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ORNL retiree Duane Starr and his wife, Nancy, pose with the critical frequencies demo unit Duane designed, built and donated to the laboratory to support nuclear workshops.  Credit: Carlos Jones/ORNL, Dept. of Energy

For years, Duane Starr led workshops at ORNL to help others from across the U.S. government understand uranium processing technologies. After his retirement, Starr donated a 5-foot-tall working model, built in his garage, that demonstrates vibration harmonics, consistent with operation of a super critical gas centrifuge rotor, a valuable resource to ongoing ORNL-led workshops. 

conventional sedan

It’s common knowledge that driving aggressively can dent gas mileage, but it’s difficult to determine exactly how much gas drivers waste. A new study by researchers at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory has quantified the impact speeding and slamming on the brakes has on fuel economy and consumption. They found that aggressive behavior behind the wheel can lower gas mileage in light-duty vehicles by about 10 to 40 percent in stop-and-go traffic and roughly 15 to 30 percent at highway speeds. This can equate to losing about $0.25 to $1 per gallon.

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Complex oxides have long tantalized the materials science community for their promise in next-generation energy and information technologies. Complex oxide crystals combine oxygen atoms with assorted metals to produce unusual and very desirable properties.
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Blowing bubbles may be fun for kids, but for engineers, bubbles can disrupt fluid flow and damage metal.
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On Tuesday, Feb. 18, President Obama unveiled the timing for the next phase of fuel economy regulations for trucks. He delivered his speech at a Safeway store in Maryland.

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After an illustrious 36-year career, energy policy research analyst David Greene retired late last year from The Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory.