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Neutron computed tomography reveals how water is constrained to travel only along certain strands of a special yarn coated with a water-wicking compound and a biocatalytic enzyme. Credit: Yuxuan Zhang/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Textile engineering researchers from North Carolina State University used neutrons at Oak Ridge National Laboratory to identify a special wicking mechanism in a type of cotton yarn that allows the fibers to control the flow of liquid across certain strands.

Samples of four unique materials hitched a ride to space as part of an effort by ORNL scientists to evaluate how each fares under space conditions. Credit: Zac Ward/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

To study how space radiation affects materials for spacecraft and satellites, Oak Ridge National Laboratory scientists sent samples to the International Space Station. The results will inform design of radiation-resistant magnetic and electronic systems.

ORNL researchers observed that atomic vibrations in a twisted crystal result in winding energetic waves that govern heat transport, which may help new materials better manage heat. Credit: Jill Hemman/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

A discovery by Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers may aid the design of materials that better manage heat.

ORNL researchers used neutrons at the lab’s Spallation Neutron Source to analyze modified high-entropy metal alloys with enhanced strength and ductility, or the ability to stretch, under high-stress without failing. Credit: Rui Feng/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy
Researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory have developed a method of adding nanostructures to high-entropy metal alloys, or HEAs, that enhance both strength and ductility, which is the ability to deform or stretch
The first central solenoid module arrived at the ITER site in St. Paul-lez-Durance, France on Sept. 9. Credit: ITER Organization

Staff at Oak Ridge National Laboratory organized transport for a powerful component that is critical to the world’s largest experiment, the international ITER project.

A 3D printed thermal protection shield, produced by ORNL researchers for NASA, is part of a cargo spacecraft bound for the International Space Station. The shield was printed at the Department of Energy’s Manufacturing Demonstration Facility at ORNL. Credit: ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

A research team at Oak Ridge National Laboratory have 3D printed a thermal protection shield, or TPS, for a capsule that will launch with the Cygnus cargo spacecraft as part of the supply mission to the International Space Station.

An ORNL research team is investigating new catalysts for ethanol conversion that could advance the cost-effective production of renewable transportation. Credit: Unsplash

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers have developed a new catalyst for converting ethanol into C3+ olefins – the chemical

For the first time in 25 years, scientists will use deuterium and tritium to create a plasma inside the chamber of the Joint European Torus in the United Kingdom to study nuclear fusion. As in the earlier experiments, diagnostics systems developed by ORNL will play a key role in monitoring the plasma. Credit: EUROfusion

Equipment and expertise from Oak Ridge National Laboratory will allow scientists studying fusion energy and technologies to acquire crucial data during landmark fusion experiments in Europe. 

ORNL and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory scientists studied the formation of amorphous ice like the exotic ice found in interstellar space and on Jupiter’s moon, Europa. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Researchers from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and Oak Ridge National Laboratory successfully created amorphous ice, similar to ice in interstellar space and on icy worlds in our solar system. They documented that its disordered atomic behavior is unlike any ice on Earth.

ORNL’s green solvent enables environmentally friendly recycling of valuable Li-ion battery materials. Credit: Andy Sproles/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Scientists at Oak Ridge National Laboratory have developed a solvent that results in a more environmentally friendly process to recover valuable materials from used lithium-ion batteries, supports a stable domestic supply chain for new batteries