooperative research and development 

agreement.

Their inventions are known as the PCO Process, 

the Thief Process, and the PG Trace Metal Sorbents.

The Thief Process, licensed to Nalco-Mobotec in 

May 2005, is being demonstrated at coal-burning 

power plants, and holds great potential as an 

economic way to reduce mercury emissions from 

coal-burning electric utilities. It is a cost-effective 

alternative to activated carbon injection (ACI) for 

mercury removal from flue gas. Activated carbons 

are expensive, ranging from $500 to $3,000/ton 

compared to $90-to-$200/ton for Thief carbon 

sorbents. Laboratory, bench, pilot-scale, and 

field tests demonstrate that carbon sorbents are 

comparable to activated carbons for mercury 

capture. 

The PG sorbents, licensed to Johnson Matthey in 

March 2007, are being successfully demonstrated 

for the removal of mercury and arsenic from fuel 

gases at independent bench-scale facilities, and 

are scheduled for pilot-scale demonstration at two 

facilities in June of 2008. The sorbents work on fuel 

gas at elevated temperatures. Unlike conventional 

sorbents such as activated carbon, which operate 

at ambient temperature, these high-temperature 

sorbents remove mercury and arsenic at 

temperatures above 500°F, and have more than 

twice the capacity of previously existing sorbents, 

resulting in a major improvement in overall energy 

efficiency of the power combustion process. 

The Photochemical Oxidation (PCO) process 

introduces a 254-nm ultraviolet light into the flue 

gas, leading to oxidation of mercury and facilitated 

mercury removal in a downstream SO2 scrubber, 

wet electrostatic precipitator, or baghouse. In 

field tests, the process demonstrated greater than 

90 percent oxidation and capture of elemental 

mercury in simulated flue gas streams. The PCO 

process was licensed to Powerspan Corp.

During a visit to NETL, Jeffrey Jarrett, then 

DOE Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy, said, 

“Development of advanced coal technology at 

NETL is a keystone of the President’s Advanced 

Energy Initiative. Advanced technology and coal 

can deliver new increments of electric power 

to our nation in the near- and mid-term in the 

volumes we will require it, at the times we will 

need it, on the terms we want it–abundant, always 

available, low cost and clean.”

NETL inventions such as the mercury removal 

technologies are the types of innovative advances 

that prompted Jarrett’s remarks.

77
78 Innovation, Invention & Commercialization

Technology Transfer

NETL makes government-owned inventions 

available to private sector companies in the energy 

marketplace through patent licensing. Inventions 

created through Cooperative Research and 

Development Agreements (CRADAs) collaborations 

are available for exclusive licensing to the CRADA 

partner. Inventions made through Cooperative 

Agreements (CAs)are often owned by the CA partner 

who is responsible for commercialization. 

Novel Regenerable Sorbent a First for Removing 

CO2 at Warm Gas Temperature—NETL researchers 

have received a patent for a first-of-its-kind process 

that creates a sodium-based sorbent capable of 

removing CO2 at warm gas temperatures (200–400 °C). 

Unlike CO2 removal processes available on the 

market today, this sorbent does not require the 

contacting gas stream to be cooled. This makes 

it particularly suitable for high-temperature coal 

gasification processes. The innovative sorbent also 

exhibits a very high capacity for adsorbing CO2

(greater than 4 moles per kilogram), with a greater 

than 99 percent CO2 removal efficiency at 315 °C; 

further, it can be regenerated at 700 °C. The sorbent 

is described in the July 2007 issue of the peerreviewed American Chemical Society publication 

Energy & Fuels. 

NETL Sensor for Gas Turbines Receives Patent—

A U.S. patent has been issued to NETL inventors 

for a sensor that detects incipient lean blowout 

(LBO)—a power-robbing condition that can damage 

gas turbines. By providing real-time monitoring 

of conditions in the combustor, the sensor would 

allow modern turbines, particularly those utilizing 

a more LBO-susceptible dry low-NOx combustion 

technology, to safely operate closer to the LBO limit 

where emissions are lowest. NETL is partnering with 

Woodward Governor Company to commercialize the 

novel sensing technology. 

