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Robert Williams

Senior Research Scientist

Bob

Princeton Environmental Institute
140 Guyot Hall, Washington Road
Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544
Phone: 609-258-5448
Email: rwilliam@princeton.edu

» Robert Williams CV

Bio-sketch

Robert H. Williams is a Senior Research Scientist at the Princeton Environmental Institute (PEI), Princeton University, where he heads the Energy Systems/Policy Analysis Group. Under PEI’s BP/Ford-supported Carbon Mitigation Initiative (CMI), he also leads the Carbon Capture Group. He (and colleague Eric Larson) are also involved in an intensive research collaboration with a group in the Thermal Engineering Department at Tsinghua University in Beijing that is exploring clean energy technologies and strategies for China based on coal and biomass gasification.
 
Trained as a physicist (BS, physics, Yale, 1962; PhD, theoretical plasma physics, UC Berkeley, 1967), Williams joined the Physics Department, U. of Michigan, Ann Arbor, in 1970, where he shifted his research from basic physics to energy and environmental analysis. In 1972 he became Chief Scientist with the Ford Foundation's Energy Policy Project, where he was responsible for environmental and energy efficiency research. He joined Princeton University’s Center for Energy and Environmental Studies in the fall of 1975 and PEI in 2001.

 

Degrees

B.S. (physics), Yale, 1962; Ph.D. (theoretical plasma physics), University of California Berkeley, 1967

 

Academics

WWS 591d (Fall 1998): Policy Workshop: Strategies for Innovation in Energy Technology, D.F. Bradford and R.H. Williams

 

Research Interests

Efficient energy use, advanced gas turbine power cycles, combined heat and power, fuel cells for transportation, renewable energy (biomass, photovoltaics, wind), nuclear energy (especially the nuclear  roliferation link to nuclear power), the hydrogen economy, synthetic fuels in a climate-constrained world, polygeneration of synthetic fuels and electricity, CO2 capture and storage for fossil energy and fossil/biomass energy systems, CO2-enhanced oil recovery applications of captured CO2, fossil/renewable energy synergisms (especially coal/biomass with CO2 capture and storage and wind/natural gas), energy in developing countries, and energy policy (especially energy technological innovation policy). 
 

Recent Advisory and Related Activities

Editorial Board (2008- ) of Frontiers of Energy and Power Engineering in China, a journal launched by the Ministry of Education of China (published in China by High Education Press of China and published for oversea markets by Springer)

Lead Author (2008-2009) for Knowledge Module on Fossil Energy Systems (Conventional and Advanced) for the Global Energy Assessment
 
Technical Advisor (2007-2008) to the National Energy Technology Laboratory for its
Coal/Biomass to Liquids study  
 
Member (2007), Working Group on Coal to Liquids of the Transportation Fuels Initiative of the Western Governors Association (WGA), and coauthor of Coal-to-Liquids Report to the WGA
 
Advisor (2006) to the International Energy Agency in the preparation of a chapter of World Energy Outlook 2006 on the need to bring about a shift from biomass and coal to clean fluid fuels for cooking.
 
Lead Author for the IPCC Special Report on CO2 Capture and Storage of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), December 2005. 
 
Member (1998-2004), Editorial Board of the World Energy Assessment (WEA). The WEA was a joint project of the UN Development Programme, the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, and the World Energy Council. The WEA was initiated in response to the outcome of the Special Session of the UN General Assembly in 1997 ("Rio Plus Five" meeting) that reviewed progress in addressing the Agenda 21 goals established at the 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro. That 1997 meeting declared that the ninth session of the Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD-9) in 2001 should focus specifically on energy and transport issues. The book Energy and the Challenge olf Sustainability—The World Energy Assessment (2000) was prepared to inform discussion and debate about sustainable energy as an input to both CSD-9 and the "Rio Plus Ten" meeting of the UN General Assembly in 2002. In 2002 WEA sponsors requested that an updated Overview of the World Energy Assessment be prepared, and this was published in 2004. As a member of the WEA Editorial Board and Convening Lead Author of the Advanced Energy Supply Technologies Chapter (Chapter 8 of the WEA), Williams participated in the preparation of this revised overview.
 
International Member (1993-2003), Working Group on Energy Strategies and Technologies (WGEST) for Phases I and II of the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development (CCICED). For Phase III of the CCICED (begun in 2002), working groups were replaced by task forces, and Williams was an international member of the Task Force on Energy Strategies and Technologies (TFEST), which for the period through 2003 focused on policies for advancing polygeneration (co-production of synthetic fuels, chemicals, and electricity from coal via gasification) in China.
 
