Accomplishments

NATIONAL ENERGY TECHNOLOGY LABORATORY

in brief

2014

National Energy Technology Laboratory
2

Contents

Director’s Message 3

Building the World’s Largest Post-combustion Carbon Capture Project in Texas 4

Revealing Carbon Storage Potential in Wyoming 4

Achieving a Carbon Injection Milestone in Illinois 5

Incorporating New Carbon Capture Technology into a Power Plant in Florida 5

Converting CO2 into Commercial Products at a Plant in Texas 6

Testing Ways to Capture CO2 from Plant Flue Gas in Alabama 6

Predicting and Preventing Oil Spills in the World’s Oceans 7

Studying Hydraulic Fracturing in Pennsylvania 7

Developing Material for Life-Saving Coronary Stents around the World 8

Using Lasers to Monitor Safe CO2 Storage around the United States 8

Creating Better Foamed Cement for Safer U.S. Oil and Gas Wells 9

Extending Fuel Cells’ Longevity for Hybrid Gas Turbine Systems across the Nation 9

Demonstrating Microgrid-Improving Innovations in California 10

Integrating Wind Power into the Power Grid in Texas 10

Reducing Emissions and Increasing Mileage for Super Truck Program on U.S. Roads 11

Engaging America’s Youth for Careers in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math 11

Securing Patents for Energy Innovation 12

Licensing New Inventions for the Commercial Market 13

Attracting Awards and Special Recognitions for Energy Innovations 14
2014 NETL Accomplishments IN BRIEF 3

Director’s Message

The men and women of the National Energy Technology 

Laboratory (NETL) have concluded another exciting year of 

accomplishment and progress in carrying out the research 

and development (R&D) program of the U.S. Department of 

Energy’s (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy. This year, the Laboratory 

tackled a range of critical R&D that yielded an impressive array 

of new technologies, insights, and approaches toward achieving 

our mission to advance energy options to fuel our economy, 

strengthen our security, and improve our environment. 

In 2014, NETL’s skilled scientists and engineers, working in our 

state-of-the-art laboratory facilities and in collaboration with 

partners in the private sector and the nation’s leading research 

universities, advanced the development and deployment of new 

technologies that will yield benefits for generations to come. Our 

work is vital to the nation as it enables domestic coal, natural gas, 

and oil to economically power our homes, industries, businesses, and transportation, while reducing 

greenhouse gas emissions and enhancing our energy independence. 

This brief report describes just some of the important accomplishments that the Laboratory 

achieved in 2014—from innovations to capture and store carbon dioxide (CO2) at coal-burning 

power plants, to improvement of the nation’s power grid, to discovery of better ways to predict and 

prevent undersea oil leaks. 

The report also summarizes the many patents and licenses issued to the Laboratory in 2014 as well 

as the special recognitions the Laboratory received over the past year. 

I hope you enjoy this selection of NETL’s 2014 accomplishments, and I look forward to an even more 

productive and successful year in 2015.

Dr. Grace Bochenek

Director, NETL
4

Ground was broken in 2014 on a retrofitting project, 

managed by NETL, which will allow a coal-fired power 

plant in Texas to capture 1.4 million tons of CO2 that 

would otherwise be released into the air. Rather than 

building an entirely new facility, the Petra Nova project 

will apply carbon capture technology to an existing coalfired power plant—helping to advance technologies 

that enable cleaner, safer, and more sustainable energy 

production from our abundant fossil energy resources.

Project sponsors NRG Energy Inc. and JX Nippon 

anticipate that, when completed, the project will 

capture the same amount of CO2 as taking 250,000 cars 

off the road. Initially aimed to capture emissions from 

60 megawatts of generation, the project was expanded 

to 240 megawatts. The project sponsors are enthusiastic 

about the technology and are considering additional 

retrofit projects. 

