The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recently granted a Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) team of scientists $1.2 million to build an integrated computational and experimental framework for manufacturing ultrahigh-temperature refractory alloys. 

These refractory alloys would contribute to an increased operating temperature on top of higher efficiency in natural gas turbines. 

The DOE’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy grant would allow scientists to create alloys that would provide high yield strength and fracture toughness when exposed to higher temperatures. 

“Natural gas turbines generate more than a third of the country’s electricity, supplying power to consumers across America,” said ARPA-E Director Lane Genatowski. The teams “will improve the...