Member (1992-   ), Board of Directors, International Energy Initiative (IEI).
 
Member, Energy R&D Panel of the President’s Committee of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST, 1997) and Chair of the Panel’s Renewable Energy Task Force.
 
Member, PCAST Panel on International Cooperation in Energy Research, Development, Demonstration, and Deployment (1999) and Chair of the Panel’s Energy Supply Task Force.
 
Member (1995-1998), Scientific and Technical Advisory Panel (STAP) of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and Chair of the STAP Climate and Energy Working Group.
 
Lead Author (1994-1995), IPCC Working Group IIa (Energy Supply Mitigation Options) for the IPCC’s Second Assessment Report.
 

Selected Publications

Journal Articles

Succar, S., D. Denkenberger, and R.H. Williams, 2012: Optimization of specific rating for wind turbine arrays coupled to compressed air energy storage, Applied Energy.
 
Liu, G.,E.D. Larson, R.H. Williams, T.G. Kreutz, and X. Guo, 2011. Making Fischer-Tropsch fuels and electricity from coal and biomass: performance and cost analysis, Energy and Fuels, 25 (1): 415-437.
 
Williams, R.H., G. Liu, T. G. Kreutz and E. D. Larson, 2011: Coal and biomass to fuels and power, Annual Review of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, 2: 529-33.
 
Zheng, Z., E.D. Larson, Z. Li, G. Liu, and R.H. Williams, 2010: Near-term mega-scale CCS demonstrations in China, Energy and Environmental Science, 3 (9): 1153-1169. Our article was selected to be featured on the cover of this issue of Energy and Environmental Science.
 
Larson, E.D., G. Fiorese, G. Liu, R.H. Williams, T.G Kreutz, and S. Consonni, 2010: Co-production of synfuels and electricity from coal + biomass with zero net greenhouse gas emissions: an Illinois case study, Energy and Environmental Science, 3: 28-42. Our article was selected to be featured on the cover of this issue of Energy and Environmental Science.
 
Tilman, D., R. Socolow, J. Foley, J. Hill, E. Larson, L. Lynd, S. Pacala, J. Reilly, T. Searchinger, C. Sommerville, and R.H. Williams, 2009: Beneficial Biofuels – The Food, Energy, and Environment Trilemma, Science, 325: 270-271.
 
Xu, Yuan, R.H. Williams, and R.H. Socolow, China's rapid deployment of SO2 scrubbers, Energy and Environmental Science 2(5): 459-465.
 
K. Meng, R.H. Williams, and M.A. Celia, 2007: Opportunities for low-cost CO2 storage demonstration projects in China, Energy Policy, 35: 2368-2378.
 
J.B. Greenblatt, S. Succar, D.C. Denkenberger, R.H. Williams, and R.H. Socolow, 2007: Baseload wind energy: modeling the competition between gas turbines and compressed air energy storage for supplemental generation, Energy Policy,35 (3): 1474-1492, 2007.
 
D.G. Hawkins, D.A. Lashof, and R.H. Williams, 2006: What to do about coal, Scientific American, 295 (3): 68-75 (special issue: Energy Future Beyond Carbon), September.
 
Succar, S., J. B. Greenblatt, and R.H. Williams, 2006: Arguing the case for storage, Windpower Monthly, 22 (4): 8-10, April.
 
De Lorenzo, L., P. Chiesa, T. Kreutz, and R.H. Williams, 2005: Carbon-free hydrogen and electricity from coal: options for syngas cooling in systems using a hydrogen separation membrane reactor, Proceedings of ASME Turbo Expo 2005, Reno, NV, June 6-9, 2005. Selected as a “Best Paper Award” winner by the Coal, Biomass & Alternative Fuels Committee.
 
Kreutz, T., R.H. Williams, S. Consonni, and P. Chiesa, 2005: Co-production of hydrogen, electricity, and CO2 from coal with commercially ready technology, Part B: economic Analysis, International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, 30: 769-784.
 
Chiesa, P., S. Consonni, T. Kreutz, and R.H. Williams, 2005: Co-production of hydrogen, electricity, and CO2 from coal with commercially ready technology. Part A: performance and emissions, International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, 30: 747-767.
 
Duke, R., R.H. Williams, and A. Payne, 2005: Accelerating residential PV expansion: demand analysis for competitive electricity markets, Energy Policy, 33: 1912-1929.
 