Using a process previously tested in a 3-year pilot-scale 

test in Alabama, the project will capture 90 percent of 

the CO2 from the portion of power plant flue gas being 

treated. The gas will then be compressed, dried, and 

transported to an oil field, where it will be injected to 

recover previously unreachable oil, and ultimately stored 

permanently underground. This project creates a path 

forward for existing coal-fired power plants to continue 

energy production while meeting environmental 

sustainability goals.

The Wyoming Rock Springs Uplift could potentially store 

14 to 17 billion metric tons of CO2, according to results 

from an NETL-sponsored study. This is equal to 250 to 300 

years’ worth of CO2 emissions produced by Wyoming’s 

coal-fired power plants and other large regional 

anthropogenic CO2 sources at current emission levels.

The project team—led by the University of Wyoming’s 

Carbon Management Institute—gathered geologic, 

hydrologic, and geochemical data from a 12,810-footdeep stratigraphic test well that was drilled to evaluate 

the area’s potential as a long-term, high-volume storage 

site for CO2. The Rock Springs Uplift, a geologic feature 

in southwestern Wyoming, was found to have both 

the ideal geological characteristics for carbon storage 

and proximity to some of Wyoming’s largest sources of 

anthropogenic CO2 emissions.

This research effort, funded by the American Recovery 

and Reinvestment Act of 2009, will provide significant 

information to the National Carbon Sequestration 

Database and Geographic Information System 

(NATCARB), a geographic information system-based tool 

developed by NETL to provide a view of carbon capture 

and storage potential nationwide. The results could 

also lay the groundwork for a future large-scale carbon 

capture and storage project in Wyoming.

Building the World’s Largest 

Post-combustion Carbon 

Capture Project in Texas

Revealing Carbon Storage 

Potential in Wyoming

Photo courtesy of the Carbon 

Management Institute, University 

of Wyoming. All rights reserved.
2014 NETL Accomplishments IN BRIEF 5

 In 2014, the Illinois Basin-Decatur Project reached a 

major milestone by capturing 1 million metric tons of 

CO2 and injecting it into a deep saline formation for 

permanent storage. Part of the development phase 

of the Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships 

initiative, the project is helping to develop and deploy 

carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies, and 

move the United States toward a low carbon future. 

The project captured CO2 from the Archer Daniels 

Midland Company’s ethanol production facility in 

Decatur, IL. It was then compressed and moved through 

a mile-long pipeline for injection 7,000 feet below the 

surface into the Mount Simon Sandstone formation. 

Over the course of 100 years, the injected CO2 will 

remain far below a 300-foot thick shale formation that 

will act as a seal.

Since beginning in November 2011, the injection test 

performed better than expected, sustaining pressure 

increases well below regulatory limits. 

According to Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz, “This 

milestone is an important step toward the widespread 

deployment of carbon capture technologies in realworld settings.” 

Due to the project’s success, infrastructure from the 

Illinois Basin-Decatur Project is also being integrated 

into an expanded, commercial-scale injection project 

funded by DOE.

In 2014, DOE officials joined RTI International and 

Tampa Electric Company (TECO) to celebrate the startup 

of a pilot project to scale up and demonstrate the 

integration of emerging warm gas cleanup and carbon 

capture technologies in a coal gasification unit at the 

Polk Power Station near Tampa, FL. 

A product of DOE’s Clean Coal Technology 

Demonstration Program, the Polk Power Station is 

a state-of-the-art integrated gasification combined 

cycle (IGCC) plant fueled with coal and petroleum coke 

blends. The IGCC converts coal and other solid fuels 

to syngas. Currently, this syngas is cleaned at IGCC 

power plants to remove contaminants such as CO2, 

mercury, and sulfur with commercial technology that 

functions only at relatively low temperatures. IGCC 

technology augmented with RTI’s emerging warm gas 

cleanup technology offers the potential to improve 

energy efficiency while simultaneously removing 

pollutants from coal power plant emissions. The process 

is expected to reduce the overall cost of capturing CO2

and other contaminant emissions from power plants 

while also increasing reliability. The scale-up of RTI’s 

warm gas cleanup technology at the TECO site is the first 

large-scale demonstration of such technology in an IGCC 

power plant.

