NSF Engines Development Award: Advancing clean energy technologies in the Piedmont region to Generate Innovative New Economic Systems (NC, SC)

该NSF发动机开发奖的重点是清洁能源（CE）资源技术，包括陆基和海上风能、太阳能、清洁氢、海洋能源以及支持其与电网集成的电能输送和存储系统。利用创新、研究和开发专业知识、基础设施和合作伙伴组织的专业网络，该项目将通过使用启发型研究和技术创造、转化为实践以及促进区域经济发展的劳动力发展，使卡罗来纳州可再生能源盆地的社区受益。该项目的活动将支持卡罗来纳州在2050年实现净碳中和电网的CE转型。这个生态系统将通过教育和高薪就业带来的向上的经济流动性，实现更加公正和公平的财富分配，这是知识驱动型经济的典型特征。服务区域以夏洛特为中心。它包括北卡罗莱纳州和南卡罗来纳州的皮埃蒙特和沿海平原，集中在两个州的东部地区，特别是东南黑带。该地区通过大量现有的无碳电力生产和发明、设计、建造和制造CE技术的能力，是美国新兴CE经济的最具代表性的地区。该项目由北卡罗来纳大学夏洛特分校领导，包括来自高等教育、工业、政府和财团/社区组织的当前确定的和有抱负的合作伙伴组成的多元化联盟。这项NSF发动机开发奖将加速以使用为灵感的研究，以提高与可再生能源（太阳能、风能和海洋）和智能电网技术相关的众多产品的竞争力，这些产品需要集成大幅增加的CE。如果成功，未来的NSF引擎将开发颠覆性的清洁氢技术，作为第二种能源载体，支持东南部的一批氢公司。该项目将通过广泛的多样性、公平、包容性和可及性（DEIA）文化，与该地区经济困难的社区进行接触。与NC a&t州立大学协调的创新劳动力发展活动将有助于在知识经济中准备有竞争力的社区，这将迅速增长CE生产。发展奖将通过以下四个重点来支持这些活动：(1)编制一份区域行政管理科技专门知识的创新清单；(2)面向CE创新和制造的劳动力发展；(3) DEIA文化的展示；(4)组织活动，形成有效的领导团队和路线图，以过渡到未来NSF引擎的初级阶段。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This NSF Engines Development Award is focused on clean energy (CE) resource technologies, including land-based and offshore wind, solar, clean hydrogen, marine energy, and the electric-energy delivery and storage systems that support their integration with the grid. Leveraging the creativity, research, and development expertise, infrastructure, and professional networks of partner organizations, this project will benefit the communities in the renewable energy resource basin of the Carolinas through use-inspired research and technology creation, translation to practice, and workforce development leading to regional economic development. The project's activities will support the CE transformation of the Carolinas for a net-carbon-neutral electric grid in 2050. The ecosystem will lead to a more just and equitable distribution of wealth through upward economic mobility enabled by education and employment in high-wage jobs typical of a knowledge-driven economy. The region of service is centered in Charlotte. It encompasses the Piedmont and Coastal Plains of North and South Carolina, focusing on areas in the eastern parts of both states, especially the Southeast Black Belt. The region is the most representative of the nation’s emerging CE economy through significant existing carbon-free power production and capabilities to invent, design, build, and manufacture CE technologies. The project is led by UNC Charlotte and comprises a diverse coalition of currently identified and aspirational partners from higher education, industry, government, and consortia/community organizations.This NSF Engines Development award will accelerate use-inspired research to improve the competitiveness of numerous products related to renewable energy (solar, wind, and marine) and smart grid technologies that are needed to integrate large increases in CE. When successful, the future NSF Engine will develop disruptive technology for clean hydrogen as a second energy carrier to support a cluster of hydrogen companies in the Southeast. This project will embrace, through a pervasive diversity, equity, inclusiveness, and accessibility (DEIA) culture, engagement with economically distressed communities in the region. Innovative workforce development activities coordinated with NC A&T State University will help prepare competitive communities in the knowledge-based economy that will rapidly grow CE production. The Development Award will support these activities through four thrusts: (1) an innovation inventory of regional scientific and technical expertise in CE; (2) workforce development for CE innovations and manufacturing; (3) demonstration of the culture of DEIA; and (4) organizational activities leading to an effective leadership team and a roadmap for transitioning to the nascent phase of a future NSF Engine.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.