Goldemberg, J., T.B. Johansson, A.K.N. Reddy, and R.H. Williams, 2004: A global clean cooking fuel initiative, Energy for Sustainable Development, VIII (3): 5-12, September.
 
Ogden, J.M., R.H. Williams, and E. Larson, 2004: Societal lifecycle costs of cars with alternative fuels, Energy Policy, 32: 7-27.
 
Williams, R.H. and E.D. Larson, 2003: A comparison of direct and indirect liquefaction technologies for making fluid fuels from coal, Energy for Sustainable Development, VII (4): 89-115.
 
TFEST (Task Force on Energy Strategies and Technologies, 2003: Transforming coal for sustainability: a strategy for China, Energy for Sustainable Development, VII (4): 21-30.
 
Goldemberg, J., T.B. Johansson, A.K.N. Reddy, and R.H. Williams, 2001: Energy for the New Millenium, Ambio, 30 (6): 330-337, September (Volvo Environment Prize article).
 
Williams, R.H., 2001: Toward zero emissions from coal in China, Energy for Sustainable Development, V (4): 39-65, December.
 
 
Larson, E.D., R.H. Williams, and Leal, M.Regis L.V., 2001: A review of biomass integrated-gasifier/gas turbine combined cycle technology and its application in sugarcane industries, with an analysis for Cuba, Energy for Sustainable Development, V (1): 54-76, March.
 
Payne, A., R. Duke, and R.H. Williams, 2001: Accelerating residential PV expansion: supply analysis for competitive electricity markets, Energy Policy, 29: 787-800.
 
Henderick, P., and R.H. Williams, 2000: Trigeneration in a northern Chinese village using crop residues, Energy for Sustainable Development, 4 (3): 13-29, October.
 
Kartha, S., T.G. Kreutz, and R.H. Williams, 2000: Small-scale biomass fuel cell/gas turbine power systems for rural areas, Energy for Sustainable Development, 4 (1): 85-89, June.
 
Steinbugler, M.M., and R.H. Williams, 1998: Beyond combustion: fuel cell cars for the 21st century, Forum for Applied Research and Public Policy, 13 (4), pp. 102-107, Winter.
 
Williams, R.H., 1998: A technological strategy for making fossil fuels-environment and climate-friendly, World Energy Council Journal, pp. 59-67, July.
 
Lew, D., R.H. Williams, S. Xie, and S. Zhang, 1998: Large-scale baseload wind power in China, Natural Resources Forum, 22 (3): 165-18.
 
Blok, K., R.H. Williams, R.E. Katofsky, and C.A. Hendriks, 1997: Hydrogen production from natural gas, sequestration of recovered CO2 in depleted gas wells, and enhanced natural gas recovery, Energy: the International Journal, 22 (2/3): 161-168.
 
Williams, R.H., and E.D. Larson, 1996: Biomass gasifier gas turbine power generating technology, Biomass and Bioenergy, 10 (2-3): 149-166.
 
Johansson, T.B., R.H. Williams, J.A. Edmonds, H. Ishitani, 1996: Options for reducing CO2 emissions from the energy supply sector, Energy Policy, 24 (10/11): 985-1003.
 
Williams, R.H., E.D. Larson, R.E. Katofsky, and J. Chen, 1995: Methanol and hydrogen from biomass for transportation, Energy for Sustainable Development: The Journal of the
International Energy Initiative, I (5): 18-34, January.
 
 
Hall, D.O., H.E. Mynick, and R.H. Williams, 1991: Cooling the greenhouse with biomass energy, Nature, 353: 11-12, September.
 
Weinberg, C.J., and R.H. Williams, 1990: Energy from the sun, Scientific American, 263 (3): 147-155, September.
 
Ogden, J.M., and R.H. Williams, 1990: Electrolytic hydrogen from thin‑film solar cells, International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, 15 (3): 155-169.
 
Williams, R.H., and H.A. Feiveson, 1990: Diversion‑resistance criteria for future nuclear power, Energy Policy, 18 (6): 543‑549, July/August.
 
Larson, E.D., J.M. Ogden, R.H. Williams, and M. Hylton, 1990: Biomass‑fired steam‑injected gas turbine cogeneration for the cane sugar industry, International Sugar Journal, 92 (1095): 49-66, March/April.
 