Achieving a Carbon Injection 

Milestone in Illinois

Incorporating New Carbon 

Capture Technology into a 

Power Plant in Florida
6

A major NETL-managed project demonstrating how 

CO2 can be successfully captured and converted into 

commercial products was officially opened in October 

2014. The project uses a first-of-its-kind process to 

capture an anticipated 75,000 tons of CO2 from a San 

Antonio, TX, cement plant and then converts the 

greenhouse gas into useable products, including sodium 

carbonate and sodium bicarbonate. NETL worked 

with Skyonic Corporation on its SkyMine project that 

has already created more than 250 jobs during the 

construction period. 

The $40 million DOE project was designed to retrofit 

existing coal-burning facilities but also has potential 

applications for heavy industry, including cement, glass, 

steel, and natural gas power. The byproducts produced 

through this process will offset other products with higher 

carbon footprints, and can be safely stored indefinitely. 

The company also plans on testing these products as a 

feedstock for algae-derived biofuels.

The technology builds upon several years of modeling, 

testing, and analysis performed by Skyonic and supported 

by DOE. The process will also remove most of the sulfur 

oxides, nitric oxides, mercury, and other heavy metals 

from the flue gas.

Two 1-megawatt-electric (MWe) pilot plants designed for 

testing advanced technologies that economically capture 

CO2 from flue gas were readied for online testing at the 

NETL-funded National Carbon Capture Center (NCCC) in 

Wilsonville, AL, during 2014. 

Under a cooperative agreement with NETL, Linde LLC is 

operating a pilot plant expected to capture 30 tons of CO2

per day. Testing at the pilot plant will validate performance 

on actual coal-derived flue gas of a CO2-capture technology 

that integrates BASF’s advanced aqueous amine-based 

solvent (OASE® blue) and process technology with Linde’s 

novel CO2-capture process and engineering innovations. 

Small-business membrane manufacturer MTR Inc., under 

an American Recovery and Reinvestment Act-funded 

cooperative agreement with NETL, is operating its pilot plant 

on actual coal-derived flue gas following shakedown of the 

unit. MTR’s CO2 capture technology is the largest-scale CO2

membrane technology in DOE’s research portfolio. 

Also in 2014, DOE implemented a new 5-year cooperative 

agreement with Southern Company to evaluate advanced 

carbon-capture and gasification technologies at the NCCC. 

Under the agreement, which is managed by NETL, NCCC 

tests both pre- and post-combustion carbon capture 

technologies as well as materials and processes that 

support advanced fossil fuel conversion systems, primarily 

coal gasification. Technologies tested and demonstrated 

at the NCCC will accelerate the development and improve 

the performance of cost-effective carbon capture and 

gasification technologies.

Converting CO2 into 

Commercial Products at a 

Plant in Texas

Testing Ways to Capture 

CO2 from Plant Flue Gas in 

Alabama
2014 NETL Accomplishments IN BRIEF 7

A new modeling tool created by NETL scientists 

is helping to prevent future hydrocarbon leaks by 

providing a greater understanding of how hydrocarbon 

leaks from all sources are transported throughout 

offshore systems. The Blowout and Spill Occurrence 

Model, or BLOSOM, can rapidly simulate offshore spills 

and leaks in hypothetical, “what if” scenarios. The 

resulting data, combined with other tools in DOE’s 

offshore hydrocarbon risk-assessment toolkit, can 

help prevent future incidents by identifying trends 

and pinpointing knowledge and technology gaps 

that contribute to a higher risk of spills. Currently, 

the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement 

is using BLOSOM to better understand worst-case 

discharge scenarios. 