NETL Patents Device for Flow Control in Fuel 

Cells—NETL engineers have been granted a U.S. 

patent on a microvalve that can control small 

amounts of flow. The device improves the flow of 

fuel and oxidizers within fuel cells and is powered 

by a pressure-induced electricity source called 

piezoelectricity. Other applications of the device are 

also possible, including flow control in combustion 

systems for NOx control. NETL shares the patent 

with two faculty members from the University of 

Pittsburgh. The team is continuing its collaboration 

through the NETL University Research Initiative to 

develop other sensor and control technologies for 

energy applications. 

NETL Patents Aqua Ammonia-Based Technique 

to Remove CO2 from Flue Gas—NETL researchers 

have invented and patented a wet-scrubbing 

technique that uses an ammonia-based solution 

to capture acid gases, including CO2, from flue gas 

at coal-burning power plants. During the process, 

a salable fertilizer is produced and the spent 

ammonia solution is regenerated and recycled back 

to the scrubbing unit. At the same time, a stream 

of CO2 is produced that can be captured for either 

sequestration or industrial use. The technique has 

been licensed to Powerspan Corp., New Durham, NH. 

Company officials plan to construct a one-megawatt 

demonstration unit. 

Patents—Safeguarding Invention
79

Noteworthy Publications—

Sharing Our Expertise

NETL shares its expertise and technological progress in 

fossil energy research and development in several ways: 

through project reports, topical reports, technology 

roadmaps, newsletters, and brochures; through DOE’s 

Office of Scientific and Technical Information; and 

through publishing the latest ideas, innovations, and 

discoveries in books and various scientific journals and 

periodicals.

NETL Staff Co-Edit Publication for World’s 

Largest University Press—Oxford University Press 

has published Ultraclean Transportation Fuels, a 

book edited by Olayinka I. Ogunsola and Isaac K. 

Gamwo describing recent advances in the research 

and development of ultra-clean transportation 

fuels. Derived from a variety of hydrocarbon 

feedstocks, such as coal, biomass, and waste oils, the 

ultra-clean fuels were evaluated during production, 

processing, upgrading, and utilization phases. 

In addition to his editing duties, Dr. Gamwo and 

several other NETL researchers authored multiple 

chapters for the book. Dr. Ogunsola, a former NETL 

employee, is now a program manager in the Office 

of Fossil Energy’s Office of Oil and Natural Gas at 

Department of Energy headquarters. 

NETL Researchers Prepare Article for New Wiley 

Publication—NETL researchers have been invited 

to contribute an article describing the use of dense 

metal membranes for separating hydrogen and CO2

from coal-gasifier gas. The article will appear in the 

inaugural edition of the Encyclopedia of Energy, to 

be published by Wiley Interscience® in 2010. Wiley 

extended the invitation after learning of NETL’s 

membrane research during a presentation at the 

March 2007 meeting of the American Chemical 

Society. The new publication will cover every 

conceivable source of energy, from wind to nuclear 

power; all energy uses, such as transportation and 

electricity; and unique case studies for energy 

utilization around the world. NETL’s article will 

be among approximately 1,500 contributions in 

18 categories to be published in 5 volumes of 

approximately 1,000 pages each.

NETL Researchers Contribute to Singular Issue 

of Scientific Journal—In March 2007, Dr. Charles 

Taylor, Director of NETL’s Chemistry and Surface 

Science Division, was guest editor for a special issue 

of Elsevier’s Journal of Petroleum Science & Engineering

dedicated to the field of gas hydrates and clathrates 

(a group of one type of molecule trapped within 

the lattice of another). The special volume includes 

21 refereed papers authored in government 

research laboratories, academia, and industry and 

represents the best presentations offered at a related 

symposium during the 229th National Meeting of 

the American Chemical Society. NETL researchers 

are primary authors of three articles contained in the 

special volume. The first and second articles detail 

gas hydrate research on the macro- and microscale respectively, and the third article presents an 

overview of advances in hydrate research made 

between 2001 and 2005. In a fourth article, NETL and 

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory researchers 

discuss the groundbreaking use of computerized 

tomography to monitor the formation and 

dissociation of methane hydrate in sediment. 