Larson, E.D., and R.H. Williams, 1990: Biomass gasifier steam‑injected gas turbine cogeneration, Journal of Engineering for Gas Turbines and Power, 112: 157-163, April.
 
Larson, E.D., and R.H. Williams, 1987: Steam‑injected gas turbines, Journal of Engineering for Gas Turbines and Power, Transactions of the ASME, 109 (1): 55‑63, January.
 
Williams, R.H., E.D. Larson, and M.H. Ross, 1987: Materials, affluence, and industrial energy use, Annual Review of Energy, 12: 99‑144.
 
Larson, E.D., M.H. Ross, and R.H. Williams, 1986: Beyond the era of materials, Scientific American, 254 (6): 34‑41, June.
 
Goldemberg, J., T.B. Johansson, A.K.N. Reddy, and R.H. Williams, 1985: An end‑use oriented global energy strategy, Annual Review of Energy, 10: 613‑688.
 
Goldemberg, J., T.B. Johansson, A.K.N. Reddy, and R.H. Williams, 1985: Basic needs and much more with 1 kilowatt per capita, Ambio, 14 (4‑5): 190‑200. 
 
Williams, R.H., 1985: Potential roles for bioenergy in an energy‑efficient world, Ambio, 14 (4-5): 201-209.
 
Feiveson, H.A., F. von Hippel, and R.H. Williams, 1979: Fission power: an evolutionary strategy, Science, 203: 330-337, 26 January.
 
Williams, R.H., 1978: Industrial cogeneration, Annual Review of Energy, 2: 313-356, 1978.
 

Books

Goldemberg, J., and T.B. Johansson, eds., 2004: World Energy Assessment: Overview, 2004 Update [with contributions from 21 authors, including Williams], United Nations Development Programme, New York, 85 pages. The WEA is a project of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, and the World Energy Council.
 
WEA Editorial Board, 2000: Overview: Energy and the Challenge of Sustainability—the World Energy Assessment, 28 pp., UN Development Programme, New York. [The Overview of the World Energy Assessment (WEA) is the collective responsibility of the 10 convening lead authors of WEA chapters (of which Williams is one), the Chair, the 5 Vice Chairs, and the 3 representatives of the establishing institutions.]
 
Reddy, A.K.N., R.H. Williams, T.B. Johansson, Energy After Rio, Prospects and Challenges,
United Nations Development Program, New York, NY, 1997. 176 pp.
 
Johansson, T.B., H. Kelly, A.K.N. Reddy, and R.H. Williams, eds., 1993: Renewable Energy:
Sources forFuels and Electricity, Island Press, Wash., DC, 1160 pp.
 
Ogden, J.M., and R.H. Williams, 1989: Solar Hydrogen: Moving Beyond Fossil Fuels, World
Resources Institute, Washington, DC.
 
Johansson, T.B., B. Bodlund, and R.H. Williams, eds., 1989: Electricity: Efficient End-Use and
New Generation Technologies, and Their Planning Implications, Lund University Press, Lund,
Sweden, 960 pp.
 
Goldemberg, J., T.B. Johansson, A.K.N. Reddy, and R.H. Williams, 1988: Energy for a
Sustainable World, Wiley Eastern, New Delhi, 517 pp.
 
Goldemberg, J., T.B. Johansson, A.K.N. Reddy, and R.H. Williams, 1987: Energy for Development, World Resources Institute, 73 p., September.
 
Goldemberg, J., T.B. Johansson, A.K.N. Reddy, and R.H. Williams, 1987: Energy for a Sustainable World, World Resources Institute, 119 p., September.
 
Ross, M.H., and R.H. Williams, 1981: Our Energy: Regaining Control, McGraw Hill, January.
 
Williams, R.H., ed., 1978: Toward A Solar Civilization, MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass.
 
Williams, R.H., ed., 1975: The Energy Conservation Papers, a collection of special reports of the Energy Policy Project of the Ford Foundation, Ballinger, Cambridge, 1975.
 
EPP Staff (including Williams), 1974: A Time to Choose: America's Energy Future, the Final Report of the Energy Policy Project (EPP) of the Ford Foundation, Ballinger, Cambridge, October 1974.
 

Chapters in Books

Larson, E.D., and Z. Li (Co-Convening Lead Authors), R.H. Williams (Lead Author), and T. Fleisch, G. Liu, G. Nicolaides, X. Ren (Contributing Authors) (2012). Fossil Energy Systems, Chapter 12 of The Global Energy Assessment, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, (in the press).
 
