ARPA-E Selects PARC Metal Sorting Research for Award of Nearly $1 Million

Out of the nation’s capital, Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy (ARPA-E) today announced that PARC will receive nearly $1 million for new research and development of rapid scrap metal sorting to increase recycling possibilities. Our ongoing and flourishing relationships with ARPA-E and the Department of Energy are spurring incredible new advancements, from battery sensors to printed integral batteries and much more.

PARC is one of 33 breakthrough energy projects that will receive approximately $66 million from ARPA-E under two new programs that provide options for a more sustainable and secure American future. One program, Modern Electro/Thermochemical Advancements for Light-metal Systems (METALS), provides $32 million to find cost-effective and energy-efficient manufacturing techniques to process and recycle metals for lightweight vehicles. The other program, Reducing Emissions using Methanotrophic Organisms for Transportation Energy (REMOTE), provides $34 million to find advanced biocatalyst technologies that can convert natural gas to liquid fuel for transportation.

METALS will develop innovative technologies for cost-effective processing, as well as recycling of aluminum, magnesium, and titanium, which are ideal for creating lighter vehicles that can save fuel and reduce carbon emissions.

Under this program, PARC will develop a new electrochemical diagnostic probe that can identify the composition of light metal scrap for efficient sorting, which could reduce energy consumption, carbon emissions, and costs by enabling recycling of typically discarded light metal scrap. Current sorting technologies for light metals are costly and inefficient because they cannot distinguish between different metals.

ARPA-E Deputy Director Cheryl Martin made the project announcement during a roundtable discussion on Capitol Hill that focused on how American ingenuity and strategic public-private partnerships are driving U.S. energy innovation. PARC CEO Stephen Hoover joined the roundtable that was hosted by the Pew Charitable Trusts and also included U.S. Representative Doris Matsui (D-CA); Phyllis Cuttino, Director of Clean Energy at The Pew Charitable Trusts; Bart Gordon, former Chairman of the House Science Committee.

“The new ARPA-E projects announced today demonstrate ARPA-E’s commitment to providing critical, early-stage funding for innovative energy technologies,” said Deputy Director Martin. “Today’s roundtable discussion focused on the importance of transformational energy innovation and how strategic partnerships between federal and state government, academia, and the private sector create new energy options for our future.”

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