Filter News
Area of Research
- (-) Isotopes (2)
- (-) Neutron Science (3)
- (-) Supercomputing (8)
- Advanced Manufacturing (3)
- Biology and Environment (9)
- Building Technologies (1)
- Clean Energy (30)
- Computer Science (2)
- Electricity and Smart Grid (1)
- Fusion and Fission (4)
- Materials (6)
- Materials for Computing (6)
- National Security (3)
- Sensors and Controls (1)
News Topics
- (-) Cybersecurity (2)
- (-) Microscopy (2)
- (-) Quantum Computing (5)
- (-) Space Exploration (3)
- (-) Sustainable Energy (1)
- 3-D Printing/Advanced Manufacturing (2)
- Artificial Intelligence (3)
- Biology (2)
- Biomedical (4)
- Buildings (1)
- Chemical Sciences (1)
- Climate Change (3)
- Computer Science (16)
- Coronavirus (3)
- Energy Storage (2)
- Environment (6)
- Frontier (3)
- Fusion (1)
- High-Performance Computing (10)
- Isotopes (11)
- Machine Learning (1)
- Materials (4)
- Materials Science (7)
- Nanotechnology (2)
- National Security (2)
- Neutron Science (14)
- Physics (2)
- Quantum Science (4)
- Security (1)
- Summit (5)
- Transportation (2)
Media Contacts
![ORNL welder Devin Johnson uses a new orbital welder to seal a hollow target in a glovebox in the lab’s Radiochemical Engineering Development Center. The new welder makes a clean seam on the metal target, eliminating the need for hand-finishing afterward. Credit: Carlos Jones/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2021-01/2021-P00359.jpg?h=8f9cfe54&itok=_g8_FpZZ)
A better way of welding targets for Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s plutonium-238 production has sped up the process and improved consistency and efficiency. This advancement will ultimately benefit the lab’s goal to make enough Pu-238 – the isotope that powers NASA’s deep space missions – to yield 1.5 kilograms of plutonium oxide annually by 2026.