Power Engineering Highlights NETL NOx-Control 

Accomplishments—An overview of NOx-control 

advances made under the Office of Fossil Energy’s 

Innovations for Existing Plants program, managed by 

NETL, is included in the November 2006 issue of the 

prominent industry publication Power Engineering. 

The article details such NOx-control technologies 

as neural control systems, oxygen-enhanced 

combustion, burner improvements, and specialized 

reagent injection. Not only do these cost-effective 

technologies equal state-of-the-art selective 

catalytic reduction (SCR) systems in achieving NOx 

reductions, they are better suited to the smaller, 

older facilities that make up the 66 percent of the 

domestic fleet that are not easily retrofited with SCR 

units due to economic considerations and space 

constraints. 
80 Acknowledgements of Success

Awards & Recognition

AWARD
Striving for excellence 

in energy research and 

development through 

innovation, publication, and 

technology transfer won 

NETL special recognition 

throughout 2007. NETL 

has been acknowledged 

for major contributions in 

many different areas and by 

many different organizations, 

proving that our contributions 

are both significant and on 

target. 

81
NETL Garners Seven R&D 100 Awards for 2007 

NETL researchers stepped forward this year to 

receive three prestigious R&D 100 Awards for energy 

technology innovations. Another four awards went to 

NETL-sponsored technologies. Dubbed the “Oscars of 

Invention” by the Chicago Tribune, the R&D 100 awards 

stamp winning products, processes, materials, and 

software packages with “a mark of excellence known to 

industry, government, and academia as proof that the 

product is one of the most innovative ideas” recently 

introduced into the marketplace, according to R&D 

Magazine. 

SEQURETM Well-Finding Technology is a major 

breakthrough in carbon sequestration efforts, 

offering a method for quickly locating potential sites 

for permanently storing CO2 emissions. Oil and gas 

reservoirs have trapped hydrocarbons for millions 

of years, a feature that makes them primary targets 

for trapping and storing CO2. However, thanks to oil 

and gas production ongoing since 1859, millions of 

wells now perforate the caprock that once trapped 

the hydrocarbons in these reservoirs. Improperly 

plugged wells can provide an escape route for 

CO2—threatening the potential success of geologic 

CO2 sequestration. 

Multiphase Flow with Interphase eXchanges 

(MFIX) is a much-needed software developed 

at NETL with support from Oak Ridge National 

Laboratory, Aeolus Research Inc., of Dunbar, PA, and 

Parsons, Inc., of Morgantown, WV. 

Developing the technologies needed to use coal 

cleanly, efficiently, and with lower carbon emissions 

is essential. It is also a complex and costly process. 

Researchers develop designs that use solid fuels and 

repeatedly build and test these designs at several 

different scales. However, the high cost of these 

demonstrations limits the opportunities engineers 

have to test innovative designs of coal processing 

reactions and prevents the exploration of the 

radical and innovative ideas needed to develop 

novel designs for near-zero-emissions future power 

plants. MFIX brings these ideas back to the table by 

replacing build-and-test steps with accurate and 

less-costly simulations. 

82 Acknowledgements of Success

Awards & Recognition
The Armstrong Process is a continuous process 

that is low temperature, low pressure, and low 

cost. It also lends itself to a variety of applications, 

particularly NETL’s work with the U.S. Army Tank 

and Automotive Command and Army Research 

Laboratory in developing armorplate. Titanium 

armorplate is valued for its light weight, high 

corrosion resistance, and superior ballistic 

properties. The reduced cost of the Armstrong 

Process makes titanium a practical choice as well. 

Work is currently ongoing to develop titanium 

body armor. 

The Armstrong Process was developed jointly by 

NETL, International Titanium Powder, Rockport, IL; 

BAE Systems, Rockville, MD; AMETEK, Paoli, PA; Red 

Devil Brakes, Mount Pleasant, PA; and Oak Ridge 

National Laboratory.

Low-Swirl Combustion for Fuel Flexible 

Near-Zero Emissions Gas Turbines enables gas 

turbines from 70 kilowatts to 250+ megawatts 

to run on almost any gaseous hydrocarbon, 

including those derived from landfills, biomass, 

refineries, and pure hydrogen. In addition to 

being affordable, low-swirl combustion is also 

one of the only gas turbine technologies to 

demonstrate significant reduction of NOx and 

other greenhouse gas emissions. The technology 

was developed by Lawrence Berkeley National 

Laboratory and Solar Turbine with support from 

NETL through DOE’s Office of Electricity Delivery 

and Energy Reliability. 

