The U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory has officially broken ground on its new Energy Materials and Processing at Scale (EMAPS) facility at the South Table Mountain Campus in Golden. The new 127,000-square-foot laboratory aims to foster collaboration with industry partners, universities and other DOE laboratories to expedite the transition of laboratory-scale innovations in energy materials into market-ready products and processes.
JE Dunn Construction, along with its design partner SmithGroup, has been selected to design and build the facility, which is expected to be completed by 2027. “We are excited to be on our way to building our new EMAPS facility,” said NREL Director Martin Keller. He added that the facility’s capabilities will “accelerate innovations in materials and processes that are essential to clean energy technologies, from lab-scale discovery to scale-up for commercialization.”
Derek Passarelli, principal deputy under secretary for Science and Technology at DOE, noted that the new facility will help modernize the U.S. electrical grid. “Researchers will be equipped to develop hybrid technologies, such as in biopolymers, fuels, batteries and manufacturing processes, that will strengthen our circular economy,” he said.
Charlie Slattery, JE Dunn Project Director, described the groundbreaking as a “significant milestone” in the ongoing partnership with NREL and emphasized the teamwork involved in making the project a reality.
EMAPS is designed to create a pathway from bench-scale materials and process innovations to pilot-scale integration and production. The facility’s design will encourage collaboration among engineers, scientists and industry partners, thereby accelerating the scale-up and market adoption of advanced energy materials crucial for a clean energy transition.
The laboratory will focus on applications in energy storage, advanced manufacturing, grid modernization technologies, sustainable chemicals and fuels for transportation and industrial needs. Additionally, it will address circularity challenges, especially related to polymers and waste streams throughout the production cycle.
The total budget for the EMAPS project is $224 million. Jeff Marootian, principal deputy assistant secretary for the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, stated, “America’s ability to transition to renewable energy depends on a secure and sustainable supply chain.” He believes the collaborative environment fostered by EMAPS will transform how the U.S. scales up materials and processes critical for national clean energy goals.
The EMAPS facility will also incorporate advanced sustainability strategies, targeting a minimum of LEED Gold certification through energy-efficient design and innovative practices. These practices include the use of reclaimed gray water and building heat reclaim technologies, supporting campus decarbonization efforts.
NREL serves as the primary national laboratory for renewable energy and energy efficiency research and development for the U.S. Department of Energy, operated by the Alliance for Sustainable Energy LLC.