Oak Ridge Today

‘Double-duty’ electrolyte enables new chemistry for longer-lived batteries

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ORNL Battery Chemistry

When ORNL researchers incorporated a solid lithium thiophosphate electrolyte into a lithium-carbon fluoride battery, the device generated a 26 percent higher capacity than what would be its theoretical maximum if each component acted independently. (Image courtesy ORNL)

 

Researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory have developed a new and unconventional battery chemistry aimed at producing batteries that last longer than previously thought possible.

In a study published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, ORNL researchers challenged a long-held assumption that a battery’s three main components—the positive cathode, negative anode, and ion-conducting electrolyte—can play only one role in the device.

The electrolyte in the team’s new battery design has dual functions: It serves not only as an ion conductor but also as a cathode supplement. This cooperative chemistry, enabled by the use of an ORNL-developed solid electrolyte, delivers an extra boost to the battery’s capacity, and extends the lifespan of the device.

“This bi-functional electrolyte revolutionizes the concept of conventional batteries and opens a new avenue for the design of batteries with unprecedented energy density,” said ORNL’s Chengdu Liang. [Read more…]

Oak Ridge senior Andrew Skipper earns UT-Battelle scholarship

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Andrew Skipper and Thom Mason

Andrew Skipper, left, the 2014 UT-Battelle Scholarship winner, is congratulated by ORNL Director Thom Mason. (Submitted photo)

Andrew Skipper, a senior at Oak Ridge High School, is the recipient of the 2014 UT-Battelle Scholarship to the University of Tennessee.

The four-year, $20,000 scholarship is presented annually to a graduating senior who plans to study science, engineering, or mathematics at UT and whose mother or father works at Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

Andrew is the son of David and Maria Skipper. David Skipper works in ORNL’s Environmental Protection and Waste Services Division, and Maria Skipper works in ORNL’s Business Management Services Division. His grandmother, Margie Skipper, worked in ORNL’s Laboratory Protection Division for many years prior to her retirement in 1999.

Andrew’s goal at UT is to pursue a bachelor’s degree in chemical and biomolecular engineering before enrolling in graduate or medical school. [Read more…]

Society of Automotive Engineers honors Storey, Wagner, Sluder

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Robert Wagner, John Storey, and Scott Sluder

The Society of Automotive Engineers has honored ORNL researchers, from left, Robert Wagner, John Storey, and Scott Sluder. (Submitted photo)

Three researchers from the Fuels, Engines, and Emissions Research Center at Oak Ridge National Laboratory received major awards at the recent Society of Automotive Engineers World Congress.

John Storey was elected an SAE Fellow. The fellowship is the highest level of SAE membership, honoring significant contributions to the automotive field.

Storey was recognized for pioneering new techniques in the characterization of particulate matter and exhaust emissions and for leading a critical sub-committee for the diesel fuel sulfur rule. SAE International also recognized Storey for multiple contributions to the development of lean exhaust emissions control. [Read more…]

‘One more house’: UT-Battelle helps honor Myricks through Habitat project

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Tim and Teresa Myrick and Habitat for Humanity

UT-Battelle is supporting a Habitat for Humanity project that honors Tim and Teresa Myrick. (Photo: Jason Richards)

UT-Battelle joins community in honoring Myrick’s years of service through Habitat for Humanity project this summer

UT-Battelle is contributing $10,000 in matching donations to a Habitat for Humanity project dedicated to Tim and Teresa Myrick, who have been enduring supporters of the organization that provides shelter for deserving families.

Tim Myrick’s handiwork dots the Oak Ridge landscape. He was a major contributor to the modernization campaign at Oak Ridge National Laboratory that resulted in a sparkling new east campus. He helped lead the renovation of the town’s high school.

He’s been involved in all the Anderson County Habitat for Humanity projects in some way—58 in all.

He wants to add to that tally. There is some urgency in the matter.

“With the cancer thing I set priorities: fighting cancer, the Habitat project, Living Waters, building a new church, doing some fly fishing,” he said. [Read more…]

ORNL’s John Wagner receives E.O. Lawrence Award

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John Wagner

John Wagner is a 2013 recipient of the Department of Energy’s Ernest Orlando Lawrence Award.

