Arun Majumdar said growth of the world’s overall population in the next 40 years will occur in areas now limited in the ability to produce electricity.
“I really think we should think globally as to how to get economic development in regions that don’t have access to energy the way we do,” said Mujumdar. “Maybe the solutions are not the ones we use. Maybe they don’t need a 300-horsepower car, but how to get access to affordable electricity and fuel. It is an opportunity to try a better way.”
Majumdar, who previously studied these issues while with the Department of Energy, said the national laboratories, including Oak Ridge, will play a major role in advancing technologies to meet the worldwide energy challenges.
“The national labs also have this cadre of scientists and engineers who – if they are directed in the right way to solve some of these problems – could be hugely helpful to our industry, our business and to U.S. competitiveness, Majumdar said.
UT-Battelle manages ORNL for the Department of Energy’s Office of Science. DOE’s Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States, and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. For more information, please visit energy.gov/science http://energy.gov/science.