Williams, R.H., G. Liu, E.D. Larson, and T.G. Kreutz (2011). Low-C power from fossil fuel and biomass with synthetic fuels coproduction. Paper prepared for ACS Fuel Division Symposium on Fuels, Chemicals, Materials, and Energy from Biomass, Coal, and Natural Resources, Anaheim California, 27-31 March.
 
Williams, R.H., G. Liu, T.G. Kreutz and E.D. Larson. (2011). Alternatives for decarbonizing existing USA coal power plant sites. Energy Procedia: 10th International Conference on Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies, 4(0): 1843-1850.
 
Liu, G., R. H. Williams, E.D. Larson and T.G. Kreutz. (2011). Design/economics of low-carbon power generation from natural gas and biomass with synthetic fuels co-production. Energy Procedia; 10th International Conference on Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies, 4(0): 1989-1996.
 
Larson, E.D., G. Fiorese, G. Liu, R.H. Williams, T.G. Kreutz, S. Consonni. (2010). Co-production of synfuels and electricity from coal + biomass with zero net carbon emissions: An Illinois case study. Energy Procedia: 9th International Conference on Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies, 1(1): 4371-4378.
 
Panel on Alternative Liquid Transportation Fuels, Liquid Transportation Fuels from Coal and Biomass: Technological Costs, Status, and Environmental Impacts, National Academies Press, Washington DC, 20 May 2009. (Though not authors, Kreutz, Larson, Liu, and Williams provided extensive inputs to the Panel members who prepared this report. The report is one of three panel reports backing up the major National Research Council Study, America’s Energy Future: Technology and Transformation, the summary of which was published in June 2009). The estimated energy and carbon balances, capital costs, and synfuel production costs for synthetic fuels derived from coal, biomass, and coal + biomass published in both the report of the Alternative Liquid Transportation Fuels report and the America’s Energy Future study are the values provided to the NRC by the Princeton ESAG.
 
Carbo, M. (with T.G. Kreutz, R.H. Williams, R. W. van den Brink, D. Jansen, Robert H. Socolow, and A.H.M. Verkooijen), 2009. "CO2 slurries for transport and pressurization of low rank coals in IGCC power plants with CCS, Poster presentation." Proceedings of the 8th Annual DOE/NETL Conference on Carbon Capture and Sequestration, Pittsburgh, PA, 4-7 May.
 
Kreutz ,T. (with E.D. Larson, G. Liu, R.H. Williams, and R. Socolow), 2009. "An integrated framework for comparative techno-economic evaluations of plants that convert coal and/or biomass to power and/or synthetic liquid transportation fuels," Oral presentation, Proceedings of the 8th Annual DOE/NETL Conference on Carbon Capture and Sequestration, Pittsburgh, PA, 4-7 May.
 
G. Liu (with E.D. Larson, R.H. Williams, J. Katzer, 2009. "Gasoline from coal and biomass with CCS: performance and cost analysis" Oral presentation. Proceedings of the 8th Annual Conference on Carbon Capture and Sequestration, Pittsburgh, 4-7 May.
 
Williams, R.H. 2009: "A CCS early action initiative to spur realization at low cost of multiple low-carbon and energy security benefits at existing coal power plant sites" Poster presentation, Proceedings of the 8th Annual DOE/NETL Conference on Carbon Capture and Sequestration, Pittsburgh, PA, May 4-7, 2009.
 
R. Williams, E. Larson, G. Liu, and T. Kreutz, 2008: “Fischer-Tropsch Fuels from Coal and Biomass: Strategic Advantages of Once-Through (‘Polygeneration’) Configurations,” to be published in the Proceedings of the 9th International Conference on Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies, Washington, DC, 16-20 November.
 
Larson, E., G. Fiorese, G. Liu, R. Williams, T. Kreutz, and S.Consonni, 2008: “ Co-production of synfuels and electricity from coal + biomass with zero net carbon emissions: an Illinois case study,” to be published in the Proceedings of the 9th International Conference on Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies, Washington, DC, 16-20 November.
 
Kreutz, T., E. Larson, G. Liu, and R. Williams, 2008: “Fischer-Tropsch Fuels from Coal and Biomass,” Proceedings of the 25th Annual International Pittsburgh Coal Conference, Pittsburgh, PA, 29 September – 2 October.
 