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researcher John Wagner has been named a 2013 recipient of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Ernest Orlando Lawrence Award for his work in advancing computer, information, and knowledge sciences.

Wagner, a nuclear engineer who serves as national technical director for DOE’s Nuclear Fuels Storage and Transportation Planning Project, was recognized for his leadership in the field of computational radiation transport.

“The Lawrence Award recipients announced today have made significant contributions to the national, economic and energy security of the United States—strengthening U.S. leadership in discovery and innovation,” said Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz. “I congratulate the winners and thank them for their work on behalf of the Department of Energy and the nation.” [Read more…]

Simple driving tips can save gas, money, ORNL study says

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Oak Ridge National Laboratory Sign

Oak Ridge National Laboratory

People who pack their cars and drive like Clark Griswold in National Lampoon’s “Vacation” pay a steep penalty when it comes to fuel economy, according to a report by Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

For the study, researchers tested a sport utility vehicle and a compact sedan with various configurations, including underinflated tires, open windows, and rooftop and hitch-mounted cargo. The SUV, a 2009 Ford Explorer with a 4-liter V6 engine, was also tested while towing an enclosed trailer. The researchers tested the vehicles at a variety of speeds with the different configurations. While the findings were not unexpected, they serve as a reminder of how drivers can save money by taking simple measures.

“There is fuel economy information and advice available for vehicle maintenance and carrying loads that is quite good, but very little published data to back it up,” said John Thomas, a co-author of the study and member of ORNL’s Energy and Transportation Science Division. “Certainly, suitcases strapped to your car’s roof and trying to keep up with a speeding Ferrari will adversely affect your gas mileage.”

Among the more notable findings was that using a rooftop cargo box with the SUV decreased fuel economy from 24.9 mpg at 60 mph to 22.9 mpg—a drop of 9 percent. The compact sedan, a 2009 Toyota Corolla with a 1.8 liter four-cylinder engine, also suffered as its fuel economy dipped from 42.5 mpg at 60 mph to 33 mpg, or 22 percent, when hauling the rooftop cargo box. [Read more…]

Six companies receive ORNL small business awards

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Six East Tennessee companies doing business with Oak Ridge National Laboratory received 2014 ORNL Small Business Impact Awards from the laboratory Friday morning at a meeting of the East Tennessee Economic Council.

“This is the first time the awards have gone exclusively to regional companies,” ORNL Deputy Director for Operations Jeff Smith said. “Recognizing these firms at ETEC highlights their importance to the economic development of the region, as well as their contribution to our laboratory operations.”

The companies were recognized by ORNL’s Small Business Programs Office in categories emphasizing their specific capabilities and contributions. [Read more…]

Vertimass licenses ORNL biofuel-to-hydrocarbon conversion technology

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Vertimass LLC and ORNL Ethanol Fuel

Vertimass LLC has licensed an ORNL technology that converts ethanol into a hydrocarbon blend-stock for use in transportation fuels. ORNL inventors (from left) Chaitanya Narula, Brian Davison, and Martin Keller display the technology with Vertimass chairman William Shopoff.

Vertimass LLC, a California-based start-up company, has licensed an Oak Ridge National Laboratory technology that directly converts ethanol into a hydrocarbon blend-stock for use in transportation fuels.

The ORNL technology offers a new pathway to biomass-derived renewable fuels that can lower greenhouse gas emissions and decrease U.S. reliance on foreign sources of oil.

“Vertimass is very pleased to be partnering with ORNL to commercialize this revolutionary technology that can broaden the market for alternative fuels, ” said Vertimass chairman William Shopoff. “We have assembled a team of industry and technology leaders, including Dr. Charles Wyman, our president and CEO, who will take this novel catalyst from the lab to the marketplace. We see this technology as a significant step in moving the United States toward energy independence.”