NOxTracTM detects NOx in the parts-per-billion 

range, making possible quick adjustments to 

fossil-fuel-burning power stations and other 

applications to reduce or eliminate NOx in exhaust 

gases. NOxTrac displays no cross-sensitivity to 

carbon monoxide, CO2, or hydrocarbons. The 

technology was developed by researchers at 

Ohio State University’s Department of Chemical 

Engineering in cooperation with NETL.

PureCycleTM, a power cycle developed by UTC 

Power, uses a moderate-temperature heat 

source to generate electricity. As part of work 

performed in cooperation with NETL for the Office 

of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability, UTC 

engineers demonstrated that an organic Rankine 

cycle—a closed system that uses a working 

fluid to convert waste heat energy into electrical 

energy—can boost microturbine system efficiency 

more than 5 percentage points. This helped 

confirm the viability of PureCycle technology, 

which is now recovering geothermal energy at 

Chena Hot Springs Resort near Fairbanks, AK—site 

of the lowest-temperature geothermal resource 

ever used for commercial power generation. 

A long-life, semi-active plate valve for 

reciprocating compressors was developed by 

Southwest Research Institute under the Advanced 

Reciprocating Compression Technology program 

managed by NETL. The semi-active plate valve 

replaces current passive compressor valves, 

which are prone to fatigue failure and require 

frequent replacement. The technology will cut 

valve replacement costs up to 90 percent over 

conventional valves typically used in the gas 

compression industry. 

83
84 Acknowledgements of Success

Awards & Recognition

Salt Scar Remediation Earns NETL Chairman’s 

Stewardship Award—NETL received a Chairman’s 

Stewardship Award from the Interstate Oil and Gas 

Compact Commission (IOGCC) for work completed 

in partnership with Kansas Corporation Commission 

and ALL Consulting in the remediation of “salt 

scars”—soil contaminated by saltwater during 

historic oil and natural gas production. The team 

designed the online Site Specific Remediation 

Planner to give oil and gas operators and landowners 

economic recommendations for repairing salt scars 

through soil manipulation, chemical amendments, 

and revegetation. The award is the highest IOGCC 

honor conferred for exemplary achievement in 

environmental stewardship. It was presented to NETL 

Director Carl Bauer by Chairman Dave Freudenthal, 

Governor of Wyoming, at the IOGCC Annual Meeting 

held October 15–17, 2006, in Austin, TX.

NETL Honored for Excellence in Technology 

Transfer—NETL merited two highly esteemed 

awards from the Federal Laboratory Consortium 

(FLC) in 2007. The awards were presented on May 17 

at the FLC National Meeting in Arlington, TX.

• Carl Bauer, Director of NETL, accepted one of 

FLC’s three 2007 Laboratory Director of the Year 

awards. The highly competitive and prestigious 

award recognizes leadership excellence in both 

the direction and achievement of a facility’s 

technology transfer program. Director Bauer’s 

award honors his work in facilitating the transfer of 

technology from NETL through CRADAs and other 

cooperative agreements, promoting early licensing 

of commercially relevant innovation through 

the NETL patent process, personally informing 

and updating interested stakeholders through 

presentations on promising NETL technologies, 

and encouraging information exchange among 

NETL researchers and stakeholders. 

• Dr. Stephen Zitney of NETL accepted a 2007 FLC 

Excellence in Technology Transfer Award for 

innovative effort in transferring the Advanced 

Process Engineering Co-Simulator (APECS) to the 

private sector. Developed at NETL in collaboration 

with private industry and the university 

community, APECS is an integrated software suite 

that combines the power of process simulation 

with high-fidelity computational fluid dynamics, 

advanced visualization, and high-performance 

computing for improved design, analysis, and 

optimization of process engineering systems. 

