Two men pose next an electric car

Reducing reliance on fossil fuels

Widely known as the “father of the plug-in hybrid,” Professor Andrew Frank championed an approach to fuel-efficient vehicles that combined gasoline engines with electric motors running on rechargeable batteries. Frank’s students built a number of prototype vehicles for the U.S. Department of Energy “FutureCar” and “FutureTruck” competitions, and this approach is now in use by major auto manufacturers.

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