The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Wind Energy Technologies Office (WETO) announced funding for four small businesses working to accelerate wind energy research and development as part of DOE's Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programmes.
These small businesses demonstrated technical feasibility for innovations and have each been selected to receive approximately $200,000 for Phase I SBIR awards.
The WETO projects selected include:
Integrated Marine Buoys for Real-Time Passive Acoustic Monitoring of Birds, Bats, and Whales Using Neural Networks
Loggerhead Instruments Inc. (Sarasota, FL) will develop buoys equipped with sensors that use neural networks capable of identifying North Atlantic Right Whales (NARW) and migrating birds and bats in real time, allowing safer construction and operation of windfarms.
Integrated Fishing and Marine Mammal Monitoring and Protection System
Scientific Solutions, Inc. (Portland, ME) will equip fishing boats with sensors to gather detailed data about the ocean and marine life. This data will help create accurate models for ocean and acoustic conditions. The system will also assess the impact of wind energy projects, support tidal energy development, prevent whale entanglements and ship strikes, and improve undersea monitoring, transforming how we manage and protect coastal oceans.
Avian and Bat Species Identification System for Offshore Wind Energy Wildlife Risk Assessments
Sightir Inc. (Santa Barbara, CA) will help government agencies and wind energy developers approve, build, and operate offshore wind energy facilities that are less harmful to endangered birds and bats.
WETO and the Office of Electricity selected the following STTR project:
Compact Sodium Battery-Based Energy Storage System for Integration with Wind Energy
Adena Power, LLC (Lewis Center, OH), in partnership with The Ohio State University (OSU) and Accelerate Wind, will advance the technical readiness of Adena’s sodium solid-state battery technology and assess the technical and economic viability of integrating it with wind energy assets to create a hybrid wind-storage system.