The new tool is part of DOE’s integrated risk-assessment 

modeling effort of offshore hydrocarbon systems, which 

aims to reduce uncertainty and improve science-based 

decision-making for stakeholders involved in supplying 

safe and reliable domestic energy. BLOSOM was 

developed by NETL using lessons learned from the lab’s 

response to hurricanes Katrina and Rita in the Gulf of 

Mexico and the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

NETL released a technical report on a limited field 

study that monitored a hydraulic fracturing operation 

in Greene County, PA, for upward fracture growth and 

upward gas and fluid migration. Results indicated that 

under the conditions of this study, for this specific 

location, fracture growth ceased more than 5,000 

feet below drinking water aquifers and there was no 

detectable upward migration of gas or fluids from the 

hydraulically fractured Marcellus shale.

The study was led by NETL’s Office of Research and 

Development and used natural and man-made tracers. 

The object was to learn if fluid and gas from hydraulically 

fractured Marcellus shale had migrated 3,800 feet 

upward to a gas-producing zone of Upper Devonian/

Lower Mississippian age shale, which was located 

midway between the Marcellus shale and the surface. 

During hydraulic fracturing at the site, researchers 

detected microseismic signals using downhole 

geophones. All signals recorded were at least 2,000 feet 

beneath the Upper Devonian/Lower Mississippian gas 

field, and more than 5,000 feet below drinking water 

aquifers. Gas samples from the Upper Devonian/Lower 

Mississippian gas field were collected 2 months prior to 

hydraulic fracturing, and up to 8 months afterwards. No 

evidence of gas migration was detected.

Predicting and Preventing Oil 

Spills in the World’s Oceans

Studying Hydraulic Fracturing 

in Pennsylvania
8

NETL scientists received the ASM Achievement Award for 

their work on development and commercialization of a 

novel platinum-chromium alloy used in next-generation 

coronary stents. ASM International is the world’s largest 

association of metals-centric materials engineers, 

scientists, technicians, educators, and students.

The alloy, developed in collaboration with researchers at 

Boston Scientific Corporation, is the first stainless steel 

formulation for stents with a significant concentration 

of platinum, making it easier for coronary specialists 

to see the stent on x-rays during placement and 

expansion. The alloy also increases the stents’ corrosive 

resistance, strength, and flexibility. Stents made from 

the alloy benefit patients by shortening recovery time 

and avoiding follow-on procedures and more invasive 

surgery, which reduces healthcare costs.

An innovative monitoring technique developed by NETL 

researchers harnesses the power of lasers to monitor the 

safe and permanent underground storage of CO2 from 

fossil fuel combustion in power plants. 

Once captured from a power plant, CO2 can be piped 

into underground geologic formations for permanent 

storage. NETL experts developed a technique, laser 

induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS), that can be 

used to validate that a storage site is not emitting CO2, 

or provide early detection of leaks if they do occur. Early 

leak detection will enable site operators to implement 

a faster mitigation response to stop the leak. Laser 

technology is ideal for this application because it can 

analyze solids, liquids, and gases quickly from a distance 

at little expense. 

NETL was awarded a patent in 2014 for “downhole 

laser sensing technology” that can be used at well sites 

to detect significant changes in ion concentration in 

groundwater over the course of CO2 injection or other 

activities such as hydraulic fracturing. The technology 

has also attracted private industry attention and 

innovation awards, including the 2013 URS Pyramid 

Award and the 2013 Third Annual Energy and Innovation 

Conference Game Changer Award, in recognition of its 

potential for CO2 monitoring.

Developing Material for 

Life-Saving Coronary Stents 

around the World

Using Lasers to Monitor 

Safe CO2 Storage around the 

United States
2014 NETL Accomplishments IN BRIEF 9

In 2014, NETL researchers concluded a 3-year study 

that is producing more-effective foamed cement—

an important product that is pumped down oil and 

gas wells to protect against leaks and spills. The work 

produced the first-ever high-resolution 3-D images of 

foamed cement for industry leaders to use in making 

safer wellbores. 

Strength and stability of cement are critical in protecting 

the environment from leaks and spills wherever 

drills penetrate the earth in search of oil and gas on 

land or at sea. Foamed cement, created when gases 

like nitrogen are injected into cement slurry to form 

microscopic bubbles, is used in oil and gas wells 

because it performs better than conventional cement 

under high temperatures and pressures and provides a 

more reliable seal. But, the stability of foamed cement 

depends on the distribution and size of the gas bubbles, 

which vary depending upon how the cement is pumped 

and placed in each wellbore. Unstable foams can result 

in unprotected sections. 

