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Posted on: 6/11/2012 12:00:00 AM... The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) will invest up to $120 million over five years to launch a new Energy Innovation Hub, focused on establishing a multidisciplinary and sustained effort to identify problems and develop solutions across the lifecycle of critical materials. The intent of the hub is to advance U.S. leadership in energy manufacturing through research aimed both at having a reliable supply of rare earths and other critical materials, as well as finding efficiencies and alternatives to these materials.

First established in 2010, the Energy Innovation Hubs are major integrated research centers supported by researchers from many different institutions and technical backgrounds. The Critical Materials Hub builds on the DOE’s Critical Materials Strategy report, which addresses the use of rare earths and other critical materials in clean energy components, products, and processes. This will be the fifth Energy Innovation Hub established by the DOE.

The goal of the Critical Materials Hub will be to reduce U.S. dependence on critical materials and ensure that the deployment of domestic energy technologies is not hindered by future materials supply shortages. The Hub will address challenges across the entire life of each critical material, including mineral processing, manufacture, substitution, efficient use, and end-of-life recycling.

For More Information:

• Launch Critical Materials Hub Website
• Read Critical Materials Strategy Report

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