FreedomCar and Fuel Partnership Given 'Thumbs Up' in new NCR Report

USCAR - National Research Council report says continued near- and long-term Government /Industry R&D is needed to reduce petroleum dependence and greenhouse gases. In its third report on the FreedomCAR and Fuel Partnership (FC&FP), the National Research Council (NRC) of the National Academies commended the Partnership’s government/industry joint technical teams as important and effective in pursuing sustainable automotive transportation solutions. The report also called for an even greater blend of near- and long-term research and development to urgently address the nation’s transportation needs.

In its “Review of the Research Program of the FreedomCAR and Fuel Partnership, Third Report,” the NRC Committee on Review of the FC&FP said the Partnership structure is “an effective means of identifying high-priority, long-term precompetitive research needs while also addressing societal needs such as reducing petroleum dependence and greenhouse gas production.” It also said that while some research areas still face “very substantial barriers,” the Partnership is effectively advancing the science to benefit the American people. “The Partnership is effective in progressing toward its goals” and has provided “evidence of solid progress in essentially all areas,” the report states.

Supporting multiple technologies R&D, and recognizing the continued importance of internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles in the foreseeable future, the committee recommended the Partnership’s Advanced Combustion and Emissions Control (ACEC) Technical Team maintain active ICE and related alternative fuels R&D. It also called for intensified efforts in the Partnership’s energy storage (advanced batteries) and power electronics R&D for vehicle electrification; development of system-analysis methodology to accelerate cost-effective vehicle lightweighting; enhanced recycling R&D for batteries and carbon-reinforced composites; plus a broader scope for the Fuel Pathways Integration Technical Team, to provide cross-functional representation and overall perspective for the Partnership’s three main focus areas:

• Improving ICE vehicles, coupled with greater use of biofuels;
• Shifting significant portions of transportation energy from petroleum to the grid through expanded use of PHEVs and BEVs; and
• Transitioning to hydrogen as a major transportation fuel utilized in fuel cell vehicles.