In a novel approach, NETL adapted medical diagnostic 

equipment—CT scanners—to generate data and 3-D 

images of cement containing various amounts of air 

or nitrogen at atmospheric and wellbore pressures. 

Researchers also used a scanning electron microscope to 

measure bubble sizes in the foamed cement.

NETL shares its research results across the globe through 

interactions with the American Petroleum Institute and 

partnerships with academia.

NETL researchers discovered that applying an 

appropriate control strategy could dramatically extend 

the life expectancy of a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) by 

10 times when coupled with a gas turbine in a hybrid 

configuration, compared to a standalone configuration. 

High SOFC replacement costs have stifled development 

of this ultra-efficient power generation technology, but 

this extended lifetime, as confirmed by NETL researchers, 

could position fuel cell-based systems to compete 

economically with other power generation technology. 

In addition, SOFC-based systems would offer higher 

efficiency and tremendously reduced emissions by as 

much as 90 percent. 

Using NETL’s Hybrid Performance (HyPer) project facility, 

researchers were able to simulate degradation in real 

time using novel advanced control systems. The HyPer 

facility dynamically coupled what researchers knew 

about fuel cell degradation and performance with 

turbine hardware by coupling the fuel cell responses 

from a real-time virtual fuel cell to the input of a 

physical, high-temperature gas turbine. The result is a 

real-time fuel cell model imbedded in the hardware of a 

hybrid power system. 

This experimental work was published in the Journal 

of Fuel Cell Science and Technology (issue 11, volume 5; 

August 26, 2014). NETL’s HyPer facility is a one-of-a-kind 

cyber-physical laboratory for studying hybrid power 

systems that couple distinct technologies such as fuel 

cells and turbines.

Creating Better Foamed 

Cement for Safer U.S. Oil and 

Gas Wells 

Extending Fuel Cells’ Longevity 

for Hybrid Gas Turbine Systems 

across the Nation
10

 An NETL-managed project demonstrated in the nation’s 

fifth largest jail showed how a microgrid—a smallscale power grid—can operate independently of, or in 

conjunction with, a main electrical grid to reduce energy 

consumption, saving more than $100,000 in electricity 

costs annually.

Chevron Energy Solutions installed the microgrid at the 

Santa Rita Jail in Dublin, CA, as part of DOE’s Office of 

Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability’s Renewable 

and Distributed Systems Integration Program. The Santa 

Rita Jail microgrid incorporated a fuel cell capable of 

producing heat and power, a solar photovoltaic system, 

wind turbine generators, battery energy storage, backup 

diesel generators, and smart grid control features. 

During the demonstration, it reduced the jail’s peak 

power load by 95 percent and reduced energy 

consumption during peak hours by 98 percent while 

achieving an annual savings of $110,000 on electricity 

bills. Operation of the microgrid also reduced the load 

on the local distribution feeder serving the jail by about 

15 percent, reducing wear-and-tear on substation 

equipment. The success of this project illustrates that 

large facilities are capable of nearly autonomous 

operation when microgrid technologies are employed.

An innovative energy storage project in Texas managed 

by NETL is now demonstrating the effectiveness of 

using advanced lead–acid batteries to store power 

generated by a wind farm for more effective power 

grid management—solid progress in the nation’s drive 

toward smart grid evolution.

The storage system in the Notrees Battery Project 

regulates frequency on the power line to ensure that a 

west Texas wind farm’s naturally variable output does 

not destabilize the power grid. The storage system uses 

batteries to store energy generated by wind turbines, 

and then returns that energy back to the grid in brief 

bursts that are critical to maintaining grid stability. The 

project is helping expand the use of renewable energy 

with variable power generation, such as wind and solar, 

through efficient integration of alternative energy into 

the power grid. 

