Argonne National Laboratory

Transportation Technology R&D Center

Argonne's Transportation Technology R&D Center (TTRDC) brings together scientists and engineers from many disciplines to find cost-effective solutions to the problems of transporting people and goods from one place to another — issues such as vehicle emissions and energy supply. TTRDC’s primary sponsor is the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), but it also works with other government agencies and the U.S. transportation industry to improve processes, create products and markets, and provide cost-effective transportation solutions in support of DOE goals.

The TTRDC’s research focuses on several areas, including:

• Batteries: Understanding the mechanisms of lifespan, abuse tolerance, and cost of high-energy lithium-ion batteries for advanced vehicle and utility system applications
• Fuel Cells: Investigating ways to make fuel cell vehicles a reality, including fuel reforming, computer modeling, and hydrogen infrastructure
• Vehicle Systems: Simulating, validating, and testing the performance of advanced vehicle systems to identify the technologies, configurations, and engine control strategies
• Engine Research: Developing advanced technologies to improve the fuel economy and overall performance of reciprocating engines, while at the same time, reducing harmful emissions
• Applied Materials Research: Evaluating ceramic and lightweight materials, developing advanced coatings (near-frictionless and superhard) and lubricants, nanofluids for thermal management systems, and manufacturing processes for such materials
• Assessment: Analyzing the costs and benefits, including the energy and emissions impacts, of alternative transportation technologies
• Recycling: Identifying processes to reclaim usable materials from automotive shredder residue, reducing the amount of vehicle waste entering landfills

Argonne's transportation researchers are leaders in their fields, having won dozens of awards and claiming hundreds of patents to their names. World-class research facilities, which include the Advanced Photon Source, the Advanced Powertrain Research Facility, the Electrochemical Analysis and Diagnostics Laboratory, and the Fuel Cell Test Facility, support this work.