FreedomCAR & Fuel Partnership

The goal of the FreedomCAR and Fuel Partnership is fundamental and dramatic: the development of emission- and petroleum-free cars and light trucks. The Partnership focuses on the high-risk, pre-competitive research needed to develop the technologies necessary to provide a full range of affordable cars and light trucks that are free of foreign oil and harmful emissions, without sacrificing freedom of mobility and freedom of vehicle choice.

On January 9, 2002, Secretary of Energy Abraham, joined by top leadership from General Motors, Daimler Chrysler, and Ford Motor Company, announced the Partnership at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. Find more information, including fact sheets, technical information, and other resources, at the U.S. Department of Energy's FreedomCAR and Fuel Partnership Web site.

ORNL contributes to both the long-term and the short-term goals of the FreedomCAR and Fuel Partnership through its ORNL Hydrogen, Fuel Cells, and Infrastructure Program; two DOE user facilities; and its research into lightweight automotive materials.

ORNL's Hydrogen, Fuel Cells and Infrastructure Program performs research on hydrogen production and storage, and advanced materials and technologies for automotive fuel cells.

ORNL's Fuels, Engines, and Emissions Research Center is a DOE user facility that specializes in improving the efficiency of vehicle engines, characterizing the effects of fuel properties on combustion, and detailed characterization of engine emissions. The facility's equipment includes engine and vehicle dynamometers, bench-top engine exhaust simulators, and unique diagnostic and measurement tools. Research is aimed at aiding the development of advanced engines, fuels, and emission-control technologies.

ORNL's Power Electronics and Electric Machinery Center is another DOE user facility that specializes in the power electronics and electric machines needed for hybrid electric vehicles and fuel cell vehicles. Team members are developing next-generation prototypes of inverters, rectifiers, and electric machine technology. They use and develop the latest analysis, simulation, and design software to provide proof of principle before hardware implementation of their circuit and motor designs.

Lightweight automotive materials research is developing new, cost-effective, environmentally sound materials and processes that will reduce vehicle weight and thus increase fuel efficiency. Use of advanced materials in automotive propulsion systems, components, and subsystems — power electronics, fuel cells, engines, and emissions control systems — can facilitate higher efficiencies, lower emissions, improved alternative fuel capabilities, and lower specific weight and volume, without compromising cost, safety, or recyclability.

ORNL research in lightweight materials includes

• developing processes for production of low-cost carbon fiber from renewable resources for polymer composites;
• research on aluminum, magnesium, and metal matrix composites; and
• studies of the potential uses of graphite foam, a new ORNL-developed material that exhibits extremely high thermal conductivity, in cooling automotive electronics and for compact, ultralight radiators.

An important aspect of this research is ensuring that passenger safety is not compromised. ORNL combines modeling and simulation with unique experimental capabilities to formulate generic guidelines that maximize durability and safety.

Other projects for the DOE Automotive Propulsion Materials Program include development of high-energy, low-cost permanent magnets; characterization of polymer film capacitors; development of materials for nonthermal plasma reactors; and development of corrosion-resistant coatings for exhaust gas recirculation systems.

Related Articles from Recent S&T Highlights

• AMCL will provide "quiet" environment for electron microscopes (No. 1, 2003, p. 2)
• ORNL's instrument measures temperature distributions in catalysts (No. 1, 2003, p. 2)
• Overcoming barriers to more efficient hybrid electric vehicles (No. 1, 2003, p. 4)
• ORNL research is putting carbon composites on the road (No. 3, 2002, p. 1)
• Carbon fiber composites key to reducing vehicle weight (No. 3, 2002, p. 1)
• Ford adopts ORNL's infrared curing process for Lincoln LS (No. 3, 2002, p. 7)
• ORNL team confirms low-emission diesel combustion regime (No. 3, 2002, p. 7)
• ORNL's graphite foam boards the International Space Station (No. 2, 2002, p. 5)
• SpaciMS provides quick, accurate emissions analysis (No. 2, 2002, p. 6)
• New spark plug ignites potential of natural gas engines (No. 2, 2002, p. 7)
• Diverse ORNL expertise powers fuel cell research (No. 2, 2002, p. 8)
• Creating the next generation of power electronics (No. 2, 2002, p. 11)
• Transportation user facility aids collaboration among research partners (No. 1, 2002, p. 1)
• Unique instruments rev up research on engine efficiency and emissions (No. 1, 2002, p. 6)
• Cost-competitiveness is the driving issue for automotive composites (No. 1, 2002, p. 7)