US Department of Energy invests $750K at UTEP

Julia Lucero, El Paso Times
·2 min read

The U.S Department of Energy Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM) invested $750K to support University of Texas at El Paso training and research for decarbonization and net-zero greenhouse gas emissions technologies.

The U.S DOE FECM announced a $2.5 million fund to support four training and research projects to be conducted at U.S colleges and universities, a U.S DOE news release said. The UTEP award was announced on Dec. 16.

The projects will support the development of technologies capable of converting natural gas to high-value products such as fertilizer, antifreeze, pharmaceuticals and a wide range of chemicals.

"FECM’s University Training and Research programs continue to equip underrepresented, diverse student groups with cutting-edge, translatable skillsets that will help them sustain successful STEM careers,” Brad Crabtree, Assistant Secretary of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management said in the news release.

Projects were selected under FECM’s University Coal Research (UCR) program and the Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Other Minority Institutions (HBCU-OMI) program.

Both programs educate and train the next generation of engineers and scientists that work to advance integrated solutions key to meeting the Biden-Harris administrations goal of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, the news release said.

“Expanding this training to incorporate social sciences and humanities studies will help to provide an even better understanding of the economic and environmental viability of deploying carbon management projects within our local communities, Crabtree stated in the news release.

The UCR and HBCU-OMI programs are a part of the FECM’s University Training and Research program, which funds early-stage technology research and development projects in support of revitalizing communities that have historically relied on traditional energy production, industry, and manufacturing.

The program also advances the development of a highly skilled and diverse workforce of scientists, engineers, and managers by increasing the participation of students from underrepresented and historically marginalized communities, the news release said.

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: U.S Department of Energy invests $750K at UTEP