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Automobile industry

Amerigon Awarded $8 Million Grant to Develop Energy Recovery System

Strategic Insights

— 1 min read

Amerigon Incorporated has been awarded an $8 million grant by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to lead the development of an energy recovery system that can improve passenger car fuel efficiency by five percent by converting waste heat from gas exhaust into electric power using a thermoelectric generator. This project is part of $175 million in DOE awards for 40 projects to accelerate advanced vehicle research and development.

The energy recovery system will be developed in collaboration with partners including Ford, BMW of North America, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)/California Institute of Technology, and Faurecia Emissions Controls Technologies. The project aims to specify how the new energy recovery system can be successfully commercialized on a large scale. This is a significant milestone for Amerigon, the world's largest supplier of thermoelectric technologies in the global automotive market.

Key Takeaways:

  • Amerigon Incorporated has been awarded an $8 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to develop an energy recovery system.
  • The project aims to improve passenger car fuel efficiency by five percent by converting waste heat from gas exhaust into electric power.
  • The energy recovery system will be developed in collaboration with several partners including Ford, BMW of North America, and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)/California Institute of Technology.
  • The project will also focus on specifying how the new energy recovery system can be successfully commercialized on a large scale.
  • This is the second DOE-funded project led by Amerigon, following a multi-phase project that began in 2005 to develop and evaluate a system for waste heat recovery in BMW and Ford vehicles.
  • Amerigon's Climate Control Seat System uses thermoelectric technology to actively heat and cool seats in vehicles made by the world's leading automotive manufacturers.
  • The company believes that their thermoelectric technology will demonstrate important advances in energy efficiency in passenger cars and reduce emissions of harmful environmental pollutants.
  • Amerigon has worked closely with the Department of Energy and their partners in the development of a fully functional thermoelectric generator.

Statistics:

  • $8 million grant awarded to Amerigon Incorporated by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).
  • $175 million in total DOE awards for 40 projects to accelerate advanced vehicle research and development.
  • 5% improvement in passenger car fuel efficiency aimed to be achieved through the new energy recovery system.
  • 4-year time frame for the completion of the project.

Sources:

  • Amerigon Incorporated
  • U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)

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