The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced up to $3 million of new funding for fluid power systems research for off-road vehicles. The department's Vehicle Technologies Office (VTO) funds early-stage, high-risk research to generate knowledge upon which industry can develop and deploy innovative transportation energy technologies that improve efficiency, lower costs for families and businesses, and increase the use of secure, domestic energy sources.
Opportunities exist to improve the efficiency of fluid power systems for off-road vehicles, including construction, mining, and farm equipment through research. On September 12, 2017, a public workshop on fluid power systems for off-road vehicles was held at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory to identify early-stage research and development needs. (A summary of the key observations can be found online). Projects competitively selected through this funding opportunity will complement additional early-stage research on mobile fluid power systems at DOE national laboratories.
