Winning the Prize, Saving the Planet ? Winner of the 2011 ConocoPhillips Energy Prize Announced
Call for innovation in clean, novel or green energy answered
resoundingly in fourth annual ConocoPhillips, Penn State joint initiative
The 2011 ConocoPhillips Energy Prize, a joint initiative between
ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) and Penn State, concluded today with its
fourth annual mission to provoke and catalyze the 21st century energy
revolution by awarding this year′s prize to Ben Glass and Adam Rein for
their innovation, 'Aerostat Platform for Rapid Deployment Airborne Wind
Turbine,? a plan to make wind power literally leap out from the box by
taking advantage of stronger and more-consistent winds higher in the
air, seeking to hoist a wind-turbine up to 2,000 feet aloft.
The ConocoPhillips Energy Prize seeks to forge new paths to a cleaner,
greener and more secure energy supply ? both in the US and across the
globe. 'The world needs clean energy concepts moving from the drawing
board and into the home, office, field and factory, with an increasing
urgency,? said Merl Lindstrom, interim senior vice president,
Technology, ConocoPhillips. 'We believe the ConocoPhillips Energy Prize
is playing its part in providing a much-needed focus on developing these
game-changing ideas.?
The competition, which began in 2008, awards up to $300,000 and
recognizes innovative ideas and solutions in three key areas: developing
new energy sources, improving energy efficiency, and combating climate
change. This year, more than 100 proposals were submitted for evaluation
by a panel of energy and environmental experts, which selected five
finalists on the basis of creativity, scalability, commercial viability
and sustainability.
The first runner up was Jason Aramburu, founder and CEO of re:char, and
team for their entry, 'Biochar Production for Climate Change
Mitigation.? This concept seeks to roll biochar out to the masses, with
cheap recycled kilns that can churn out up to five tonnes of biochar
each year.
The second runner up was Mark Mascal, professor of chemistry at the
University of California, for his submission, 'Conversion of Plant
Carbohydrates into a New Generation of Biofuels and Substitutes for
Petroleum Products.?
The remaining finalists were Jack C. Swearengen and Peter Swearengen for
'Carbon-Free Ammonia for Agriculture? and Li Song and Gang Wang for
'Development of an Automated Unit-Level Energy Monitoring Fault
Detection and Diagnostic for High Energy Performance Buildings.?
Each of the five finalists received an award of $25,000 to further the
development of their concept. The winner received an additional
$100,000; the first and second runners-up received an additional $50,000
and $25,000 respectively.
The awards were presented October 24 at a ceremony held at the Nittany
Lion Inn in State College, PA following formal presentations by the five
finalists to the panel of judges.
This year′s judges included Dr. Ralph J. Cicerone, president, National
Academy of Sciences; Dr. Peter Jackson, Head of Research Exploration,
Production, Technology and Cost, IHS Cambridge Energy Research
Associates (CERA); Dr. James Kimble, Fellow, Biofuels and Long-Range
Technology (retired), ConocoPhillips; Charles L. Liotta, Ph.D., Chair,
School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, The Georgia Institute of
Technology; Yaw D. Yeboah, professor and Department Head of Energy and
Mineral Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University.
In 2010, ConocoPhillips and Penn State awarded the ConocoPhillips Energy
Prize to Matthew Orosz and team STG for a solar generator that could
bring electric power to remote areas around the world. The STG
originated in Cambridge, Mass. at the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology.
More information about the prize and the finalist is available at www.conocophillips.com/energyprize.
About ConocoPhillips
ConocoPhillips is an integrated energy company with interests around the
world. Headquartered in Houston, the company had approximately 29,900
employees, $160 billion of assets, and $244 billion of annualized
revenues as of June 30, 2011. For more information, go to www.conocophillips.com.
About the Penn State
Penn State is a leading research and development organization focused on
clean energy technologies that will assist the nation in meeting its
growing demands. The University′s wide range of research initiatives
include carbon materials, clean fuels and catalysis, petroleum and
natural gas, stationary power systems, sustainable energy and
transportation systems, hydrogen and fuel cells, CO2 capture and
sequestration, and expanding the use of our limited indigenous resource. www.psu.edu.
ConocoPhillips
Ric Sweeney, 281-293-3897 (media)
ric.g.sweeney@conocophillips.com
or
Penn
State
A′ndrea Messer, 814-865-9481 (media)
aem1@psu.edu