The project is America’s largest battery-storage 

project at a wind farm. NETL’s Office of Energy Project 

Management oversees the project, as well as 31 other 

smart grid demonstration projects in support of DOE’s 

Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability.

The 153 megawatt Notrees Wind Farm is owned and 

operated by Duke Energy (Charlotte, NC), which 

provides power to more than 7 million Americans 

across 8 states. The project will play a significant role in 

redefining the future of energy storage over the next 2 

years of operation.

Demonstrating MicrogridImproving Innovations in 

California

Integrating Wind Power into 

the Power Grid in Texas 

Photo courtesy of Alameda County (CA)
2014 NETL Accomplishments IN BRIEF 11

An NETL-managed research project under DOE’s Super 

Truck program has successfully developed a long-haul 

freight vehicle capable of exceeding 10 mpg when fully 

loaded—a feat considered nearly impossible just a few 

years ago.

Prime contractor Cummins, along with its partners 

including Peterbilt, developed and demonstrated a 

highly efficient and clean diesel engine, an advanced 

waste heat recovery system, an aerodynamic tractortrailer combination, and a lithium-ion battery auxiliary 

power unit to reduce engine idling.

The Cummins-Peterbilt Super Truck exceeded DOE goals 

for freight efficiency—a key trucking metric based on 

payload weight and fuel efficiency expressed in tonmiles per gallon. The Super Truck achieved an 86 percent 

improvement in freight efficiency and a 75 percent 

fuel economy improvement over a 24-hour test cycle. 

The program goal was a 68 percent freight-efficiency 

increase over a baseline vehicle of the same weight 

traveling along the same route. 

The increase in fuel economy for the Cummins-Peterbilt 

Super Truck would save about $27,000 annually per 

truck based on today’s diesel fuel prices for a longhaul truck traveling 120,000 miles per year. It would 

also translate into a more than 43 percent reduction in 

annual greenhouse gas emissions per truck. According 

to the American Trucking Associations, about 2 million 

registered tractor-trailers travel U.S. roads today.

The Federal Laboratory Consortium (FLC) awarded 

NETL’s Dr. Kirk Gerdes and Ms. Lilas Soukup with a 2014 

FLC Mid-Atlantic STEM Award for their outstanding 

efforts to engage America’s youth in the disciplines of 

science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. 

Since 2012, Dr. Gerdes has coordinated West Virginia 

Regional Science Bowl (WVSB), in which students 

contend in teams to answer STEM-focused questions. In 

2014, Dr. Gerdes coordinated a partnership with West 

Virginia University that expanded the physical size of the 

WVSB venue, allowing the competition to include more 

high school teams and add 16 middle school teams. This 

partnership helps ensure the competition is accessible 

to all West Virginia high schools and strengthens NETL’s 

STEM education outreach efforts. 

Ms. Soukup leads NETL’s K–12 educational outreach 

efforts, including teacher seminars, workshops, 

and hands-on training, which provide educators 

with resources to improve their skills in STEM fields. 

The award also recognizes Ms. Soukup’s success in 

promoting science education directly to K–12 students. 

Ms. Soukup organizes Science Lab Days, Triple “E” 

Seminars (Energy, Environment, and Economics), and 

an annual Earth Day poster competition, and she has 

coordinated the Southwestern Pennsylvania Regional 

Science Bowl since 1991.

Reducing Emissions and 

Increasing Mileage for Super 

Truck Program on U.S. Roads

Engaging America’s Youth for 

Careers in Science, Technology, 

Engineering, and Math
12

Securing Patents for Energy 

Innovation

Plasmonic Transparent Conducting Metal Oxide 

Nanoparticles and Nanoparticle Films for Optical Sensing 

Applications, Paul Ohodnicki, Jr. (DOE/NETL); Mark A. 

Andio (ORAU/ORISE); Congjun Wang (URS); 8,638,440, 

issued January 28, 2014. 

Layered Solid Sorbents for Carbon Dioxide Capture, 

George A. Richards, Henry W. Pennline, Daniel J. 

