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A collaboration between Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Caterpillar Inc. will investigate using methanol as an alternative fuel source for marine vessels. Members of the research team kicked off the project with the installation of a 6-cylinder engine at the Department of Energy’s National Transportation Research Center at ORNL.

ORNL and Caterpillar Inc. have entered into a cooperative research and development agreement, or CRADA, to investigate using methanol as an alternative fuel source for four-stroke internal combustion marine engines.

Mat Doucet, left, of Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Sarah Blair of the National Renewable Energy Lab used neutrons to understand an electrochemical way to produce ammonia

Scientists from Stanford University and the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory are turning air into fertilizer without leaving a carbon footprint. Their discovery could deliver a much-needed solution to help meet worldwide carbon-neutral goals by 2050.

ORNL researchers Lu Yu and Yaocai Bai examine vials that contain a chemical solution that causes the cobalt and lithium to separate from a spent battery, followed by a second stage when cobalt precipitates in the bottom. Credit: Carlos Jones/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Used lithium-ion batteries from cell phones, laptops and a growing number of electric vehicles are piling up, but options for recycling them remain limited mostly to burning or chemically dissolving shredded batteries.

Conceptual art depicts machine learning finding an ideal material for capacitive energy storage. Its carbon framework (black) has functional groups with oxygen (pink) and nitrogen (turquoise). Credit: Tao Wang/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Guided by machine learning, chemists at ORNL designed a record-setting carbonaceous supercapacitor material that stores four times more energy than the best commercial material.

An illustration of the lattice examined by Phil Anderson in the early ‘70s. Shown as green ellipses, pairs of quantum particles fluctuated among multiple combinations to produce a spin liquid state.

A team of researchers associated with the Quantum Science Center headquartered at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory has confirmed the presence of quantum spin liquid behavior in a new material with a triangular lattice, KYbSe2.

ORNL scientists developed a method that improves the accuracy of the CRISPR Cas9 gene editing tool used to modify microbes for renewable fuels and chemicals production. This research draws on the lab’s expertise in quantum biology, artificial intelligence and synthetic biology. Credit: Philip Gray/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Scientists at ORNL used their expertise in quantum biology, artificial intelligence and bioengineering to improve how CRISPR Cas9 genome editing tools work on organisms like microbes that can be modified to produce renewable fuels and chemicals.

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers took a connected and automated vehicle out of the virtual proving ground and onto a public road to determine energy savings when it is operated under predictive control strategies. Credit: ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

ORNL researchers  determined that a connected and automated vehicle, or CAV, traveling on a multilane highway with integrated traffic light timing control can maximize energy efficiency and achieve up to 27% savings.

Researchers have shown how an all-solid lithium-based electrolyte material can be used to develop fast charging, long-range batteries for electric vehicles that are also safer than conventional designs. Credit: ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Currently, the biggest hurdle for electric vehicles, or EVs, is the development of advanced battery technology to extend driving range, safety and reliability.

Sam Hollifield displays a prototype of the Secure Hijack, Intrusion and Exploit Layered Detector, or SHIELD, the device monitoring the cybersecurity of the semi-truck. Credit: Lena Shoemaker/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

As vehicles gain technological capabilities, car manufacturers are using an increasing number of computers and sensors to improve situational awareness and enhance the driving experience.

When exposed to radiation, electrons produced within molten zinc chloride, or ZnCl2, can be observed in three distinct singly occupied molecular orbital states, plus a more diffuse, delocalized state. Credit: Hung H. Nguyen/University of Iowa

In a finding that helps elucidate how molten salts in advanced nuclear reactors might behave, scientists have shown how electrons interacting with the ions of the molten salt can form three states with different properties. Understanding these states can help predict the impact of radiation on the performance of salt-fueled reactors.