Department+of+Energy


 * Department of Energy**

* **Current Leaders**: o Dr. Steven Chu – Secretary of Energy

* **Mission Statement** o The Department of Energy's overarching mission is to advance the national, economic, and energy security of the United States; to promote scientific and technological innovation in support of that mission; and to ensure the environmental cleanup of the national nuclear weapons complex.

* **Issue: Hydrogen Fuel** 1. //“Enormous Supply of Clean Hydrogen Fuel can now be Tapped for the Hydrogen Economy”// a. Tremendous amounts of clean hydrogen gas can be found on ocean floors across the world and, until now, no one has known how to recover the hydrogen. Since the future economy is a hydrogen fuel economy, this discovery is extremely important. Hydrogen fuel will allow for a whole new world economy in which the Middle East is no longer as strategically important. Adams, Mike. “Enormous Supply of Clean Hydrogen…” 04/30/09. []. 2. //“The Top Ten Technologies:// //#2 Hydrogen Economy Enablers”// a. The global shift to a “hydrogen economy”, or an economy powered by hydrogen, not oil, is an important advancement of humanity as the oil economy is littered with problems. Hydrogen fuel can reduce the pollution problem, slowing global warming. Also, hydrogen is a renewable ubiquitous resource. By shifting to a hydrogen economy, we will simultaneously solve a list of problems tied to the oil economy. Adams, Mike. “The Top Ten Technologies…” 04/30/09. []. 3. //“How Fuel Cells Work”// a. The Hydrogen Fuel Initiative supported by legislature in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 aims to develop hydrogen fuel cell technology to make fuel cell vehicles practical and cost-effective by 2020. A fuel cell is an electrochemical energy conversion device. It converts hydrogen and oxygen into water and the process produces electricity. A hydrogen fuel cell can be compared to a battery that never needs to be charged and can be used for anything. Nice, Karim and Jonathan Strickland. “How Fuel Cells Work.” 05/01/09. []. * **History of Department** o The energy crisis of the 1970s demonstrated the need for unified energy planning within the federal government. On August 4, 1977, President Jimmy Carter signed the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Organization Act. The DOE centralized the responsibilities of the Federal Energy Administration, the Energy Research and Development Administration, the Federal Power Commission and other energy-related government programs into a single department. The DOE, activated on Oct. 1, 1977, provided the framework for a comprehensive national energy plan by coordinating federal energy functions. The new Department was responsible for long-term, high-risk research and development of energy technology, federal power marketing, energy conservation, energy regulatory programs, a central energy data collection and analysis program, and nuclear weapons research, development and production.

* **Constituents and Services** o //For consumers// § How to choose energy efficient products § Auditing home energy use § Energy smart home plans //o// //For Researchers/Educators// § Ensure adequate supply of scientists, engineers, technicians for energy-related research, production activities and the transfer of technology //o// //For Students/Kids// § Smart energy use practices //o// //For Employees// § Employment opportunities § News

* **Recommendation to President** o Based on my research regarding hydrogen energy, I recommend the government supply the DOE more money for the research and development of hydrogen as our primary energy source to speed up the world’s transition to a hydrogen economy.