ROCHESTER, NY – The REMADE Institute, a 132-member public-private partnership established by the United States Department of Energy (DOE) with an initial investment of $ 140 million, today announced $ 33.2 million in the search for new technologies, selecting 23 new projects within the framework of the last funding cycle of the Institute.

“The transition to a net zero greenhouse gas economy will require unprecedented reductions in embodied energy and carbon emissions associated with basic industrial materials in all critical sectors, from healthcare to agriculture. through transportation, ”said Kelly Speakes-Backman, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, US DOE. “By investing in technologies that improve our ability to reuse, recycle and remanufacture these materials, the DOE is moving America forward towards a circular economy and reducing carbon emissions across the manufacturing sector.”

REMADE CEO Nabil Nasr said the link between industrial development and climate change is important, as highlighted at the recent United Nations climate conference, COP26, in Glasgow, Scotland. According to the US Department of Energy, manufacturing accounts for 25% of US energy use at a cost of approximately $ 150 billion. According to data from the United States Environmental Protection Agency, industry is the third largest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions in the country, after transportation and electricity, at 23%. Take into account the electricity consumed by the industrial sector, however, and that percentage rises to 30%, making industry the main contributor to greenhouse gas emissions in the country.

This is why a circular approach to manufacturing – “make-use-reuse-remanufacture-recycle” – is so important, and why REMADE is dedicated to embracing a circular economy.

“A circular economy is essential,” said Nasr. “If we don’t reduce industrial energy use and industrial emissions, research shows we will only get just over half of the way to net zero by 2050, or about 55% of the way. A circular economy approach to how we make and use products on a daily basis is needed to get us all the to net zero. “

“REMADE and its partners are committed to reducing energy consumption and industry emissions, and at the same time increasing the competitiveness of the US manufacturing sector, increasing the resilience of the country’s supply chain, and create new jobs in the clean economy, ”added Nasr.

This latest investment cycle, the Institute’s fifth, is shared between DOE’s investment in REMADE and the funding recipients. The 23 R&D projects should lead to technologies capable of:

• Increase recycled, or secondary, materials up to 8.9 million metric tons per year
• Save up to 407 petajoules (PJ) of gray energy per year – the equivalent of conserving 66.5 million barrels of oil per year
• Reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 24.1 million metric tons per year, thereby eliminating the annual emissions of more than 5.2 million cars

Of the 23 projects, many involve new partners for REMADE including Volvo, BorgWarner, BigBattery, Pratt & Whitney, Mercury Marine, Alfred University, Auburn University, Lehigh University and others. They join the Institute’s existing partners, including industry innovators and academic researchers with Ford Motor Co., Caterpillar, John Deere, Michelin, Nike, MIT, RIT, Unilever, Yale University and many more. .

REMADE’s CTO Magdi Azer said the institute’s research aimed to increase circularity for four classes of energy-intensive materials: metals, plastics / polymers, fibers and electronic waste.

“REMADE’s projects address multiple aspects of the circular economy, including reuse, refurbishment, recovery and recycling,” said Azer. “These latest R&D projects will, for example, explore better ways to repair aerospace components, develop an automated disassembly process for electric vehicle batteries, and provide fast and accurate state-of-charge and condition estimates. health of lithium ion batteries. “

In 2021 alone, REMADE financed or selected 45 projects for negotiation, representing an investment of $ 65.8 million. Since the founding of the Institute in 2017, REMADE has launched 84 projects, representing a combined total value of $ 85.6 million. Detailed information on all REMADE research projects is available at www.remadeinstitute.org.

A sixth round of funding is expected to be announced next year.

About REMADE

Founded in 2017, REMADE is a 132-member public-private partnership established by the US Department of Energy with an initial investment of $ 140 million. REMADE is the only national institute entirely focused on developing innovative technologies to accelerate the United States’ transition to a circular economy. In partnership with industry, universities and national laboratories, the REMADE institute enables applied research and development at an early stage that will create jobs, considerably reduce embodied energy and greenhouse gas emissions, and increase the supply and use of recycled materials. The cumulative embodied energy savings over five years, the reduction in greenhouse gases and the increase in the use of recycled materials that should result from this investment are about 1 quadruple of energy, about 50 million euros. metric tons of CO2 equivalent greenhouse gas reduction and more than 40 million tons per year of increased supply and use of recycled materials, respectively. For more information about the REMADE Institute, visit www.remadeinstitute.org.