NETL engineers are applying this technology 

to reduce the time, cost, and technical risk of 

developing high-efficiency, near-zero-emissions 

power plants.
85

NETL Accepts Prestigious Award for 

Environmental Stewardship—NETL was 

honored by the American Association of 

Petroleum Geologists for supporting and funding 

the Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships, 

which seek to reduce greenhouse gas intensity 

in North America. The regional partnerships 

have identified potential storage capacity for 

more than 3.5 trillion tons of CO2 in geologic 

formations throughout the United States and 

Canada. The partnerships have designed 25 field 

trials to prove the capacity and suitability of these 

formations for safe and permanent CO2 storage. 

In addition, the partnerships are beginning to 

examine the technologies, regulations, and 

infrastructure components needed to manage 

CO2 sequestration. John Litynski, NETL program 

coordinator for the regional partnerships, 

accepted the association’s 2007 Corporate Award 

for Excellence in Environmental Stewardship 

during its annual convention April 1–4, 2007, in 

Long Beach, CA. 

NETL Employee Recognized for Contributions 

to Federal Workforce—Project Manager Paula 

Flenory accepted the Pittsburgh Federal Executive 

Board’s Professional Employee Non-supervisory 

award on August 23 at the board’s 2007 Federal 

Women of the Year awards luncheon, an Equal 

Employment Opportunity and Diversity event. 

Ms. Flenory has been an NETL project manager 

since 1993 and for the past 10 years has managed 

the University Coal Research program, which has 

provided internships to more than 600 students—

many of them women—as they pursue degrees in 

science and engineering. 

Ms. Flenory is also a founding member of NETL’s 

Minority Mentoring and Internship program. The 

program provides long-term, on-the-job training 

and mentoring opportunities for minorities 

at NETL while supporting their development 

as highly trained candidates for permanent 

employment. Federal Executive Boards across the 

nation promote communication and collaboration 

among federal agencies outside of Washington, 

D.C.; the Pittsburgh Federal Executive Board 

comprises more than 100 area federal agencies 

and over 20,000 federal employees.

NETL Research Paper Named “Best” at 

American Chemical Society Conference—

Authors from NETL and the University of 

Pittsburgh, who worked together to evaluate 

various preparation techniques for the oxygen 

carrier of chemical-looping combustion 

processes, received the American Chemical 

Society’s prestigious Glenn Award for the quality, 

innovation, and presentation of their research. 

Oxygen carriers transfer oxygen from air to fossil 

fuel without involving other constituents of air 

during combustion. The empirical study, which 

considered both conventional techniques and 

a technique involving nanocomposites, was 

completed under the NETL University Research 

Initiative. The research findings show that the 

nanoscale composites adsorb oxygen up to 

100 times faster than conventional carriers. As a 

result, the new carriers hold great potential for 

clean energy applications. Each author received 

a monetary award and a plaque at the 234th 

American Chemical Society National Meeting and 

Exhibition held in Boston, MA, August 19–23, 2007.

NETL Partnership Receives Award for Novel 

Energy Solution—Officials of the Energy 

Solutions Center presented the organization’s 2006 

Partnership Award to representatives of NETL, 

Blue Mountain Energy, Inc., Oak Ridge National 

Laboratory, and Southwest Gas Corporation for 

combined support and develop-ment of gasengine-driven air conditioner (GEDAC) technology. 

The Energy Solutions Center is a nonprofit 

organization of energy utilities and equip-ment 

manufacturers focused on the introduction of new 

energy solutions to residential, commercial, and 

industrial energy users. A family of residential and 

commercial GEDAC units and related products 

is being developed for operation in hightemperature regions, such as the desert climate of 

the southwest-ern United States. NETL manages 

the project for the Office of Electricity Delivery 

and Energy Reliability. The award was presented 

February 1, 2007, in Las Vegas, NV
86 Acknowledgements of Success

Awards & Recognition

Project Performers Receive Two Engineering 

Achievement Awards —Officials from Great 

River Energy and Barr Engineering Company were 

presented with two separate awards: the Minnesota 

Society of Professional Engineers Award and the 

2007 Engineering Excellence Award conferred by 

the American Council of Engineering Companies 

of Minnesota. Officials received both awards in 

recognition of their outstanding achievement in the 

design, construction, and operation of a prototype 

lignite coal dryer that could offer significant 

benefits to the U.S. power industry with regard to 

efficiency improvements and emissions reduction. 

