Faster, more efficient energy storage could stem from holistic study of layered materials
A team led by Oak Ridge National Laboratory developed a novel, integrated approach to track energy-transporting ions within an ultra-thin material, which could unlock its energy storage potential leading toward faster charging, longer-lasting devices.
Some of America's Favorite Produce Crops May Need to Get a Move On by 2045
New research from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) shows that by the years 2045-2049 future temperatures will have more of an effect on when cool-season crops, such as broccoli and lettuce, can be grown than on where, while for warm-season crops (cantaloupe, tomatoes, carrots) the impact will be greater for where they can be grown versus when.
Filling in the blanks: How supercomputing can aid high-resolution X-ray imaging
Scientists are preparing for the increased brightness and resolution of next-generation light sources with a computing technique that reduces the need for human calculations to reconstruct images.
Argonne scientists use artificial intelligence in new way to strengthen power grid resiliency
A new artificial neural network model, created by Argonne scientists, handles both static and dynamic features of a power system with a relatively high degree of accuracy.
2D Electronics Get an Atomic Tuneup
Scientists at Berkeley Lab have demonstrated a new technique that could improve the performance of atomically thin semiconductors for next-generation electronics such as optoelectronics, thermoelectrics, and sensors.
Argonne scientists create water filtration membranes that can clean themselves
Scientists at the Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory have designed a new, low-cost means to address membrane fouling through the application of a light-activated coating that can make the membrane self-cleaning.
Novel 3D-printed device demonstrates enhanced capture of carbon dioxide emissions
The Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers have designed and additively manufactured a first-of-its-kind aluminum device that enhances the capture of carbon dioxide emitted from fossil fuel plants and other industrial processes.
Toward an Ultrahigh Energy Density Capacitor
Researchers at Berkeley Lab and UC Berkeley have demonstrated that a common material can be processed into a top-performing energy storage material. Their discovery could improve the efficiency, reliability, and robustness of personal electronics, wearable technologies, and car audio systems.
Searching for supernova neutrinos with DUNE
The international Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment collaboration has published a paper about its capability for performing supernova physics. It details the kind of activity DUNE expects in the detector during a supernova burst, how DUNE will know once a supernova occurs and what physics DUNE will extract from the neutrinos. DUNE's unique strength is its sensitivity to a particular type of neutrino called the electron neutrino, which will provide scientists with supernova data not available from any other experiment.
Cryo-EM study yields new clues to chicken pox infection
Stanford and SLAC scientists studying the varicella zoster virus found that an antibody that blocks infection doesn't work exactly as they'd thought.
The historical partnership that revolutionized battery research at Argonne
Argonne battery scientist Michael Thackeray highlights the ongoing research into manganese-based lithium-ion batteries, and how his work with Nobel Prize winner John B. Goodenough in the 80s has informed today's studies.
Low-Cost Home Air Quality Monitors Prove Useful for Wildfire Smoke
Published recently in the journal Sensors, a new study by Berkeley Lab air quality scientists tested four models of low-cost air quality monitors during actual wildfire pollution events and found that their readings of PM2.5 - or particulate matter under 2.5 microns, which has been linked to respiratory and cardiovascular issues - were consistently higher than the reference monitor used by the regulatory agencies; however, since each monitor had a relatively consistent response to the smoke, it is possible to use the readings to estimate true PM2.5 levels. Overall, the researchers concluded that the monitors can provide actionable information.
New findings could help scientists tame damaging heat bursts in fusion reactors
Physicists at PPPL discover a new trigger for edge localized modes (ELMs) -- instabilities that can halt fusion reactions and damage the tokamaks that house such reactions.
AI software enables real-time 3D printing quality assessment
Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers have developed artificial intelligence software for powder bed 3D printers that assesses the quality of parts in real time, without the need for expensive characterization equipment.
A Shining Example of Nature Leading the Way
From oil refining to automobile pollution-control devices to the bulk of pharmaceuticals, platinum-group metals are the go-to choice for facilitating chemical reactions. It's been that way for decades. But a new review article in the August 14 issue of the journal Science, led by first author Morris Bullock of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, provides a road map toward greater use of Earth-abundant metals, which would reduce cost and environmental impact.
UChicago scientists discover way to make quantum states last 10,000 times longer
Scientists discovered a simple modification that allows quantum systems to stay operational 10,000 times longer than previous systems.
SLAC scientists invent low-cost emergency ventilator and share the design for free
Researchers at the Department of Energy's SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory have invented an emergency ventilator that could help save the lives of patients suffering from COVID-19, the disease caused by novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2.
Scientists propose method for eliminating damaging heat bursts in fusion device
Researchers discover a technique for widening the windows of plasma current to enhance suppression of edge localized modes (ELMs) that can damage tokamak facilities.
A team of international physicists join forces in hunt for sterile neutrinos
The MINOS+ and Daya Bay neutrino experiments combine results to produce most stringent test yet for the existence of sterile neutrinos.
Explosive nuclear astrophysics
An international team has made a key discovery related to "presolar grains" found in some meteorites. This discovery has shed light on stellar explosions and the origin of chemical elements. It has also provided a new method for astronomical research.
Aug. 2020 Science Snapshots
*Subtropical weather phenomenon likely to bring greater rainfall - and drought - by 2100 *A Q&A with scientist Bin Wang on how Berkeley Lab is helping cities prepare for a major shift in our transportation and grid sectors *Berkeley Lab founder, cyclotron inventor, and Nobel laureate Ernest Lawrence, honored with a Memorial Highway in his home state.
New Science Behind Algae-based Flip-flops
UC San Diego researchers formulated polyurethane foams, made from algae oil, to meet commercial specifications for midsole shoes and the foot-bed of flip-flops. Their latest result, in a series of recent research publications, offers a complete solution to the plastics problem--at least for polyurethanes.
Horizon31 startup licenses ORNL global communication system for drones
Horizon31, LLC, of Knoxville, Tenn., has exclusively licensed a novel communication system that allows users to reliably operate unmanned vehicles such as drones from anywhere in the world using only an internet connection.
A Closer Look at Water-Splitting's Solar Fuel Potential
Scientists at Berkeley Lab and the Joint Center for Artificial Photosynthesis (JCAP) have gained important new insight into how the performance of a promising semiconducting thin film can be optimized at the nanoscale for renewable energy technologies such as solar fuels.
Poison control: Chasing the antidote
A fast-acting antidote to mitigate the effects of organophosphate poisoning requires a reactivator that can effectively and efficiently cross the blood-brain barrier, bind loosely to the enzyme, chemically snatch the poison and then leave quickly. Oak Ridge National Laboratory is using neutron diffraction data towards improving a novel reactivator design.