Fauth, McMahan L. Gray (DOE/NETL); Bingyun Li, 

Bingbing Jiang (West Virginia University); 8,658,561, 

issued February 25, 2014.

Gas Sensing System Employing Raman Scattering, Steven 

D. Woodruff (DOE/NETL); Joel Faulk, Peng Kevin 

Chen, Michael Paul Buric (University of Pittsburgh); 

8,674,306, issued March 18, 2014.

Basic Refractory and Slag Management for Petcoke 

Carbon Feedstock in Gasifiers, Kyei-Sing Kwong, James 

P. Bennett (DOE/NETL); Jinichiro Nakano (URS); 

8,703,021, issued April 22, 2014.

Nanocomposite Thin Films for Optical Gas Sensing, 

Thomas Brown, Paul Ohodnicki, Jr. (DOE/NETL); 

8,741,657, issued June 3, 2014.

Apparatus and Process for the Separation of Gases 

Using Supersonic Expansion and Oblique Wave 

Compression, John G. VanOsdol (DOE/NETL); 

8,771,401, issued July 8, 2014.

A Method and Device for Remotely Monitoring an Area 

Using a Low Peak Power Optical Pump, Steven D. 

Woodruff, Dustin McIntyre (DOE/NETL); Jinesh Jain

(URS); 8,786,840, issued July 22, 2014.

Solid Oxide Fuel Cells Having Porous Cathodes Infiltrated 

with Oxygen-Reducing Catalysts, Wayne Surdoval

(DOE/NETL); Meilin Liu, Mingfei Liu, Lifang Nie

(GTECH); Ze Liu, David Mebane (ORISE); Lane C. 

Wilson (DOE/HQ); 8,802,316, issued August 12, 2014.

Regenerable MgO Promoted Metal Oxide Oxygen 

Carriers for Chemical Looping Combustion, Ranjani 

V. Siriwardane (DOE/NETL); Duane D. Miller (URS); 

8,807,988, issued August 19, 2014.

Constant Pressure High Throughput Membrane 

Permeation Testing System, David Luebke, David 

Hopkinson (DOE/NETL); Erik Albenze (URS); 8,821,614, 

issued September 2, 2014.
2014 NETL Accomplishments IN BRIEF 13

Electrically Conducting Metal Oxide Nanoparticles and 

Films for Optical Sensing Applications, Paul Ohodnicki, 

Jr. (DOE/NETL); Mark A. Andio (ORAU/ORISE); Congjun 

Wang (URS); 8,836,945, issued September 16, 2014.

Regenerable Immobilized Aminosilane Sorbents for 

Carbon Dioxide Capture Applications, McMahan L. Gray

(DOE/NETL); Christopher Jones, Sunho Chai (GTECH); 

8,834,822, issued September 16, 2014. 

Layered Solid Sorbents for Carbon Dioxide Capture, 

Daniel J. Fauth, George A. Richards, Henry W. 

Pennline, McMahan L. Gray (DOE/NETL); Bingbing 

Jiang, Bingyun Li (West Virginia University); 8,889,589, 

issued November 18, 2014.

Method of CO2 Removal from a Gaseous Stream at 

Reduced Temperature, Ranjani V. Siriwardane, George 

A. Richards, David A. Berry (DOE/NETL); James C. 

Fisher, II (URS); 8,888,895, issued November 18, 2014.

Method of Purifying a Gas Stream Using 1,2,3-Triazolium 

Ionic Liquids, David Luebke (DOE/NETL); Chau Tang, 

Hunaid Nulwala (ORISE); 8,906,135, issued December 

9, 2014.

1,2,3-Triazolium Ionic Liquids, David R. Luebke (DOE/

NETL); Hunaid Nulwala, Chau Tang (ORISE); 8,907,105, 

issued December 9, 2014.

Poly (Hydroxyl Urethane) Compositions and Methods of 

Making and Using the Same, David R. Luebke (DOE/

NETL); Hunaid Nulwala (ORISE); Chau Tang (ORISE); 

8,912,303, issued December 16, 2014.

