Energy.gov

As the 2012 hurricane season kicks off, the Energy Department stands ready to coordinate with the energy sector, and other federal agencies, to protect and restore the energy infrastructure and systems in potential disaster areas.

There is a lot of discussion lately about domestic energy production and American energy security. For the Obama Administration, moving towards the goal of energy independence has been a clear priority since day one.

The Energy Department’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy works in partnership with industry to develop, build, operate and validate integrated biorefineries across the country at various scales (pilot, demonstration, and commercial). One such project, led by ClearFuels-Rentech, recently celebrated the completion of a pilot-scale, biorefinery in Commerce City, Colorado.

From transporting the oil necessary to fuel jets and vehicles to supplying battery packs to infantry, energy plays a central role in almost everything the U.S. military does. Because of this reliance, it’s imperative that the military cultivate energy sources that are not subject to the whims of outside nations. While renewables like solar are playing a large role in this effort, advanced biofuels produced domestically are rapidly becoming another choice for transportation fuel.

Deputy Secretary Poneman shares his thoughts on the dismantling of the final B53 bomb at the Pantex Plant in Amarillo, Texas.

With a healthy appetitie for uranium and petroleum, this family of bacteria clean up nuclear waste and other toxic materials. A team of researchers has discovered exactly how they use their arms to do this.

This week, I joined with the Řež Nuclear Research Institute, the U.S. Embassy in Prague, Texas A&M and the Czech Nuclear Education Network in Prague, Czech Republic, to announce a series of bilateral nuclear research and development programs that will help to advance safe and secure nuclear energy technologies in both countries.

How do you tell if materials are stressed-out? Conventional stress tests for irradiated materials require a significant amount of material, but a new nano-size technique can test the strength of materials using an infinitesimal amount. Learn more.

The Energy Department has partnered with a university-based project performing cutting-edge research to improve the way electric infrastructure is built, increasing the security and reliability of the grid.

Secretary Chu wrapped up his week-long visit in Russia today with a visit to the Russian equivalent of our Los Alamos National Laboratory.

Read about Secretary Chu's travels to Russia and our ongoing partnership to work toward a clean energy future.

Through strong partnerships with other countries, we can secure vulnerable nuclear material around the world.