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Projects to focus on solar and battery technologies, plasma physics
and Arctic sea-ice modeling
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ExxonMobil has committed $5 million toward Princeton partnership for
new energy research
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ExxonMobil engaged in similar energy partnerships with MIT and
University of Texas
IRVING, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sep. 13, 2016--
ExxonMobil
and Princeton University today announced the selection of five research
projects associated with their partnership focused on energy
technologies. The projects will center on solar and battery
technologies, plasma physics, Arctic sea-ice modeling, and the impact of
carbon dioxide absorption on the world’s oceans.
This announcement follows ExxonMobil’s June 2015 commitment to
contribute $5 million over five years to the Princeton E-ffiliates
Partnership, a program administered by Princeton University’s Andlinger
Center for Energy and the Environment that fosters research in
sustainable energy and environmental solutions. E-ffiliates promotes
collaboration between industry and academia to search for energy and
environmental breakthroughs. Over the past year, ExxonMobil scientists
have collaborated with Princeton professors to identify areas with the
most scientific potential, particularly ones that build on the
university’s existing strengths and interests in emerging energy.
“Each of the five selected projects is a potential game-changer in terms
of new energy development and better understanding of our natural
environment,” said Eric Herbolzheimer, senior scientific advisor and
section head of engineering physics at ExxonMobil Research and
Engineering Company. “For example, we will examine whether photovoltaic
properties can be embedded directly into polymers that could be used as
coatings on building materials. Such technologies could complement
current roof-mounted solar technologies and build upon our leadership in
the chemical industry.”
“The collaboration with ExxonMobil is a win-win,” said Lynn Loo,
director of Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment. “ExxonMobil
gains insight into new developments in emerging energy and the Princeton
community benefits from industry’s view of the challenges of meeting
global energy demands while being responsive to environmental impacts.”
In the coming months, Princeton’s professors will select graduate
research students to be named ExxonMobil Emerging Technology Fellows.
The five selected projects and the professors who will lead them are as
follows:
Organic Photovoltaics: The objective is to study how new
photovoltaic materials, particularly those polymeric in nature, can be
applied in forms of coatings and building materials. The project will be
led by Lynn Loo, director of the Andlinger Center for Energy and the
Environment, the Theodora D. '78 and William H. Walton III '74 Professor
in Engineering, and professor of chemical and biological
engineering.
Extending Battery Lifetime and Cycle Efficiency: The project will
use diagnostic tools recently developed at Princeton to study
degradation pathways of electric-vehicle batteries, and how they might
impact follow-on use in applications on the power grid, known as “second
life” applications. Research will be led by Daniel Steingart, assistant
professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering and the Andlinger
Center for Energy and the Environment.
Arctic Sea-Ice Modeling: The focus of the project is to advance
sea-ice models used for understanding the factors controlling Arctic
sea-ice cycles and, consequently, the ability to make reliable seasonal
and long-range forecasts for sea-ice formation and melting. Research
will be conducted at Princeton’s Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory,
a premier institution that has been developing state-of-the-art sea-ice
modeling tools for decades. The project will be led by Alistair Adcroft,
research oceanographer, and Olga Sergienko, research glaciologist, at
the Princeton University Atmospheric and Ocean Sciences
Program/NOAA-Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory.
Role of the Ocean in the Future of Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide Levels:
The project’s objective is to gain insight into the future of carbon
dioxide uptake by the ocean by reconstructing ocean carbon cycle changes
during past periods of warming. Research will be led by Daniel Sigman,
Dusenbury Professor of Geological and Geophysical Sciences.
Plasma Physics: The project will take advantage of Princeton’s
world-leading facilities for studying plasma physics. It will explore
low-energy plasmas’ effectiveness in enhancing or controlling
energy-related chemical processes, such as converting natural gas to
larger molecules for producing liquid fuels or chemical feedstocks.
Egemen Kolemen, assistant professor of mechanical and aerospace
engineering and the Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment and
the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, is leading this research with
Yiguang Ju, Robert Porter Patterson Professor of Mechanical and
Aerospace Engineering.
Princeton’s Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment is one of
three university energy centers to partner with ExxonMobil to conduct
fundamental research on technologies that can provide low-carbon energy
solutions while meeting global energy demand, which is expected to rise
by about 25 percent between now and 2040 as population and living
standards rise. ExxonMobil’s $5 million contribution to Princeton
E-ffiliates Partnership remains the program’s single largest financial
commitment.
Last month, ExxonMobil announced that it would invest $15 million to the
University of Texas at Austin Energy Institute to
pursue technologies to help meet growing energy demand while reducing
environmental impacts and the risk of climate change.
In 2014, ExxonMobil became a founding member of the MIT Energy
Initiative, contributing $25 million over five years to support research
and establish 10 graduate energy fellowship appointments each year.
These efforts are in addition to the more
than 80 universities that ExxonMobil partners with on research programs
to explore new energy solutions.
About ExxonMobil
ExxonMobil, the largest publicly traded international oil and gas
company, is a leader in developing and applying technology to meet
global energy challenges. With more than 19,000 scientists and
engineers, 2,200 of them PhDs, ExxonMobil is committed to investing in
research and development of next-generation technologies across a broad
spectrum of promising frontiers – both directly and in partnerships with
leading academic institutions. For more information, visit www.exxonmobil.com
or follow us on Twitter www.twitter.com/exxonmobil.
Cautionary Statement: Statements of future
events or conditions in this release are forward-looking statements.
Actual future results, including research plans and results and the
impact of new technologies, could vary depending on the outcome of
future research and testing programs; the development and
competitiveness of alternative technologies; the ability to scale pilot
projects on a cost-effective basis; political and regulatory
developments; and other factors discussed in this release and under the
heading “Factors Affecting Future Results” on the Investors page of
ExxonMobil’s website at exxonmobil.com.
About Princeton University
Princeton University is a vibrant community of scholarship and learning
that stands in the nation's service and the service of humanity.
Chartered in 1746, Princeton is the fourth-oldest college in the United
States. Princeton is an independent, coeducational, nondenominational
institution that provides undergraduate and graduate instruction in the
humanities, social sciences, natural sciences and engineering.
As a world-renowned research university, Princeton seeks to achieve the
highest levels of distinction in the discovery and transmission of
knowledge and understanding. At the same time, Princeton is distinctive
among research universities in its commitment to undergraduate teaching.
Today, more than 1,100 faculty members instruct approximately 5,200
undergraduate students and 2,600 graduate students. The University's
generous financial aid program ensures that talented students from all
economic backgrounds can afford a Princeton education.
For more Princeton University news, visit: www.princeton.edu/newsmedia,
www.facebook.com/princetonu,
and www.twitter.com/princeton.
About the Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment
The mission of the Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment is to
develop solutions to ensure our energy and environmental future. To this
end, the center supports a vibrant and expanding program of research and
teaching in the areas of sustainable energy-technology development,
energy efficiency, and environmental protection and remediation. A chief
goal of the center is to translate fundamental knowledge into practical
solutions that enable sustainable energy production and the protection
of the environment and global climate from energy-related anthropogenic
change.
For more information, visit acee.princeton.edu
or follow the center on Twitter at www.twitter.com/andlingercenter
and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/andlingercenter.
View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160913005458/en/
Source: Exxon Mobil Corporation
ExxonMobil
Media Relations, 832-625-4000
