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The Research Development & Demonstration (RD&D) team at SoCalGas is excited to share updates with you on our latest projects, collaborations, and events. Read on to learn about how our involvement in cutting-edge research and groundbreaking pilot projects support our mission to build the Cleanest, Safest, and Most Innovative Energy Infrastructure company in America.

Watch our video to see how we’re actively working with our collaborators towards the goal to advance Hydrogen use in aviation. Innovation and the rapid development of new technologies are vital to our success.

Project Spotlight

GTI Energy leads demonstration of hydrogen fuel cell yard tractors for emissions reductions at the Port of Los Angeles. The project’s goal was to develop and demonstrate two zero-emission hybrid hydrogen fuel cell yard trucks at port terminals operated by TraPac at the Port of Los Angeles. Based on this project’s success, TraPac has begun exploring how to transition all of its cargo handling equipment to zero emission. This project is an important step forward in developing a thriving hydrogen market in Southern California.

Learn more about this project as well as other exciting projects from SoCalGas RD&D.

Webinar Spotlight

SoCalGas and GTI Energy recently hosted a webinar about a hydrogen fuel cell yard truck demonstration at the Port of Los Angeles that investigated truck performance in a demanding, real-world cargo-handling application. The team of SoCalGas, GTI Energy, California Air Resources Board (CARB), Capacity Trucks, TraPac, and others developed and tested two new zero-emissions fuel cell-electric terminal tractors and assessed their operation at TraPac’s terminal. This webinar introduced project goals, findings, and lessons learned. They also discussed opportunities and barriers to adopting hydrogen technologies on a broader scale at ports in California and across the country.

Visit our YouTube channel* to listen to this discussion and more.

Meet the RD&D Team

Alan Leung is a technology development project manager overseeing Customer End-Use Applications in the SoCalGas Research, Development and Demonstration (RD&D) group. Prior to joining SoCalGas, Alan served as an Air Resources Engineer Team Lead for the California Air Resources Board in the Emission Certification and Compliance division. Alan is particularly excited about the use of hydrogen fuels in support of a clean energy future. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Engineering from the University of California Merced and a Master of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Southern California. He is currently pursuing a Master of Business Administration at the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill with a dual focus on Strategy Consulting and Entrepreneurship.

Get to know other talented individuals that make up the RD&D Team by visiting our Meet the Team webpage.

Press Releases

SoCalGas Receives Honor for "Clean Energy Investment Leader of the Year" from The Cleanie Awards

SoCalGas Research, Development and Demonstration (RD&D) department has been recognized as the "Silver Winner" in the category of "Clean Energy Investment Leader of the Year" from the Cleanie Awards. The Cleanie Awards are a cleantech industry awards program focused on honoring innovators, accelerators and disruptors who are creating market-moving climate solutions.

Visit our newsroom to read more.

SoCalGas and Captura Begin Testing Innovative Direct Ocean Carbon Removal Technology

SoCalGas and Captura, a carbon removal company founded at Caltech, announced the deployment of an innovative, direct ocean carbon removal technology that uses 100% renewable energy and ocean water to draw down surplus atmospheric CO2. The technology was recently installed at Caltech's Kerckhoff Marine Lab in Newport Beach and marks the first time the Captura system will be operating in ocean water conditions.

Visit our newsroom to read more.

Project Awards

On June 15, 2023, the DOE Industrial Efficiency and Decarbonization Office (IEDO) announced that two projects supported by SoCalGas RD&D were awarded sizable grants under the DE-FOA-0002804 funding opportunity:

The Development of an Advanced Infrared Hydrogen Fuel Flexible Boiler for Food and Beverage Industry

With $150,000 in cost-share from SoCalGas RD&D and $3,000,000 provided by the DOE, West Virginia University and its partners will develop a fuel-flexible boiler capable of utilizing low- and zero-carbon fuels such as hydrogen, natural gas, biogas, and other manufactured gases. The industrial boiler will be designed to produce hot water and steam for food/beverage process heating needs. The team aims to develop a hydrogen fuel-flexible burner that can be retrofitted for existing boiler packages, artificial intelligence-assisted adaptive air and fuel delivery and mixing systems, and compact energy efficient heat exchangers for thermal energy transfer. The design also includes an economizer that uses waste energy from flue gas to heat intake air, increasing current boiler efficiency to 98%.

