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Lianhong Gu is an environmental scientist in the Ecosystem Science Group at ORNL.
Photosynthesis is one of the most important processes on Earth. Without it the food chain would collapse, and we would lose a primary source of oxygen for all life. Yet it is a process that is still poorly understood outside the laboratory. With the help of an Oak Ridge Nation...
Chlorite dismutase - Journal cover art reprinted with permission from ACS Catalysis, vol. 7, issue 11, November 3, 2017. Further permissions related to the material excerpted should be directed to the ACS.

A new study sheds light on a unique enzyme that could provide an eco-friendly treatment for chlorite-contaminated water supplies and improve water quality worldwide. An international team of researchers led by Christian Obinger from the University of Vienna used neutron analys...

Rose Ruther

In the quest for better batteries, Rose Ruther has found that the positives nearly always outweigh the negatives, and that’s what keeps her coming back to the lab. Ruther works on novel materials to create batteries with higher energy density at a lower cost as part of the Roll to Roll Manufactur...

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Inspired by her computer science studies and the possibilities of 3D-printing, intern Elizabeth Yeoh-Wang found a way to combine those pursuits as she worked on a software project at the Manufacturing Demonstration Facility (MDF) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) last summer. Elizabeth, a r...

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Interdisciplinary work has been a hallmark of Julie Mitchell’s career, and it is a strength she expects to leverage in helping solve some big science challenges as she steps into the role of Deputy Director of the Biosciences Division at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). Mitchell will support...

ORNL’s 2017 Molten Salt Reactor Workshop offered a wide range of talks on advanced reactors, including modeling and simulation techniques, commercial licensing strategies and the Department of Energy’s efforts to work with industry on developing designs.

The third annual Molten Salt Reactor Workshop allowed leading voices on advanced reactors—including scientists from the national laboratory system, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, reactor design firms and universities—to discuss current efforts in molten salt reactor work and pu...

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.

Rick Raines

Richard “Rick” Raines has been on the forefront of protecting critical communications systems from attack since before the term “cyber” was in vogue, and he is bringing that leadership to bear as he takes on the role of director for the Electrical and Electronics Systems Research Division (EESRD) at...

L-R, ORNL’s Bruce Warmack, Nance Ericson with an early prototype of the Hot Stick (ORNL photographer Carlos Jones).
With more volts than ever before in electric vehicles (EVs) and on solar-paneled rooftops, first responder and electrical worker safety is a growing concern. Researchers at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) are addressing the challenge with the develop...
COHERENT collaborators were the first to observe coherent elastic neutrino–nucleus scattering. Their results, published in the journal Science, confirm a prediction of the Standard Model and establish constraints on alternative theoretical models. Image c

After more than a year of operation at the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), the COHERENT experiment, using the world’s smallest neutrino detector, has found a big fingerprint of the elusive, electrically neutral particles that interact only weakly with matter.