PNNL

RICHLAND, Wash. — Three Pacific Northwest National Laboratory technologies have been declared winners of the 2025 Federal Laboratory Consortium Awards Program, which annually recognizes federal laboratories and their industry partners for outstanding technology transfer achievements.

The Facility Energy Decision System, a tool that automatically identifies building energy improvements to minimize life-cycle costs, earned an Impact Award, honoring FLC member labs whose technology transfer efforts have made a tangible and lasting impact on society or the marketplace. A Technology Transfer Innovation Award was given to Visual Intellectual Property Search for creating a first-of-a-kind comprehensive intellectual property search tool for patents and software to significantly increase the national laboratory system’s technology transfer partnerships and results. A technology to harness silicon for low-cost, high-performance batteries earned a regional award for excellence in technology transfer to a Washington State-based industry partner.

FLC awards are among the most prestigious honors in the technology transfer field. The awards place a spotlight on federal scientists, inventors and technology transfer professionals for their innovative work to create and transfer cutting-edge technologies to industry, addressing national needs and challenges.

Facility Energy Decision System

FEDS is an easy-to-use building energy-efficiency software tool that quickly identifies options for energy-efficiency improvements. Over its 30-year lifespan, FEDS has helped thousands of users make more informed decisions regarding building upgrades that, upon implementation, significantly cut utility costs. The system considers nearly every aspect of building energy use and evaluates improvements to the building envelope, HVAC systems, lighting and more based on factors like construction and system characteristics, operation, local climate and energy prices. FEDS’s broad user base includes civic governments and federal agencies like the Department of Defense and NASA, as well as utility companies, real estate management firms, nonprofits, educational institutions, energy consultants and even entire island communities. The program requires only minimal user experience and input to perform energy-efficiency assessments across a wide variety of building types, from single buildings to large multibuilding campuses and military installations. The latest version of FEDS offers enhanced usability and enables the evaluation of advanced building technologies. PNNL’s technology development and transfer team includes Bob Dahowski, software engineer; Sara Hunt, senior commercialization manager; and David Long, intellectual property specialist. This work was supported by the DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy and the Federal Energy Management Program. 

Visual Intellectual Property Search

VIPS is a search tool for patents and software created for Department of Energy national laboratories. VIPS, developed at PNNL and launched in July 2024, gives users a visually appealing, interactive, up-to-date, easy-to-use tool. Every week, it automatically collects patent content from the United States Patent and Trademark Office and software content from the Department of Energy Office of Scientific and Technical Information. This information is processed and enriched using AI to assist users in identifying relevant technologies. It is the first comprehensive database designed for industry engagement that allows access to all innovations funded by the Department of Energy with the goal of technology transfer. VIPS team members include Scott Dowson, software engineer; Danielle Briseno, software engineer; Beryn Straub-Waldenberg, software engineer; Jon Grundy, data scientist; Robin Cosbey, data scientist; Hunter Anderson, research associate; Kannan Krishnaswami, senior commercialization manager; and Alex Kendall, commercialization manager. This work was supported by the DOE Office of Technology Transitions. 

Harnessing silicon for low-cost, high-performing batteries

PNNL’s battery technology experts and commercialization team formed a partnership with Ecellix, Inc., a Seattle-based battery startup, to commercially deploy a novel material that significantly increases energy storage capacity in next-generation lithium batteries. The partnership with Ecellix centered on the transfer of PNNL-developed silicon anode materials that can boost battery capacity and energy density. PNNL’s research team worked closely with Ecellix to transfer the necessary material synthesis capability to the Washington startup, which aims to contribute to the reemergence of U.S.-based battery manufacturing after decades of offshoring. PNNL and Ecellix also have collaborations with universities and companies in the Western United States. The technology transfer team includes Allan Tuan, PNNL commercialization manager for energy storage, chemical/biological processing, and advanced energy systems; Ji-Guang (Jason) Zhang, PNNL Laboratory Fellow, Energy Processes and Materials Division; Ju-Myung Kim, PNNL staff scientist; Jerry Schwartz, Ecellix cofounder and CEO; and Jason Schwartz, Ecellix cofounder and vice president of strategy. This work was supported by the DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.