CO-LABS Research Awards recognized NREL contributions.
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Press Release Summary:
At CO-LABS' annual Governor's Awards for High-Impact Research, Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper honored scientists and researchers for work in renewable energy, sustainability, disease prevention, and atmospheric science. Hickenlooper presented NREL's Jerry Olson with Foundational Technology award, for work on gallium-arsenide tandem cells. Also, DOE's NREL was recognized for "Large-volume Battery Calorimeter (LVBC)," which was led by Principal Investigator Matthew A. Keyser.
Original Press Release:
CO-LABS Announces High-Impact Research Awards
Gov. Hickenlooper cites pioneering work of four award winners at ceremony recognizing achievements by Colorado's 24 federal labs and research facilities
Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper honored scientists and researchers for their breakthrough work in renewable energy, sustainability, disease prevention, and atmospheric science at CO-LABS' annual Governor's Awards for High-Impact Research on November 15 in Denver.
CO-LABS is a non-profit consortium that brings the research, economic development, state and local governments and business communities together to facilitate information exchange, and helps educate the public about the scientific resources and impact of the research taking place at the state's federal labs.
The labs work closely with Colorado's research universities and technology companies, and play an important role in the state economy. Colorado is a global leader in natural resource management, climate science, renewable energy, photonics, materials science, astrophysics, telecommunications and earth science.
"We are intensely focused on economic development and creating jobs," Hickenlooper said. "At the same time we are witnesses to outstanding research in Colorado that will change the quality of life for people here and all over the world."
Hickenlooper presented the National Renewable Energy Laboratory's Jerry Olson with the Foundational Technology award "NREL Invention Links to Largest PV System in Colorado" for his work on gallium-arsenide tandem cells, which is still the basis for the highest-efficiency solar cells today. Cells based on Olson's original idea are in the 30-megawatt Amonix-Cogentrix concentrator in Alamosa, the largest photovoltaic system operating in Colorado.
For Sustainability, Hickenlooper honored David Gallaher, Mark Serreze, and Ron Weaver of the National Snow and Ice Data Center for the center's "Green Data Center", which saves significant energy when enormous amounts of data on temperatures and other variables are analyzed to determine trends in climate in the Arctic and glacial areas. The National Snow and Ice Data Center is part of the Cooperative Institute on Research in Environmental Sciences at the University of Colorado in Boulder.
Hickenlooper presented a High-Impact Research Award in Public Health to Claire Y. H. Huang of The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for "Developing Safe and Effective Vaccines to Combat Dengue." Dr. Huang and her team at the CDC's Division of Vector-borne Diseases in Fort Collins developed a vaccine candidate, currently in Phase I human trials, that is effective against all four types of dengue virus. Dengue infects as many as 100 million people annually throughout the tropics and subtropics.
The National Center for Atmospheric Research and its umbrella agency the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research won a High-Impact Research Award in Atmospheric Science for its "Innovations and Transformation of Dropsonde System Technology and Deliver System", with Terrence Hock as the principal investigator. NCAR, sponsored by the National Research Foundation, advances understanding of weater, climate change, solar storms, and other events that influence the atmosphere and affect society.
Hickenlooper also recognized three distinguished finalists:
The United States Department of Agriculture's U.S. Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station for "Quantifying the Current and Future Vulnerability of the United States Water Supply System," led by Principal Investigator Tom Brown.
The Boulder Laboratories of the U.S. Department of Commerce's National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), for "Advanced Distillation Curve Metrology," led by Principal Investigator Thomas J. Bruno.
The DOE's National Renewable Energy Laboratory for "Large-volume Battery Calorimeter (LVBC)," led by Principal Investigator Matthew A. Keyser.
The scientific discoveries and innovation recognized by the Governor's awards "reflect the considerable impact of the Colorado labs as our researchers, often working together, find solutions to the most challenging national and global issues of the day," said Bob Noun, CO-LABS chair.
For more information about CO-LABS visit www.co-labs.org, or view the awards overview video and the awards reception video.
Media May Contact
CO-LABS, Meg Collins, 720-201-2870, info@co-labs.org
NREL, Bill Scanlon, 303-275-4051, William.Scanlon@nrel.gov
UCAR/NCAR, David Hosansky, 303-497-8611, hosansky@ucar.edu
NSIDC Press Office, Jane Beitler, +1 303.492.1497, jbeitler@nsidc.org
CDC, 404-639-3286, media@cdc.gov
USDA Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station, Cass Cairns, 970-498-1370, cfcairns@fs.fed.us
NIST, James Burrus, 303-497-4789, james.burrus@nist.gov
