Oak Ridge Today

ORNL starts new six-year californium-252 production contract

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The Oak Ridge National Laboratory—home of one of only two reactor facilities in the world capable of producing californium-252 (Cf-252)—has begun implementing a new six-year contract between the U.S. Department of Energy Isotope Program and industry to make this unique and versatile radioisotope.

The new contract follows the successful completion of a four-year Cf-252 program under an agreement with a consortium of industries that use the neutron-emitting radioisotope for a number of applications that focus mostly on analysis, detection, and nuclear energy.

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Pic: ORNL Black History Month

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Black History Month at ORNL

Pictured above are, standing, Avon Rollins, director of the Beck Cultural Exchange Center, and Jim Little, participant in the 1963 March; and, seated, are Helen Ashe, Love Kitchen director and founder, and Ellen Turner, Love Kitchen manager. They shared their thoughts on the 1963 March on Washington at ORNL’s Black History Month celebration event. (Photographer: Curtis Boles)

The theme of this year’s Black History Month activities at Oak Ridge National Laboratory is “At the Crossroads of Freedom and Equality: The Emancipation Proclamation and the March on Washington.”

The lab had a Black History Month speaker event last week.

Proceeds from this year’s activities, including a soul food tasting, are being donated to the Love Kitchen. The committee presented a check for $3,000 to the Love Kitchen, and donations are still coming in, ORNL said.

First Oak Ridge nature walk Saturday

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The Oak Ridge Environmental Research Park’s first spring nature walk of 2013 will focus on studies of the American woodcock and winter astronomy on Saturday, Feb. 23.

The walk from 5:30-9 p.m. will include opportunities to view demonstrations of the American woodcock’s elaborate flight displays. Also, a trained falconer from the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency will have two different hawks on hand for participants to learn about.

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ORNL scientists solve mercury mystery, Science reports

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By identifying two genes required for transforming inorganic into organic mercury, which is far more toxic, scientists today have taken a significant step toward protecting human health.

The question of how methylmercury, an organic form of mercury, is produced by natural processes in the environment has stumped scientists for decades, but a team led by researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory has solved the puzzle. Results of the study, published in the journal Science, provide the genetic basis for this process, known as microbial mercury methylation, and have far-reaching implications.

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‘Bridging the Gap’ conference invites business community to ORNL

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Bridging the Gap

Oak Ridge National Laboratory will host its annual “Bridging the Gap” conference March 5-6. (Image courtesy of ORNL)

Several of Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s most promising applied research and development capabilities will be in the spotlight March 5-6 as dozens of entrepreneurs, investors, and scientists gather at the lab’s third annual “Bridging the Gap” conference.

“This is a great opportunity for the region’s business community to receive capability briefings from some of the lab’s most dynamic researchers and to explore commercialization and collaboration opportunities,” said Tom Rogers, ORNL’s director of Industrial Partnerships and Economic Development.

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‘Zoomable’ map of poplar proteins offers new view of bioenergy crop

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Poplar Proteins Molecular Map

An extensive molecular map of poplar tree proteins from Oak Ridge National Laboratory offers new insight into the plant’s biological processes. The study is featured on the cover of January’s Molecular and Cellular Proteomics. (Submitted photo)

Researchers seeking to improve production of ethanol from woody crops have a new resource in the form of an extensive molecular map of poplar tree proteins, published by a team from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

Populus, a fast-growing perennial tree, holds potential as a bioenergy crop due to its ability to produce large amounts of biomass on non-agricultural land. Now, a study by ORNL scientists with DOE’s BioEnergy Science Center has provided the most comprehensive look to date at poplar’s proteome, the suite of proteins produced by a plant’s cells. The study is featured on the cover of January’s Molecular and Cellular Proteomics.

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ORNL research paves way for larger, safer lithium ion batteries

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Solid Electrolyte for Lithium Ion Batteries

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers developed a nanoporous solid electrolyte (bottom left and in detail on right) from a solvated precursor (top left). The material conducts ions 1,000 times faster than its natural bulk form and enables more energy-dense lithium ion batteries. (Submitted photo)

Looking toward improved batteries for charging electric cars and storing energy from renewable but intermittent solar and wind, scientists at Oak Ridge National Laboratory have developed the first high-performance, nanostructured solid electrolyte for more energy-dense lithium ion batteries.

Today’s lithium-ion batteries rely on a liquid electrolyte, the material that conducts ions between the negatively charged anode and positive cathode. But liquid electrolytes often entail safety issues because of their flammability, especially as researchers try to pack more energy in a smaller battery volume. Building batteries with a solid electrolyte, as ORNL researchers have demonstrated, could overcome these safety concerns and size constraints.

