Quick Links
 | ||
|
July 29, 2005 New Purdue center to energize the future thanks to Lilly Endowment, LugarWEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Purdue University announced today (July 29) the creation of a new Energy Center, which already has been designated to share $85 million in federal funding with centers in Illinois and Kentucky.
Created from seed money from Lilly Endowment, the Energy Center will focus on the development of economical and environmentally sound energy sources and help change policies and perceptions about the way we use energy. The federal funding is part of an energy bill, which passed the Senate today, having earlier cleared the House. The bill was drafted, in part, by Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Ind., and Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill. "This is exciting news for our state and Purdue University," Lugar said. "The Energy Center will expand Purdue's important research into clean coal technologies by using plentiful Indiana coal to decrease America's dependence on foreign oil." The Energy Center is the third of four new centers Purdue will create thanks to a $10 million grant from Lilly Endowment. "The Energy Center will consolidate current Purdue research projects to investigate next-generation energy technologies," said Purdue President Martin C. Jischke. "We will not only discover solutions, we also will grow and attract new business and industry for our state." The other two centers selected for development so far will focus on the environment and cancer, and the fourth center is expected to be identified next month. All centers are based at Discovery Park, the university's hub for interdisciplinary research. The Energy Center will bring together more than 75 Purdue experts. Initially, they will focus on development of bio-fuels and clean coal research because Indiana provides an abundance of these natural resources, said Jay Gore, Vincent P. Reilly Professor in Mechanical Engineering and the interim director of the new center. The center also will enhance the university's expertise in storage technologies such as those involving hydrogen, batteries, power electronics and renewable energy devices such as solar cells. Researchers also will work to harness the wind and make nuclear energy safer. The goal is to shift the country's dependence from oil as the primary source of energy, said Gore, who is also the associate dean for the Purdue College of Engineering. "Crude oil prices are at a record high, and accelerated production is not aff Paul Shepson, Head Purdue University, 560 Oval Drive, West Lafayette, IN 47907 | ||
