Aaron Feaver 
Happy New Year! While it wasn’t what we expected, 2020 turned out to be a pretty great year for JCDREAM as an organization. We want to thank you all for being involved in what we do here. We are very fortunate to have an engaged group of folks around us that want to make real … Read more
Global climate initiatives are pushing for aggressive reductions in emissions and other contributors to climate change. Many of these goals are set for 2050 when the existing workforce will be nearing or already enjoying retirement. In the next few decades, there will be more demand than ever for designers, engineers, and technicians that can execute on sustainability initiatives. Meeting climate goals will require major shifts away from … Read more
We are thrilled to announce the 2020 JCDREAM Seed Grant Awardees. The winners come from a range of institutions throughout the state of Washington. Their projects cover earth-abundant materials science from a variety of angles. We look forward to seeing the results of their research. 1. Materials Washington – Critical, Rare and Abundant Materials Educational … Read more
Technical advancements, government policy, private sector progress, and individual choices all must come together to help reduce energy consumption and carbon output. At the right time and place, certain actions can serve as catalysts to achieve real change toward achieving these goals. When conditions are right, electrocatalysts can do the same for chemical reactions. At … Read more
The future of renewable energy is bright. Solar and wind energy are reaching economies of scale in many states, making the decision to rely on and invest in renewables much easier for companies, utilities, and even homeowners. Many countries are further supporting this transition by setting aggressive carbon reduction goals for the coming decades. In all their plans, solar and wind play a major role in grid-scale energy solutions. … Read more
Wind power has been a long-standing poster child for the future of a cleaner energy grid. A 2017 NREL study showed that deploying 30% wind and 5% solar as the primary energy sources on the grid can reduce fuel costs and carbon emissions significantly – by an estimated 40% and 25-45% respectively. This would be the rough equivalent of 22-36 million cars being taken off the … Read more
Securing Solar as the Backbone for Carbon Reduction Solar is a frequent topic when discussing the world’s clean energy future. Inexpensive renewable electricity from solar is foundational to other carbon-reducing technologies, alternative fuels, and storage options. Data shows that deploying renewables as the primary energy source on the grid and supplementing peak times with fossil fuels can reduce fuel costs and carbon emissions significantly. There … Read more
Clean Energy Challenges & the Need for Earth-Abundant Alternatives With offices closed and commuters working from home, COVID-19 has caused a major dip in the demand for energy. As a result, electricity and oil prices have plummeted along with demand. As the pandemic has drawn on, both traditional utilities and clean energy companies are being … Read more
In our last post, we talked about China’s rare earth dominance and the US’ efforts to onshore rare earth mining. Onshoring eliminates some of the supply risk that comes with sourcing materials from other countries, but it comes with its own set of significant challenges. Even with the expected improvements to health and environmental oversight … Read more
China has been a hot topic since the start of the pandemic. The world has looked to China for answers in the battle against the virus and its origin, while still depending on them for major resources to keep businesses running. In the first of our COVID-19 blog series, we discussed how shutdowns across China have forced many companies in the US to realize the depth of their dependence on … Read more