The technology, which uses waste heat to reduce 

the moisture in lignite so that more power can be 

produced from the fuel, is being demonstrated 

at the Great River Energy Coal Creek Station in 

Underwood, ND, under NETL’s Clean Coal Power 

Initiative.

Multi-Pollutant Control Project Garners 

Conservation Award—We Energies, a subsidiary 

of Wisconsin Energy Corporation, received the 2006 

Corporate Conservation Award from the Superior 

Watershed Partnership, a nonprofit organization 

dedicated to protecting and restor-ing Upper 

Peninsula rivers and watersheds. The honor was 

bestowed at the partnership’s annual meeting on 

January 25, 2007, to recognize the environmental 

benefits offered by the mercury-removal technology 

TOXECONTM. TOXECON is a patented technology 

developed in cooperation with NETL by the Electric 

Power Research Institute as a low-cost retrofit 

option that achieves up to 90 percent mercury 

control at coal-fired power plants. It is being tested 

at full scale at the We Energies Presque Isle Power 

Plant, Marquette, MI, under NETL’s Clean Coal Power 

Initiative.

. 

Two Technologies Selected for Prestigious 

Meritorious Engineering Awards—Since 1971, 

annual awards have been presented by Hart Energy 

Publishing’s monthly E&P magazine to recognize 

the world’s best new tools and techniques for 

finding, drilling, and producing oil and gas wells. The 

follow-ing technologies, developed in cooperative 

agreements with NETL, received 2007 awards:

• The super cement field-tested by investigators 

at CSI Technologies, LLC, was selected for a 2007 

Special Meritorious Award for Engineering Innovation. Outperforming widely used Portland-based 

cements, the epoxy resin-based Ultra Seal®-R 

wellbore sealant solves difficult downhole problems and lowers the overall maintenance costs of 

high-temperature, high-pressure well completions. 

• Cutting-edge seismic imaging technology 

developed at 3DGeo Development, Inc., was 

also selected for an award. By unpacking more of 

the information available in a three-dimensional 

seismic wave than was possible with previous 

technologies, the 3DGeo technology offers a way 

to obtain images of deep and complex gas-bearing 

structures with higher precision and resolution 

than the current industry standard offers—

improving pre-drill evaluation of a deep prospect’s 

location, size, and hydrocarbon charge.

Methane Hydrate Study Is Best Paper in 

The Leading Edge—The Society of Exploration Geophysicists (SEG) bestowed its 2006 Best Paper in The 

Leading Edge award on a team of scientists from the 

University of Texas, Bureau of Economic Geology. The 

team’s paper was chosen from among the hundreds 

of technical papers published by SEG in The Leading 

Edge in 2006. It describes work conducted in cooperation with NETL on the use of multi-component 

seismic data for mapping gas hydrate accumulations 

in the Gulf of Mexico. The new mapping technique 

combines ocean-bottom cable, chirp-sonar, and new 

rock-physics models to estimate the concentration of 

hydrate in near-seafloor sediments. It will ultimately 

assess future hydrate resource potential. The award 

was presented during the 77th Annual Meeting of 

the SEG, held September 2007 in San Antonio, TX. 
» About NETL

The National Energy Technology Laboratory is 

owned and operated by the U.S. Department of 

Energy (DOE). NETL’s research efforts are focused on 

resolving the environmental, supply, and reliability 

constraints of producing and using America’s fossil 

fuel resources.

To accomplish this mission, NETL draws on 1,200 

federal and support-contractor employees to 

implement and manage a broad spectrum of 

research programs. NETL conducts more than 1,800 

research activities in the United States and in more 

than 40 foreign countries.

NETL is a single organization comprised of three 

research facilities located in Albany, OR; Morgantown, 

WV; and Pittsburgh, PA. NETL also has offices in Tulsa, 

OK, and Fairbanks, AK. The laboratory’s activities 

are primarily funded through DOE’s Office of Fossil 

Energy, but NETL also conducts work for other DOE 

offices and federal agencies.

Down oad Find a link to this report at:

www.netl.doe.gov/publications
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