The DOE will invest $120 millionover five years in a new Rare Earths research hub, the Critical Materials Institute, which will focus on materials used in new clean energy technologies. The new Energy Innovation Hub, one of five hubs established by the DOE, will be led by the Ames Laboratory in Iowa.
The focus of the research will be on supplying critical rare earth materials for new wind turbines, solar cells, electric vehicles and energy-efficient lighting and eliminating potential global supply disruptions.
The DOE’s energy innovation hubs are public-private ventures that include many other national laboratories and academic research partners, such as LLNL and Brown University, as well as General Electric, OLI Systems, Inc., SpinTek Filtration, Inc., Advanced Recovery, Cytec, Inc., Molycorp, Inc. and Simbol Materials.
To read the DOE press release, click here