The Explore-2-Build (E2B) initiative is funded through the Grand Challenge investment in Environmental Resilience & Sustainability made as part of the University’s Great and Good 2030 Plan. The projects all adopt a cross-disciplinary, innovative, and comprehensive approach to propel the advancement of science, technology, and the adoption of clean energy technologies. 

Global Lithium Challenges: Lithium Recovery During Battery Recycling

Lead PI: Gary Koenigh, Chemistry

Co PIs: Geoffrey Geise, Chemical Engineering, Mona El Khafif, Architecture and Urban + Environmental Planning, and Lisa Colosi Peterson, Civil Engineering

This project will pursue advancing a critical component and a broader collaboration towards addressing a global challenge of responsibly developing a necessary resource for the energy transition away from fossil fuels. 

Meeting targets for clean, sustainable energy will require electrification of the vehicle fleet and energy storage to level intermittent renewable energy resources. In both cases, batteries are expected to be a dominant technology, with Li-ion batteries the market leader. Over the coming decade, many of these batteries will reach the end of their service life, and scalable processes will be needed to sustainably and economically extract critical resources that went into their production.

Super-rated Wind Turbines for Offshore Wind Energy

PI: Eric Loth, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

Co PIs: Bevin Etienne, McIntire School of Commerce, and Christine Mahoney, Batten School of Leadership

A new research breakthrough called super-rated wind turbines has been developed at UVA and can reduce intermittency of wind energy by creating excess energy at above-rated conditions. This excess energy can then be stored in the form of compressed air energy taking advantage of a new high efficiency compressor/expander heat transfer approach. 

The goal of this E2B project is to transform the fundamental concept of super-rated wind energy into a viable technology that is consistent with the key socio-techno-economic-political drivers of the critical stakeholders (including industry, government and communities). Since Virginia will have the nations’ largest offshore wind farm by 2026, this E2B project will employ the Virginia offshore region along with nearby grid and communities as a projected prototypical site for deployment.

Maximizing Decarbonization of Sustainable Aviation Fuel Biomanufacturing by Lowering Chemical Processing Severity

PI: Bryan Berger, Chemical Engineering

Co PIs: Michael Paul Timko, Biology, and Lisa Colosi Peterson, Civil Engineering

Hemp has long been considered a low input, high yielding (3-5 ton /acre) fiber and grain crop well-suited to environmentally friendly modern agricultural systems. Consequently, the cultivation and value of hemp continue to increase, with the value of US and global production estimated at $824 million2 and $4.74 billion in 2022, respectively, with CAGR of 17.1%3. Our mission is to empower growers in Virginia and beyond to produce hemp as a value-added rotation crop for the production of economically and environmentally important Sustainable Aviation Fuel, thereby providing a foundation for a hemp-based economy to support rural communities and diversify the crops available for growers without affecting the food chain.