How Scientists Are Accelerating Chemistry Discoveries With Automation
Researchers have developed an automated workflow that could accelerate the discovery of new pharmaceutical drugs and other useful products. The new approach could enable real-time reaction analysis and identify new chemical-reaction products much faster than current laboratory methods.
First-of-its-kind integrated dataset enables genes-to-ecosystems research
A first-ever dataset bridging molecular information about the poplar tree microbiome to ecosystem-level processes has been released by a team of Department of Energy scientists led by Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
An Inside Look at How Plants and Mycorrhizal Fungi Cooperate
For millions of years, underground fungi have lived in symbiosis with plant roots. Researchers have been able to study both sides of this interaction up close, using RNA sequencing to understand gene expression: one of the first cross-kingdom spatially-resolved transcriptomics studies to date.
New Calculations Solve an Alpha Particle Physics Puzzle
In early 2023, scientists published a new measurement testing the strong nuclear force. The experiment involved the way an alpha particle becomes excited. The study suggested a puzzle that could not be solved with existing theoretical methods.
First Results from DESI Make the Most Precise Measurement of Our Expanding Universe
Researchers have used the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument to make the largest 3D map of our universe and world-leading measurements of dark energy, the mysterious cause of its accelerating expansion
Riding through: Researchers enhance reliability of electric vehicle charging
Driver uncertainty about access to electric vehicle charging during long trips remains a barrier to broader EV adoption, even as the U.S. strives to combat climate change by converting more drivers. Researchers at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory are working to make EV charging more resilient.
"Tug of War" Tactic Enhances Chemical Separations for Critical Materials
Lanthanide elements are important for clean energy and other applications. To use them, industry must separate mixed lanthanide sources into individual elements using costly, time-consuming, and waste-generating procedures. An efficient new method can be tailored to select specific lanthanides.
Understanding Charged-Particle Bound States in Periodic Boxes
Physicists use methods called finite-volume simulations with periodic boundary conditions to model the nuclei protons and neutrons can form. This new work solves a long-standing and fundamental problem for electrically charged systems in these "periodic boxes." It derives the mathematical equation that describes how the properties of these electrically charged systems depend on the size of the simulation volume.
Creating Quiet Cables for Rare Physics Events
Background radioactivity from cables in equipment for ultra-precise physics experiments can impair those experiments.
Adding just enough fuel to the fire
PPPL researchers have determined the maximum density of uncharged particles at the edge of a plasma before certain instabilities become unpredictable. This is the first time such a level has been established for Lithium Tokamak Experiment-Beta. Knowing this level is a big step in their mission to prove lithium is the ideal choice for an inner-wall coating in a tokamak because it guides them toward the best practices for fueling their plasmas.
Scientists Confirm that Methane-Processing Microbes Produce a Fossil Record
Microbes called anaerobic methanotrophic archaea form communities with sulfate reducing bacteria. These communities can consume methane in anaerobic environments. This research found that biological processes in these microbial communities can create silica deposits that appear to entomb the communities.
Scientists Use Summit Supercomputer to Explore Exotic Stellar Phenomena
Astrophysicists at the State University of New York, Stony Brook, and University of California, Berkeley, used the Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility's Summit supercomputer to compare models of X-ray bursts in 2D and 3D.
Scientists propose a new way to search for dark matter
In a new study, SLAC researchers suggest a small-scale solution could be the key to solving a large-scale mystery.
Sweet Success: Researchers Crack Sugarcane's Complex Genetic Code
Scientists created a highly accurate reference genome for one of the most important modern crops and found a rare example of how genes confer disease resistance in plants. Exploring sugarcane's genetic code could help researchers develop more resilient and productive crops, with implications for both sugar production and biofuels.
Not-Quite "Magic" Oxygen-28 Observed for the First Time
According to the traditional model of nuclear shells, oxygen-28 is expected to be a doubly magic nucleus with 20 neutrons and 8 protons. However, an experiment performed at the Rare Isotope Beam Facility in Japan measured the direct decay of oxygen-28 into four neutrons and oxygen-24 and found that it is not a bound nucleus.
ORNL helping Roll-to-Roll Consortium scale up hydrogen technology
The Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory is providing national leadership in a new collaboration among five national laboratories to accelerate U.S. production of clean hydrogen fuel cells and electrolyzers.
New All-Liquid Iron Flow Battery for Grid Energy Storage
A new iron-based aqueous flow battery shows promise for grid energy storage applications.
Entanglement Entropies of Nuclear Systems Grow as the Volume of those Systems
Entanglement entropy quantifies the amount of entanglement between two subsystems. In many systems, the entanglement entropies increase as the area that separates them from their environment increases.
Say Hello to Biodegradable Microplastics
Finding viable alternatives to traditional petroleum-based plastics and microplastics has never been more important. New research from scientists at UC San Diego and Algenesis shows that their plant-based polymers biodegrade -- even at the microplastic level -- in under seven months.
Yeast Uses Plastic Waste Oils to Make High-Value Chemicals
Polyolefins are resistant to breaking down, making them hard to recycle. Scientists have now discovered a yeast, Yarrowia lipolytica, that uses hydrocarbons derived from polyolefin plastic wastes to produce substances that can be used to make biodegradable polyesters and polyurethanes.
Recyclable Reagent and Sunlight Convert Carbon Monoxide into Methanol
Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory and the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill (UNC) have demonstrated the selective conversion of carbon dioxide (CO2) into methanol using a cascade reaction strategy.
Strengthening the Grid's 'Backbone' with Hydropower
Argonne's recent research points to hydropower's great potential to complement the variability of wind and solar power -- and ultimately serve as the backbone for a clean grid.
Teasing Strange Matter from Ordinary
Like protons and neutrons, Lambda particles consist of three quarks bound together by gluons. But unlike protons and neutrons, which contain a mixture of up and down quarks, Lambdas also contain a strange quark.
Sustainable biomass production capacity could triple US bioeconomy, report finds
The United States could triple its current bioeconomy by producing more than 1 billion tons per year of plant-based biomass for renewable fuels, while meeting projected demands for food, feed, fiber, conventional forest products and exports, according to the Department of Energy's latest Billion-Ton Report led by Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
Searching for the Decay of Nature's Rarest Isotope: Tantalum-180m
The tantalum isotope, Ta-180m, is found naturally in a long-lived excited state. However, the radioactive decay of this excited state in Ta-180m has never been observed.