News

Photo of glowing, pink diamond-shaped figure. This is illuminated with light, encircled with a wreath of around 70 blue tube-like shapes.
Promethium’s secrets exposed
Male student wearing clear safety goggles peering through a 3D-printed item.
tnAchieves students learn about lab careers
Photo of a man in a black jacket suit with a blue shirt crossing his arms outside. He is smiling.
Wagner receives ASME Medal

Filter News

Area of Research

News Type

Date

News Topics

Media Contacts

Connect with ORNL

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers developed a device called a piezoelectric-driven magnetic actuator, or PEDMA, that can be inserted into the header of a microchannel heat exchanger to keep refrigerants flowing evenly and the HVAC unit running efficiently. Credit: ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Steady as it goes and flows

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers demonstrated that microchannel heat exchangers in heating, ventilation and air conditioning units can keep refrigerants evenly and continually distributed by inserting a device called a piezoelectric-driven

Caption: ORNL researchers demonstrated a system that can detect propane leaks within seconds and notify emergency services immediately, well before flames ignite. Credit: ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Buildings — Split-second leak detection

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers demonstrated that an electrochemical sensor paired with a transmitter not only detects propane leaks within seconds, but it can also send a signal to alert emergency services.

Scientists, from left, Parans Paranthaman, Tina Summers and Merlin Theodore at the DOE’s Carbon Fiber Technology Facility at ORNL are partnering with industry and university to develop antiviral materials for N95 masks. Credit: Genevieve Martin/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Materials — Self-sanitizing N95 masks

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers collaborated with Iowa State University and RJ Lee Group to demonstrate a safe and effective antiviral coating for N95 masks. The coating destroys the COVID-19-causing coronavirus and could enable reuse of masks made from various fabrics.

Mars Rover 2020

Secretary’s Honor Awards recognize dozens of ORNL employees

More than 50 current employees and recent retirees from ORNL received Department of Energy Secretary’s Honor Awards from Secretary Jennifer Granholm in January as part of project teams spanning the national laboratory system. The annual awards recognized 21 teams and three individuals for service and contributions to DOE’s mission and to the benefit of the nation.

Ashleigh Kimberlin and Mikayla Molnar achieve success with a gas-trapping apparatus for Ac-225 production. Credit: ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Tri-Lab effort makes strides toward increasing supply of Ac-225

In experiment after experiment, the synthetic radioisotope actinium-225 has shown promise for targeting and attacking certain types of cancer cells.

An algorithm developed and field-tested by ORNL researchers uses machine learning to maintain homeowners’ preferred temperatures year-round while minimizing energy costs. Credit: ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Energy – Building a better thermostat

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers designed and field-tested an algorithm that could help homeowners maintain comfortable temperatures year-round while minimizing utility costs.

Heavy-duty vehicles contribute 23% of transportation emissions of greenhouse gases and account for almost one-quarter of the fuel consumed annually in the U.S. Credit: Chris Bair/Unsplash

Heavy-duty vehicles an ideal entry into hydrogen fuel cell use

Through a consortium of Department of Energy national laboratories, ORNL scientists are applying their expertise to provide solutions that enable the commercialization of emission-free hydrogen fuel cell technology for heavy-duty

Parans Paranthaman, a researcher in the Chemical Sciences Division at ORNL, coordinated research efforts to study the filter efficiency of the N95 material. His published results represent one of the first studies on polypropylene as it relates to COVID-19. Credit: ORNL/U.S. Dept. of Energy

Powerful polymers: ORNL study provides new insights into N95’s COVID-19 filter efficiency

When COVID-19 was declared a pandemic in March 2020, Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Parans Paranthaman suddenly found himself working from home like millions of others.

Researchers at ORNL’s Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences and the University of Tennessee Health Science Center partnered to design a COVID-19 screening whistle for convenient home testing. Credit: Michelle Lehman/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Nanoscience – Blowing the whistle on COVID-19

Collaborators at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the University of Tennessee Health Science Center are developing a breath-sampling whistle that could make COVID-19 screening easy to do at home.

ORNL researchers have developed a new class of cobalt-free cathodes called NFA that are being investigated for making lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles. Credit: Andy Sproles/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

New class of cobalt-free cathodes could enhance energy density of next-gen lithium-ion batteries

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers have developed a new family of cathodes with the potential to replace the costly cobalt-based cathodes typically found in today’s lithium-ion batteries that power electric vehicles and consumer electronics.