Global Climate and Energy Project

Our investment in groundbreaking research at the Stanford University-based Global Climate and Energy Project (GCEP) is another way we are working to meet future energy needs with significantly lower greenhouse gas emissions. This project aims to undertake fundamental and pre-commercial research on a wide range of technologies that offer the potential to supply and use energy with significantly reduced greenhouse gas emissions.

Among GCEP’s many research programs:

• Researchers are investigating the use of genetically engineered bacteria to capture solar energy and produce hydrogen, which could be used in power generation or advanced automobiles.
• Investigators are looking to make flexible sheets of solar cells, organized at the molecular level, to provide far less expensive and more-efficient electricity from sunlight.
• Materials are being researched for high-capacity storage of hydrogen in carbon nanotubes, which can provide subsequent easy release for power uses.
• The geological integrity of underground reservoirs and aquifers is being assessed for potential use in storing CO₂ generated by burning fossil fuels.