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What’s Inside: This edition of the Water Wire shares upcoming submission deadlines, events, webinar recordings, recently released tools, and other hot topics.
Continue to follow the Water Wire and emails from WPTO for the latest news and updates from the office. Reach out to WaterPowerTechnologiesOffice@ee.doe.gov with any inquiries or suggestions.
Estimated read time: 8 minutes
Upcoming Submission Deadlines
A Marine and Hydrokinetic Graduate Student Research Program
Applications are open through December 9, 2020, for the second year of the Marine and Hydrokinetic Graduate Student Research Program. Administered by WPTO and the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE), the program is open to full-time doctoral students with a research thesis and/or dissertation at a U.S. institution. The program is designed to advance the graduate student’s overall doctoral thesis while providing access to the expertise, resources, and capabilities available at DOE offices, National Laboratories, industry, and other approved facilities where the participant will conduct part of their research. Learn more.
TEAMER Second Request for Technical Support
The Testing & Expertise for Marine Energy (TEAMER) network director, Pacific Ocean Energy Trust, is accepting applications through December 18, 2020, for its second Request for Technical Support (RFTS2). Learn more about TEAMER and the process for RFTS2 on the TEAMER website or view the informational webinar.
WPTO Hydropower NOTA
WPTO recently announced a Notice of Opportunity for Technical Assistance (NOTA) for Improving Hydropower’s Value through Informed Decision-Making. Interested applicants must submit initial concept papers by December 18, 2020.
DOE and DOI Announce $40 Million Collaboration to Improve Ocean Safety and Environmental Stewardship in Offshore Energy Development and Operation
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the Department of the Interior (DOI) have issued a funding opportunity for up to $40 million for the operation of an Ocean Energy Safety Institute (OESI 2.0) to support improvements in safety and environmental protection for offshore oil, gas, wind, and marine and hydrokinetic energy developments. Through OESI 2.0, the agencies will jointly support research and development and other tasks related to offshore oil, gas, and renewable energy production, with a technical focus on safety, environmental monitoring, and operational improvements in offshore energy development. Applications are due December 28, 2020.
WPTO Prizes
Waves to Water Prize – The deadline to compete in the ADAPT Stage is TODAY at 5 p.m. ET.
Groundbreaking Hydro Prize – The deadline to compete in the Groundbreaking Hydro Prize is January 31, 2021, at 5 p.m. ET.
Ocean Observing Prize – The deadline to compete in the first phase of the DEVELOP Competition, the DESIGN Contest, is February 16, 2021, at 5 p.m. ET.
Upcoming Events
Workshop: Challenges and Opportunities for Non-powered Dams
On Thursday, December 10, from 12:30–2:00 PM EST, Oak Ridge National Laboratory is hosting a workshop, called “Challenges and Opportunities for Non-powered Dams: Improving Classification and Data Access.” Speakers will present on recent efforts to classify non-powered dams (NPD) and obtain input on a tool to facilitate NPD exploration. Organized with funding from WPTO, the workshop welcomes diverse stakeholders with an interest in NPD management, operation, and development.
Webinar Recordings
SBIR Webinar Recordings Available for Phase 1, Release 2 Topics
This month, DOE announced the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Phase I, Release 2 topics, which include three WPTO-related areas: Co-Development of Marine Energy Technology at Smaller Scales; Low-Cost, User-Friendly Monitoring Tools for MHK Sites; Electric Systems—Generators and Motors (CABLE). Additionally, the Solar Energy Technologies Office released a topic to advance Floating Solar-Powered Aeration Systems. Learn more about all EERE-related topics in a recorded EERE-hosted webinar, and learn about the WPTO related topics in a recorded WPTO-hosted webinar. DOE plans to issue the Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) on December 14, 2020.
Groundbreaking Hydro Prize: Webinar Available
In September, WPTO launched the Groundbreaking Hydro Prize, which offers $300,000 in prizes to motivate innovators to identify novel ways to develop foundations for new, low-head hydropower facilities. Groundbreaking Hydro seeks to identify concepts that will specifically address the key challenges in geotechnical foundations for hydropower, including site assessment, foundation design, and construction. Learn more about the prize through the informational webinar recording and submit your idea by January 31.
Recordings Available for Ocean Observing Prize DEVELOP Competition Webinars
Last month, DOE and NOAA announced the opening of the DEVELOP Competition within the Ocean Observing Prize—a multi-stage prize that challenges innovators to integrate marine renewable energy with ocean observation platforms. Now open, the Design Contest will remain open for 120 days, closing February 16, 2021. The Ocean Observing: DEVELOP Competition prize team hosted and recorded a two-part applicant webinar series where you can hear directly from organizers:
The team will also share opportunities for anyone interested in supporting the prize. Learn more and join the challenge.