R.H. Williams, and T.G. Kreutz, 2007: “An opportunity for enhanced oil recovery in Texas using CO2 from IGCC+CCS fueled with mixtures of petcoke and low-rank coals,” PowerPoint paper, Proceedings Sixth Annual Conference on Carbon Capture and Sequestration, Pittsburgh, PA, May 7-10.
 
R.H. Williams, S. Consonni, G. Fiorese, and E.D. Larson, 2007: “Synthetic gasoline and diesel from coal and mixed prairie grasses for a carbon-constrained world,” PowerPoint paper, Sixth Annual Carbon Capture and Sequestration Conference, Pittsburgh, PA, 7-10 May.
 
Larson, E.D., H. Jin, G. Liu, and R.H. Williams, 2007: “Zero-carbon FT liquids via gasification of coal and biomass with CCS,” PowerPoint paper, Proceedings Sixth Annual Carbon Capture and Sequestration Conference, Pittsburgh, PA, 7-10 May.
 
E.D. Larson, R.H. Williams, and H. Jin, 2006: “Fuels and electricity from biomass with CO2 capture and storage,” Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies, Trondheim, Norway, 19-22 June.
 
R.H. Williams, E.D. Larson, and H. Jin, 2006: “Synthetic fuels in a world with high oil and carbon prices,” Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies, Trondheim, Norway, 19-22 June.
 
S. Succar, D. Denkenberger, J. B. Greenblatt, and R. H. Williams, 2006: "An integrated optimization of large-scale wind with variable rating coupled to compressed air energy storage," Proceedings of AWEA Windpower 2006, Pittsburgh, PA.
 
S. Succar, J.B. Greenblatt, and R.H. Williams, 2006: “Comparing coal IGCC with CCS and wind-CAES baseload power options in a carbon-constrained world,” Proceedings of the 5th Annual Conference on Carbon Capture and Sequestration-DOE/NETL, Alexandria, Virginia, 8-11 May.
 
R.H. Williams, E.D. Larson, and H. Jin, 2006: “Comparing climate-change mitigating potentials of alternative synthetic liquid fuel technologies using biomass and coal, Proceedings of the 5th Annual Conference on Carbon Capture and Sequestration-DOE/NETL, Alexandria, Virginia, 8-11 May.
 
K. Thambimuthu, M. Soltanieh, and J.C. Abanades (coordinating lead authors) and R. Allam, O. Boland, J. Davison, P. Feron, F. Goede, A. Herrera, M. Iijima, D. Jansen, I. Leites, P. Mathieu, E. Rubin, D. Simbeck, K. Warmuzinski, M. Wilkinson, and R. Williams, 2005: Capture of CO2, Chapter 3 in Carbon Dioxide Capture and Storage, a Special Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 431 pages.
 
J. Gale (coordinating lead author) and J. Bradshaw, Z. Chen, A. Garg, D. Gomez, H.-H. Rogner, D. Simbeck, and R.H. Williams (lead authors), 2005: Sources of CO2, Chapter 2 in Carbon Dioxide Capture and Storage, a Special Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 431 pages.
 
R.H. Williams, “Cost-competitive, low-GHG-emitting synthetic liquid fuels via coordinated energy production with CO2 capture and storage from coal and biomass,” 2005: Proceedings of the Fourth Annual Conference on Carbon Capture & Sequestration: Developing Potential Paths Forward Based on the Knowledge, Science and Experience to Date, Advanced Concepts – Biomass Offsets (powerpoint presentation), May.
 
E.D. Larson, H. Jin, R.H. Williams, and F.E. Celik, 2005: “Gasification-based liquid fuels and electricity from biomass with carbon capture and storage,” Proceedings of the Fourth Annual Conference on Carbon Capture & Sequestration: Developing Potential Paths Forward Based on the Knowledge, Science and Experience to Date, Advanced Concepts – Biomass Offsets (powerpoint presentation), May.
 
F. Celik, E.D. Larson, and R.H. Williams, 2004: Transportation fuels from coal with low CO2 emissions, Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies, (GHGT-7), Vancouver, BC, Canada, September 5-9.
 
Thomas Kreutz and Robert Williams, 2004: Competition between coal and natural gas in producing H2 and electricity under CO2 emission constraints,” Proceedings of the 7th International Meeting on Greenhouse Gas Control (GHGT-7), Vancouver, Canada, 5-9 September.
 
Luca De Lorenzo, Thomas G. Kreutz, Paolo Chiesa, and Robert H. Williams, 2004: Carbon-free hydrogen and electricity from coal: options for syngas cooling in systems using a hydrogen separation membrane reactor, Proceedings of the Third Annual Conference on Carbon Sequestration, Alexandria, VA, May 3-6.
 
