Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) authors’ recognition of technology transfer hurdles and risk-averse specification tendencies in construction is evident in a slew of U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office and National Laboratories initiatives supporting low carbon materials awareness and procurement.
The DOE Industrial Efficiency and Decarbonization Office (IEDO) is eyeing a National Laboratory-led Cement and Concrete Center of Excellence to accelerate the development and adoption of novel low-carbon material technologies (note this month’s Government Affairs report, page 10). Agency and Office leaders will task staff of the lab prevailing in a call for Center of Excellence proposals with test method development for new binder chemistries; modeling to predict binder performance in fresh and hardened concrete; and, development of methodologies for carbon dioxide emissions accounting.
A separate call for National Lab proposals is underway with the DOE Offices of Technology Transitions (OTT) and Clean Energy Demonstrations (OCED). Proposals addressing adoption challenges to later stage commercialization, demonstration and deployment of decarbonization technologies in concrete and cement are due this month. OTT and OCED are advancing the Collaborative Alignment for Critical Technology Industries – Industrial Decarbonization Lab Call with up to $15 million in IRA/Technology Innovation Fund outlays, and support of the IEDO and DOE Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains. Officials will review proposals submitted by mid-October, notify selected labs by the end of year, and proceed to Q1 2025 project outlines.
Given the potential for slow adoption of technologies holding significant promise for emissions reduction in cement, concrete and other critical industrial sectors, DOE Chief Commercialization Officer and OTT Director Dr. Vanessa Chan notes, “This Lab Call is designed to overcome barriers by uniting key stakeholders to share expertise, align on best practices and collaborate with our National Labs to implement effective solutions industry-wide.”
The lab overseeing Collaborative Alignment on Decarbonization of Concrete and Cement Industry will work with parties along the industry value chain—technology and project developers, feedstock suppliers, facility owners, financiers and product customers—to facilitate market adoption, scale-up and replication, and build consensus around low-carbon solutions. It will also steer independent technical reports and analyses, while supporting industry efforts targeting assessment tools, product performance specifications, and widely accepted best practices.
“DOE recognizes that commercialization of a new technology requires overcoming both technical and adoption barriers,” OTT and OECD observe. “As technology readiness progresses and the technical challenges have been de-risked by the DOE basic and applied offices, a specific focus is expected to be placed on adoption risks preventing commercialization and deployment of new technologies. Examples of relevant adoption risks include delivered cost, functional performance, ease of use, market size and market openness, downstream value chain, workforce, ability to be integrated in a large infrastructure project, material sourcing, environmental and safety elements, regulatory environment, policy environment, permitting and siting, and community perception.”
Stakeholders are interested in but hesitant to adopt new processes, chemistries, and protocols for low-carbon cement, OTT and OECD contend, adding, “The Federal government can play a key role by convening stakeholders across the industry and coordinating with standards development organizations to support consensus-driven practices, procedures, and harmonized frameworks for equipment and processes.”
DOE measures for low carbon materials, along with tandem Environmental Protection Agency, General Services Administration and Department of Transportation efforts, confirm how those who assisted in penning the IRA language knew a business where protocols, routines and traditions die hard.