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ORNL and Enginuity researchers proved that a micro combined heat and power prototype, or mCHP, with an opposed piston engine can achieve more than 93% overall energy efficiency. The environmentally friendly mCHP can replace a back-up generator or traditional hot water heater. Credit: ORNL, U.S. Department of Energy

ORNL researchers, in collaboration with Enginuity Power Systems, demonstrated that a micro combined heat and power prototype, or mCHP, with a piston engine can achieve an overall energy efficiency greater than 93%. 

non-powered dam

Although more than 92,000 dams populate the country, the vast majority — about 89,000 — do not generate electricity through hydropower.

ORNL researchers determined lower heat exchange in lithium-ion batteries is caused by the strong non-harmonic forces among ions and weak interaction between layers, providing guidance for high-density battery design. Credit: Tianli Feng/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers proved that the heat transport ability of lithium-ion battery cathodes is much lower than previously determined, a finding that could help explain barriers to increasing energy storage capacity and boosting performance.

ORNL researcher Xiaobing Liu  works in the laboratory’s Building Technologies Research and Integration Center.

As a boy growing up in China, Xiaobing Liu knew all about Oak Ridge and the World War II Manhattan Project. He had no idea that he would one day work at DOE’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the Secret City’s successor. Liu is a lead researcher in geothermal heat pump (GHP) techn...

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Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers have produced the next generation of the National Hydropower Map – a visualization tool that provides updated statistics on overall capacity and performance on the nation’s hydropower fleet. The map is part of the lab’s National Hydropower ...
The Neutron Sciences Directorate’s two most recent distinguished fellows, Panchao Yin (left) and Bianca Haberl (below), are making major contributions to their respective fields. Image credit - Genevieve Martin
For early career researchers, a fellowship can be a valuable foot in the door, exposing them to the opportunity to gain experience in areas of science and technology of national importance.
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Crude oil refinement can be an extremely costly chemical process. In an effort to reduce energy and cost demands, Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers Anibal Ramirez-Cuesta and Stuart Campbell are collaborating with University of Nottingham (UK) researchers to develop metal-orga...
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The Spallation Neutron Source at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory broke records for sustained beam power level as well as for integrated energy and target lifetime in the month of June.
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The American Conference on Neutron Scattering returned to Knoxville this week, 12 years after its inaugural meeting there in 2002.

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Photovoltaic spray paint could coat the windows and walls of the future if scientists are successful in developing low-cost, flexible solar cells based on organic polymers. Scientists at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory recently discovered an unanticipated factor in the performance of polymer-based solar devices that gives new insight on how these materials form and function.