Williams, R.H., 2003: Decarbonized fossil energy carriers and their energy technological competitors, pp. 119-135, in Proceedings of the Workshop on Carbon Capture and Storage of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, published by ECN (Energy Research Center of The Netherlands), 18-21 November, 178 pp.
 
Williams, R.H., 2003: “Toward zero emissions for transportation using fossil fuels,” pp. 63-103, in Proceedings of the VIII Biennial Asilomar Conference on Transportation, Energy, and Environmental Policy: Managing Transitions, K.S. Kurani and D. Sperling (eds.), Transportation Research Board: Washington, DC, 284 pp.
 
Kreutz, T.G., R.H. Williams, R.H. Socolow, P. Chiesa, G. Lozza, 2002: Production of hydrogen and electricity from coal with CO2 capture, in Proceeding of the 6th International Conference on Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies (GHGT-6), Kyoto Japan. 30 September - 4 October.
 
Williams, R.H., 2002: Nuclear and alternative energy supply options for an environmentally constrained world: a long-term perspective, Chapter 6, pp. 85-122, in Nuclear Power and the Spread of Nuclear Weapons: Can We Have One Without the Other?, P. Leventhal, S. Tanzer, and S. Dolley, eds., Brassey’s, Washington, DC, 340 pp.
 
Goldemberg, J. (Convening Lead Author), and A.K.N. Reddy, K. Smith, and R.H. Williams (Lead Authors), 2000: Rural energy for developing countries, Chapter 10, pp. 369 to 389, in Energy and the Challenge of Sustainability—the World Energy Assessment, 508 pages, UN Development Programme, New York.
 
Williams, R.H. (Convening Lead Author), 2000: Advanced energy supply technologies, Chapter 8, pp. 274 to 329, in Energy and the Challenge of Sustainability—World Energy Assessment, 508 pages, UN Development Programme, New York.
 
Williams, R.H., 1999: Toward zero emissions for coal: roles for inorganic membranes, Proceedings of the International Symposium Toward Zero Emissions: the Challenge for Hydrocarbons, Palazzo Colonna, Rome, Italy, March 11-13, 1999.
 
Williams, R.H., 1999: Hydrogen production from coal and coal bed methane, using byproduct CO2 for enhanced methane recovery and sequestering the CO2 in the coal bed, pp. 799-804, in Proceedings of the 4th International Conference on GHG Control Technologies, Interlaken, Switzerland, August 30 – September 2, 1998, B. Eliasson, P. Riemer, and A. Wokaun (eds.), Pergamon, Amsterdam, 1205 p.
 
Williams, R.H., and B. Wells, 1998: Solar-assisted hydrogen production from natural gas with
low CO2 emissions, pp. 503-512, in Greenhouse Gas Mitigation: Technologies for Activities
Implemented Jointly: Proceedings of the International Conference on Activities Implemented
Jointly, May 26-29, 1997,Vancouver, British Columbia, P.W.F. Riemer, A.J. Smith, and K.V.
Thambimuthu (eds.).
 
Williams, R.H., 1998: Fuel decarbonization for fuel cell applications and sequestration of the
separated CO2, pp. 180-222, in Eco-restructuring: Implications for Sustainable Development,
Ayres (ed.), United Nations University Press, Tokyo.
 
Williams, R.H. (+ other lead authors), 1996: Chapter 19: Energy supply mitigation options," pp. 588-647, in Climate Change 1995 - Impacts, Adaptations and Mitigation of Climate Change: Scientific-Technical Analyses, R.T. Watson, M.C. Zinyowera, R.H. Moss, eds., Second Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Cambridge University Press, 879 pp.
 
Williams, R.H., 1994: Roles for biomass energy in sustainable development, pp. 199-225, in
Industrial Ecology and Global Change, R.H. Socolow et al. (eds.), Cambridge University Press,
Cambridge.
 
Johansson, T.B., H. Kelly, A.K.N. Reddy, and R.H. Williams, 1993: A renewables‑intensive global energy scenario, pp. 1071‑1142, in Renewable Energy: Sources for Fuels and Electricity.
 
Hall, D.O., F. Rosillo-Calle, R.H. Williams, and J. Woods, 1993: Biomass for energy: supply prospects, pp. 593-652, in Renewable Energy: Sources for Fuels & Electricity.
 