The technology developed by ORNL’s Chaitanya Narula, Brian Davison and Associate Laboratory Director Martin Keller uses an inexpensive zeolite catalyst to transform ethanol into hydrocarbon blend-stock. The resulting liquid can be blended at various concentrations into gasoline, diesel, and jet fuels without negatively affecting engine performance. After mixing with petroleum-derived fuels, the blend-stock does not require modifications to the existing distribution infrastructure. [Read more…]

Icenhour to lead ORNL’s Nuclear Science and Engineering Directorate

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Alan Icenhour

Alan Icenhour

Alan Icenhour has been named associate laboratory director for nuclear science and engineering at Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

Icenhour will oversee ORNL’s contributions to isotope production, nuclear security and fission, and fusion research and technologies, as well as the U.S. Department of Energy’s Consortium for Advanced Simulation of Light Water Reactors. Icenhour has served as interim associate laboratory director since December.

Icenhour joined ORNL in 1990 and has worked in a variety of nuclear positions. Since 2008, he directed three divisions: the Global Nuclear Security Technology Division, the Fuel Cycle and Isotopes Division, and the Nuclear Security and Isotope Technology Division. [Read more…]

ORNL microscopy system delivers real-time view of battery electrochemistry

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ORNL Battery Electrochemistry

A new in situ transmission electron microscopy technique enabled ORNL researchers to image the snowflake-like growth of the solid electrolyte interphase from a working battery electrode. (Photo courtesy ORNL)

Using a new microscopy method, researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory can image and measure electrochemical processes in batteries in real time and at nanoscale resolution.

Scientists at ORNL used a miniature electrochemical liquid cell that is placed in a transmission electron microscope to study an enigmatic phenomenon in lithium-ion batteries called the solid electrolyte interphase, or SEI, as described in a study published in Chemical Communications.

The SEI is a nanometer-scale film that forms on a battery’s negative electrode due to electrolyte decomposition. Scientists agree that the SEI’s formation and stability play key roles in controlling battery functionality. But after three decades of research in the battery field, details of the SEI’s dynamics, structure, and chemistry during electrochemical cycling are still debated, stemming from inherent difficulties in studying battery electrode materials in their native liquid environment.

“We’ve used this novel in situ method to understand the dynamics of how this layer forms and evolves during battery operation,” said Raymond Unocic, ORNL research and development staff scientist. [Read more…]

ORNL’s CASL, Westinghouse simulate neutron behavior in nuclear reactor core

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AP1000 Pressurized Water Reactor

CASL is developing and applying new modeling and simulation technology (Virtual Environment for Reactor Applications Core Simulator or VERA-CS) to resolve and predict the detailed neutron distribution of the power-generation reactor core residing in reactor vessels. (Image courtesy of Westinghouse)

Test run signals emergence of the next generation in nuclear power reactor analysis tools

Scientists and engineers developing more accurate approaches to analyzing nuclear power reactors have successfully tested a new suite of computer codes that closely model “neutronics”—the behavior of neutrons in a reactor core.

Technical staff at Westinghouse Electric Company LLC, supported by the research team at the Consortium for Advanced Simulation of Light Water Reactors, or CASL, used the Virtual Environment for Reactor Applications core simulator (VERA-CS) to analyze its AP1000 advanced pressurized water reactor. The testing focused on modeling the startup conditions of the AP1000 plant design. [Read more…]

ORNL, Ohio company work together on new large-scale 3-D printing system

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ORNL and Cincinnati Inc. CRADA

From left are David Danielson, DOE assistant secretary for energy efficiency and renewable energy; Johnny Moore; DOE site office manager, Andy Jamison, Cincinnati Inc. CEO; and U.S. Rep. Chuck Fleischmann. (ORNL photo/Jason Richards)

Technology seeks to provide new capabilities for auto, aerospace, other U.S. industries

Oak Ridge National Laboratory is partnering with Cincinnati Inc., a manufacturer of high quality machine tools located in Harrison, Ohio, to develop a large-scale polymer additive manufacturing (3-D printing) system.

The partnership aims to accelerate the commercialization of a new additive manufacturing machine that can print large polymer parts faster and more cheaply than current technologies. The partnership agreement supports the U.S. Department of Energy’s Clean Energy Manufacturing Initiative to increase the efficiency of the U.S. manufacturing sector and ensure that innovative clean energy technologies continue to be developed in America.

ORNL is a DOE lab. [Read more…]