Production of Methane-Rich Syngas from Hydrocarbon 

Fuels Using Multifunctional Catalyst/Capture Agent, David 

A. Berry, Dushyant Shekhawat, Wayne Surdoval, 

Nicholas Siefert (DOE/NETL); 8,920,526, issued 

December 30, 2014.

Licensing New Inventions for 

the Commercial Market

Santa Catarina Philanthropic Association/Brazil Coal 

Association, license for Carbon Capture Simulation 

Initiative (CCSI) Moving Bed Process Model to Develop 

Carbon Capture Technology, issued July 24, 2014.

Issued to Michael Berry, non-exclusive license for U.S. 

Patent 7,553,517, Method of Applying a Cerium Diffusion 

Coating to a Metallic Alloy.
14

Attracting Awards and Special Recognitions for 

Energy Innovations

American Institute of Chemical Engineers 

(AlChE)—a nonprofit organization providing 

leadership to the chemical engineering profession 

representing 45,000 members from over 100 countries 

in industry, academia, and government.

• Isaac Gamwo was elected as an AlChE Fellow. 

The honor is bestowed to AlChE chemical 

engineers in recognition of long-term “service 

to the profession” and “significant professional 

accomplishment.” 

ASM International—the world’s largest association of 

metals-centric materials scientists and engineers with 

more than 30,000 members worldwide.

• Jeffrey Hawk, Paul Jablonski, Paul Turner,

and Edward Argetsinger were awarded the 

Engineering Materials Achievement Award by 

ASM in 2014 for their work in developing the 

platinum-chromium alloy for coronary stents. 

The award recognizes outstanding developments 

in the application of materials in products 

or in engineering structures and honors the 

organization or individuals responsible for them. 

Federal Laboratory Consortium (FLC)—a nationwide 

network of federal laboratories that provides the 

forum to develop strategies and opportunities for 

linking laboratory mission, technologies, and expertise 

with the marketplace. Its awards recognize federal 

laboratories and industry partners for outstanding 

technology transfer efforts.

• In the FLC Far West Region—

Paul King and Rigel Woodside received the 

Outstanding Technology Development Award for 

their work, “Arc Position Sensing Technology.”

Paul Jablonski and Jeffrey Hawk received the 

Outstanding Technology Development Award 

for their work, “Superior Heat Resistant Alloys 

through Controlled Homogenization.”

• In the FLC Mid-Atlantic Region—

Stephen Zitney received the Excellence in 

Technology Transfer Award for his work “3-D 

Virtual Energy Plant Simulator and Immersive 

Training System.”

National Association of Government Communicators 

(NAGC)—a professional network of federal, state, 

and local government communicators. Its Blue Pencil 

and Gold Screen Awards recognize government 

agencies or individuals for significant achievement in 

communication. NETL won Blue Pencil and Gold Screen 

Awards for two publications.

• The NETL-RUA brochure, “Engineering the Future of 

Energy”

• A nationally distributed article in ECO Magazine, 

“Ultra-deepwater Research at DOE: Protecting Our 

Environment through Risk Assessment and Spill 

Prevention” 
Advancing energy options to fuel our 

economy, strengthen our security, and 

improve our environment.

NETL MISSION

2014 NETL Accomplishments IN BRIEF 15
National Energy Technology Laboratory

1450 Queen Avenue SW

Albany, OR 97321-2198

541-967-5892

420 L Street

Suite 305

Anchorage, AK 99501

907-271-3618

3610 Collins Ferry Road

P.O. Box 880

Morgantown, WV 26507-0880

304-285-4764

626 Cochrans Mill Road

P.O. Box 10940

Pittsburgh, PA 15236-0940

412-386-4687

Granite Tower, Suite 225

13131 Dairy Ashford

Sugar Land, TX 77478

281-494-2516

WEBSITE

www.netl.doe.gov

CUSTOMER SERVICE

1-800-553-7681

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