Third Annual Marine Renewable Energy Conference Goes Virtual
On November 12, UMass Dartmouth hosted the third annual 2020 Marine Renewable Energy Conference: On and Off the Grid. The virtual event featured a keynote address from WPTO Director Alejandro Moreno. DOE Senior Advisor and Lead for the Powering the Blue Economy Initiative Jennifer Garson and National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) Engineer Scott Jenne spoke on the Policy and Innovation Drivers Shaping the Market for Marine Renewable Energy panel. The session delved into government policies incentivizing technological advances, collaborative models for technology development, market trends, and permitting hurdles. George G. Bonner, director of the North Carolina Renewable Ocean Energy Program at the Coastal Studies Institute (CSI), was also a panelist in the Virtual Showroom: Testing Infrastructure for Ocean Energy Research and Development event. Bonner discussed the ocean energy testing platform at Jennette’s Pier in Nags Head, NC, as well as the Waves to Water Prize.
Tools
Future Workshops Planned for MHK Environmental Toolkit for Permitting and Licensing
Did you know DOE is sponsoring the development of a toolkit for GIS, environmental, and regulatory information relevant to marine energy permitting and licensing? The project, led by Kearns & West, conducted a series of workshops with regulators in early 2020 to gather feedback on the development of the toolkit and to understand the latest science regarding potential impacts of marine energy technologies. Additional information about the toolkit, including recordings of the workshops and presentations from subject matter experts, is available online.
The project team will conduct a second series of workshops in February and March 2021 to demonstrate the toolkit and gather feedback from marine energy regulators, technology developers, and researchers. If you would like to learn more about the project or attend one of the workshops, please email Natalie Raymores.
WecOptTool Helps Improve Wave Energy Converter Designs
Sandia National Laboratories is leveraging powerful numerical optimal control methods to help improve the design of wave energy converters (WECs). The same pseudo-spectral methods that were recently used to design a reorientation maneuver for the International Space Station can now be applied to design WECs via WecOptTool. To learn more, read a new paper introducing the capabilities of WecOptTool.
In Case You Missed It
PNNL Study Finds Surrogate Potential for Different Salmonid Species
During downstream passage through hydropower turbines, fish may encounter physical stressors, such as quick changes in pressure known as rapid decompression. This effect can be similar to “the bends” and, if severe, may lead to fish injuries or mortality. Understanding how such stressors impact different fish species is critical to turbine design for safe passage to reduce harmful conditions. However, with over 800 freshwater species in the United States and over 10,000 worldwide, studying each fish species individually is not feasible. To solve this challenge, researchers have evaluated surrogates, or representative species, to make meaningful predictions about data deficient species, which helps expand our understanding without having to study all species—including endangered or rare fish species of concern.
Under the HydroPASSAGE project, a recent Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) study evaluated whether three different salmon species could be used as surrogates for one another in laboratory experiments to help improve understanding of whether closely related fish, or fish with similar morphological traits, respond the same way to turbine passage stressors. This study, funded by WPTO, evaluated the biological responses of juvenile kokanee, rainbow trout, and Chinook salmon to rapid decompression representative of hydropower turbine passage. Researchers found that, when applied to the Kaplan turbine model, the three salmonid species had similar results and can be used as surrogates for one another under certain passage conditions. This empirical data can be referenced in the Biological Performance Assessment Tool that works with models of turbines, and for Sensor Fish studies in the Hydropower Biological Evaluation Toolkit that works with field data of passage conditions. Learn more.
Federal Agencies Agree on Future Areas for Collaboration in New Hydropower Action Plan
On August 24, 2020, National Hydropower Day, the Department of Energy, the Army Corps of Engineers, and the Department of Interior signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to enhance collaboration and leverage existing resources to ensure the continued strength of the federal hydropower fleet. At that time, the signatories stated they would commit to drafting an action plan within 90 days. In the coming weeks, the agencies will share the action plan with federal hydropower customers. DOE entities involved include WPTO and the Power Marketing Administrations, who have agreed to partner on a number of the proposed action plan’s projects.
The Economist: Energy Innovation in the Blue Economy
In partnership with PNNL, The Economist published a new report that examines the past, present, and future of energy innovation within the blue economy. This report provides valuable insights for marine energy innovators working to develop new solutions to serve the growing energy needs of the blue economy.
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