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ORNL helps kick off 2013 FIRST robotics season

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First Robotics Competition

Students try their hand at manipulating a Remotec robotic system at a kickoff event for the 2013 FIRST Robotics Competition at ORNL’s Manufacturing Demonstration Facility on Saturday. (Submitted photo)

Students from dozens of area high schools piled into Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Manufacturing Demonstration Facility on Saturday to get a sense of the obstacles they will be battling over the next six weeks. Hundreds of students, parents, and mentors attended the kickoff event for the 2013 FIRST robotics competition, a nationwide event in which students design and build complex robots that can tackle the challenges of a specially designed game.

This year’s challenge, which involves robots that can throw discs and climb pyramids, was revealed via simulcast on Saturday morning. Teams were then able to view a full-scale version of the competition field and hold mock games on it. The field, sponsored by Tech 2020 and assembled by the Hardin Valley Academy FIRST Alumni Club at ORNL’s Manufacturing Demonstration Facility, or MDF, is available for all local teams to use during the build season.

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Supercomputers, materials and bears: ORNL marks eventful 2012

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Jeff Nichols and Titan at ORNL

ORNL’s newest supercomputer, Titan, seen here with associate lab director for computing and computational sciences Jeff Nichols, took the top spot in November’s Top500 rankings. (Photos courtesy of ORNL)

Oak Ridge National Laboratory regained the lead in high-performance computing, enjoyed record-setting recognition for its research, and became a showpiece for renewable energy technology during 2012.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science reciprocated with favorable marks in its annual appraisal of managing contractor UT-Battelle. DOE cited the laboratory’s operation of its scientific user facilities, its “delivery of impactful science,” and a successful workforce restructuring to reduce operating costs.

“The dedicated efforts of our laboratory staff in all phases of science and technology and operational support have resulted in an excellent record of delivering science to the nation in 2012,” said ORNL Director Thom Mason. “ORNL will continue to set the pace in research toward a clean and secure energy future.”

ORNL’s 2012 included achievements in both research and support.

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UT-Battelle Angel Tree delivers clothing, gifts for children in need

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Heather Terry and Angel Tree Gifts

Team UT-Battelle volunteer Heather Terry sorts Angel Tree gifts donated by Oak Ridge National Laboratory employees. (Submitted photos)

Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Team UT-Battelle Angel Tree effort delivered clothing and gifts to area community agencies and schools this week. The items will brighten the holiday season for 240 needy children.

The gifts range from bikes to toys to clothes. Employees can also make monetary donations. In fact, members of the Atomic Labor and Trades Council, the laboratory bargaining unit, contributed $500.

The laboratory’s Angel Tree is electronic: Lab staff members can access a web page that offers anonymous selections of children from surrounding counties including Anderson, Roane, Loudon, Morgan, Union, Blount, Campbell and Knox. The donor can then donate a gift based on the child’s age, gender, size and interests provided by the website. As in past years, all 240 of the tree’s virtual “ornaments” were selected.

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ORNL’s Smith, Sokolov elected AAAS fellows

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Sean Campbell Smith and Alexei Sokolov

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers Sean Campbell Smith (left) and Alexei Sokolov, have been elected fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. (Photo courtesy of ORNL)

Two researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory—Sean Campbell Smith and Alexei Sokolov—have been elected fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Fellow is the highest honor bestowed by the AAAS, the world’s largest general scientific society and publisher of the journal Science.

Smith, director of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, came to ORNL in 2011 from the University of Queensland in Australia, where he was the director of the Centre for Computational Molecular Science. He was cited by his AAAS peers for “distinguished contributions to the field of computational and theoretical chemistry, including fundamental advances in unimolecular rate theory and exploration of novel functionalities in nanomaterials.”

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ORNL develops lignin-based thermoplastic conversion process

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Turning lignin, a plant’s structural “glue” and a byproduct of the paper and pulp industry, into something considerably more valuable is driving a research effort headed by Amit Naskar of Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

In a cover article published in Green Chemistry, the research team describes a process that ultimately transforms the lignin byproduct into a thermoplastic—a polymer that becomes pliable above a specific temperature. Researchers accomplished this by reconstructing larger lignin molecules either through a chemical reaction with formaldehyde or by washing with methanol. Through these simple chemical processes, they created a crosslinked rubber-like material that can also be processed like plastics.

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