Williams, R.H., and E.D. Larson, 1993: Advanced gasification-based biomass power generation, pp. 729-785, in Renewable Energy: Sources for Fuels and Electricity.
 
Johansson, T.B., H. Kelly, A.K.N. Reddy, and R.H. Williams, 1993: Renewable fuels and electricity for a growing world economy, pp. 1‑72, in Renewable Energy: Sources for Fuels and Electricity.
 

Commissioned Reports

S. Succar and R.H. Williams, 2008: Compressed Air Energy Storage: Theory, Operation and Applications, a report of the Energy Systems Analysis Group, Princeton Environmental Institute, Princeton University, 8 April.
 
R.H. Williams, Invited Written Testimony for the Hearing on the Future of Coal under Carbon Cap and Trade before the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming, US House of Representatives, 27 September 2007.
 
WGA Coal to Liquids Working Group (G. Parker, P. Bollinger, G. Schaefer, D. Sheppard, and R. Williams), 2007: Coal to Liquids, a report of the Transportation Fuels for the Future Initiative of the Western Governors’ Association, including a separate statement by R. Williams (appendix), November, available at www.westgov.org.
 
R.H. Williams, 2004: Toward polygeneration of fluid fuels and electricity via gasification of
coal and biomass, in NCEP Technical Appendix: Expanding Energy Supply, in The National
Commission on Energy Policy, Ending the Energy Stalemate: A Bipartisan Strategy to Meet
America’s Energy Challenges, Washington, DC, December.
 
R.H. Williams, 2004: IGCC: next steps on the path to gasification-based energy from coal, in NCEP Technical Appendix: Expanding Energy Supply, in The National Commission on Energy Policy, Ending the Energy Stalemate: A Bipartisan Strategy to Meet America’s Energy Challenges, Washington, DC, December.
 
E.D. Larson, R.H. Williams, and M.R.L.V. Leal, 2000: Biomass Integrated-Gasifier/Gas Turbine Combined Cycle Technology for Sugarcane Processing Industries: Possibilities for Cuba, report prepared for the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Oslo, 28 November.
 
R.H. Williams + other members of the PCAST Panel on International Cooperation in Energy Research, Development, Demonstration, and Deployment, 1999: Powerful Partnerships: The Federal Role in International Cooperation on Energy Innovation, June.
 
R.H. Socolow (editor), J. Ogden, R.H. Williams, and other Report Committee members, 1997:
Fuels Decarbonization and Carbon Sequestration: Report of a Workshop, PU/CEES Report No.
302, CEES, Princeton University, November.
 
R.H. Williams + Other Members Of the Energy R&D Panel of the President’s Committee of
Advisors and Science And Technology (PCAST), 1997: Federal Energy Research and
Development for the Challenges of the Twenty-First Century, Wash., DC, November.
 

Publications in media

“CCS for coal power plant sites with low energy and cost penalties,” Carbon Capture Journal, Issue 12, January/February 2010, article based on presentation by R.H. Williams at the IFP Conference Which Technologies to Diversify Transportation Fuels?, Rueil-Malmaison, France, 9 December 2009.
 
Williams, R.H. (2009). “Strategy Already Exists to Address CO2 Emissions,” Grand Forks Herald, Insight Section (Section D), The Opinion Page (Page D3), Grand Forks, North Dakota, 1 November.
 
Dryer, F.L. (with R.H. Williams and E.D. Larson), “How Aviation Can Clean up its Act,” commentary published online by BBC Green Room, 11 August 2009.
 

Boards, Committees, Editorships:

Member, Editorial Board, and a Convening Lead Author of the World Energy Assessment (WEA) of the United Nations Development Programme, the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, and the World Energy Council.

Member, International Energy Research, Development, Demonstration, and Deployment Panel of the President's Committee of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) and Chairman of its Energy Supply Task Force, 1998-

International Member, Energy Strategies and Technologies Working Group of the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development, February 1993-

Member, Board of Directors, International Energy Initiative (a developing country-led effort to accelerate the implementation of more efficient means to produce and use energy in developing countries), September 1992-

Member, Energy Research and Development Panel of the President's Committee of Advisors on Science and Technology and Chairman of its Renewable Energy Task Force, 1997.

Member, Scientific and Technical Advisory Panel (STAP) to the Global Environment Facility (GEF), January 1995-98 and Chairman of the STAP Climate and Energy Working Group.
The GEF is administered by The World Bank, the United Nations Development Programme, and the United Nations Environment Programme.