Wednesday, April 11, 2012

A new Army laboratory near Detroit is expected to develop technology such as fuel cells and hybrid systems for combat vehicles.

At a Wednesday event to unveil the research complex at the Detroit Arsenal in Warren, Maj. Gen. Kurt Stein said energy security is an increasingly important military function.

Federal officials also plan other energy saving steps, including a research competition, and aim to produce enough energy from renewable sources on military bases to equal the output of three nuclear plants.

Grace Bochenek, chief technology officer at U.S. Army Material command, says the lab can simulate the desert heat of Afghanistan and a bone-chilling day in Antarctica.