Regenerative High Efficiency Low-Carbon Fuel Flexible System

SoCalGas RD&D has committed to provide this project $200,000 in cost-share and $3,701,786 provided by the DOE. GTI Energy will lead a team to design and test a high-efficiency, fuel-flexible burner which can be retrofitted into industrial furnaces to allow them to use low- and zero-carbon fuels. The regenerative fuel-flexible burner can utilize hydrogen and renewable liquid fuels and provide fuel-flexible resiliency. The technology will have a unique position in the decarbonization market with improved heat transfer, turndown capabilities, and low capital and operating costs.

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GTI Advancing Window Retrofits to Improve Energy Efficiency in Existing Buildings

In March 2023, GTI Energy and SoCalGas Research Development & Demonstration (RD&D) received a notice of proposed award (NOPA) of $864,506 for the “Commercial Inserts and Non-intrusive Demonstrations of Optimal Window Systems (Comm-INDOWS)” proposal. The project team, including Lawrence Berkeley National Lab (LBNL) and Frontier Energy, Inc., will advance window retrofits (e.g., secondary windows, vacuum insulated glass, silica aerogel) by field demonstrating products in commercial buildings and developing a market transformation plan. SoCalGas RD&D has committed $460,000 to co-fund the project. The funding award is contingent upon final approval at a publicly noticed CEC business meeting and the execution of a grant agreement.

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GTI Plastic Pipeline Deficiency Inspection for Pipeline Integrity Management

In May 2023, GTI Energy received a Notice of Proposed Award (NOPA) from the California Energy Commissions (CEC) in the amount of $999,319 for their “Group 2: “Plastic Pipeline Deficiency Inspection for Pipeline Integrity Management” proposal. GTI Energy and its research partners, University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), Lumina Decision Science, and Research & Innovation Center for Energy (RICE) of GRTgaz, will provide a comprehensive framework for integrating non-destructive evaluation (NDE) methods into the risk assessment, risk management, and mitigation programs associated with plastic piping infrastructure for natural gas distribution. SoCalGas RD&D has committed to provide in‐kind project support which includes internal staff time for meetings, technical input, participation on the Technical Advisory Panel, and Polyethylene pipe samples from the plastic piping system. The funding award is contingent upon final approval at a publicly noticed CEC business meeting and the execution of a grant agreement.

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UCLA Monitoring and Risk Assessment for Natural Force Damage to Pipelines

In May 2023, UCLA received a Notice of Proposed Award (NOPA) from the California Energy Commissions (CEC) in the amount of $2,992,909 for their “Group 1: “Monitoring and Risk Assessment for Natural Force Damage to Pipelines” proposal. The project team will gather geohazard displacement measurement data using instruments instead of theoretical computations, and, in near real-time, calculate the probability of failure of the pipeline based on the known capacity of the pipes available in a database populated by UCLA. SoCalGas RD&D is supporting this project and has committed to provide in‐kind project support which includes internal staff time for meetings, technical input, and participation on the Technical Advisory Panel. The funding award is contingent upon final approval at a publicly noticed CEC business meeting and the execution of a grant agreement.

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ZEI Portable, Zero Boil-off Liquid Hydrogen Bunkering System Demonstration

In May 2023, Zero Emission Industries (ZEI) received a Notice of Proposed Award (NOPA) from the California Energy Commissions (CEC) in the amount of $5,250,000 for their GFO-22-502 Group 2 proposal, titled “Cryogenic Hydrogen Infrastructure Replacement Product (‘CHIRP’) (formerly Portable, Zero Boil-off Liquid Hydrogen Bunkering System).” For this project, Zero Emission Industries will work with several industry partners to develop and demonstrate a novel, portable liquid hydrogen bunkering system to enable direct transfer of liquid hydrogen from a delivery trailer to ocean-going vessels. SoCalGas RD&D has committed to provide $300,000 in cost-share as well as in‐kind project support which includes internal staff time for meetings, technical input, and participation on the Technical Advisory Panel. The funding award is contingent upon final approval at a publicly noticed CEC business meeting and the execution of a grant agreement.

Learn more

Recently Completed Projects

Read about all projects that were completed in the last quarter.

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