Oak Ridge Today

ORNL, UT team maps nuclear landscape

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Nuclear Landscape

This image represents the nuclear landscape, with different isotopes, including dark blue stable isotopes, lighter blue unstable isotopes, and gray bound isotopes. (Image by Andy Sproles at Oak Ridge National Laboratory)

A supercomputer at Oak Ridge National Laboratory has been used to calculate the number of isotopes allowed by the laws of physics.

A team of Oak Ridge National Laboratory and University of Tennessee researchers used the Jaguar supercomputer to determine that there are about 7,000 possible combinations of protons and neutrons allowed in bound nuclei with up to 120 protons.

The team’s results are presented in the June 28 issue of the journal Nature.

Most of these nuclei have not been observed experimentally, an ORNL press release said.

“They are bound, meaning they do not spit out protons or neutrons,” team leader Witek Nazarewicz explained in the release. “But they are radioactive—they are short-lived—because there are other processes, such as beta decay, that can give rise to transmutations.”

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Duke, ORNL plan graduate student education program

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ORNL Duke Agreement

Duke University’s Robert Calderbank, left, and Haiyun Gao discuss a graduate education agreement with Ian Anderson of Oak Ridge National Laboratory. (Photo courtesy of Duke University)

Duke University and Oak Ridge National Laboratory have signed an agreement to develop a graduate student education program.

The agreement was signed at Duke on Monday by Robert Calderbank, dean of natural sciences at Duke’s Trinity College of Arts and Sciences; Haiyun Gao, chair of Duke’s department of physics; and Ian Anderson, director of ORNL’s Graduate and University Partnerships.

“The program combines the resources of a leading research university and the research capabilities of a major national laboratory to provide expanded opportunities for graduate students in energy-related science and engineering,” Anderson said.

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ORNL wins nine R&D 100 awards

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Researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory have received nine more R&D 100 awards, bringing their total to 173.

The awards, presented by R&D Magazine, recognize the top 100 innovations of the year and are sometimes referred to as the “Academy Awards of Science,” according to an ORNL press release.

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Lady Vols coach helps ORNL kick off United Way drive

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Holly Warlick and ORNL Free Throw Winners

University of Tennessee Lady Vols Head Coach Holly Warlick, left, congratulates Belinda Loi, an Oak Ridge National Laboratory student intern, and Jason Craig, ORNL scientific glass blower, after a free throw competition Thursday.

Oak Ridge National Laboratory is already one of the United Way’s largest regional contributors, and officials said they hope to raise even more money this year.

“You’d be amazed at the difference that even $10 a week can make,” Hurtis Hodges, ORNL United Way campaign chairman said during a Thursday morning ceremony on the lab’s Main Street.

Tennessee Lady Vols Head Coach Holly Warlick helped ORNL kick off its annual United Way campaign with a short speech and free-throw competition.

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ORNL microscopy reveals workings behind inexpensive catalyst

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Carbon Nanotube

Electron microscopy at Oak Ridge National Laboratory confirmed that a carbon nanotube material that exhibits desirable chemical properties has many heavy atoms, such as the iron atoms circled in red. (Photo submitted by ORNL)

A team of researchers that included scientists from Oak Ridge National Laboratory has developed an inexpensive carbon nanotube material that could help lower the cost of fuel cells and catalytic converters.

The new material could provide a substitute for expensive platinum catalysts.

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Insect that kills ash trees found in Oak Ridge

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Emerald Ash Borer Trap Inspection

Oak Ridge National Laboratory intern Jordan Chaney inspects an emerald ash borer trap near Bethel Valley Road. (Photo courtesy of ORNL)

The emerald ash borer, a destructive insect that attacks ash trees and can kill them, has been found on the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Reservation, according to an article posted on ORNL Today.

The non-native insect was first trapped in Roane and Anderson counties in May, the article said. One trap was on Highway 95 at the Highway 58 interchange, and the other was on Bethel Valley Road near the East Portal.

“Unfortunately, these finds signal the beginning of a decline of ash species throughout the reservation,” said Greg Byrd, forester with the Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Natural Resources Program.

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ORNL tests sensors that could save money, energy

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A team led by an Oak Ridge National Laboratory researcher is testing wireless sensors that could help the steel industry save money and reduce energy use and emissions.

Led by ORNL’s Glenn Allgood, the team recently installed these wireless sensors at Commercial Metals Co. in Cayce, S.C. The sensors are designed to withstand harsh conditions and provide instant information that will improve monitoring and control of a steel mill’s equipment, according to information provided by ORNL.

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Black bears at grill in north Oak Ridge, trapped at ORNL

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Black Bear at Grill

A black bear climbs onto a backyard grill in north Oak Ridge on Tuesday after looking into a living room window. (Photo by George Ostrouchov)

Residents continued to report that a bear or bears was in the Secret City this week, and one was trapped at Oak Ridge National Laboratory early Friday morning.

George Ostrouchov took pictures of a black bear in his back yard on Orchard Circle at about 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.

“The bear first looked into our living room, putting its paws on the window,” Ostrouchov said in an e-mail. “Then he (we assume it was a young male) proceeded to check out our grill. The grill happened to be still on to clean itself after grilling.”

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Sponge has potential to help in oil spills

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Carbon Nanotube Sponge

A carbon nanotbue sponge developed with help from Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers could be used to help clean up oil. (Photo submitted by ORNL)

A team that includes researchers from Oak Ridge National Laboratory has developed a carbon nanotube sponge that can soak up oil in water.

The sponge could be used to help clean up oil spills, an ORNL press release said.

It was developed with help from computational simulations performed at the lab.

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ORNL scientist gives lecture on exploding stars Thursday

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Michael Smith

Oak Ridge National Laboratory scientist Michael Smith will give a lecture on exploding stars and atom smashers on May 24 at American Museum of Science and Energy.

Oak Ridge National Laboratory scientist Michael Smith will give a free presentation on exploding stars and atom smashers on May 24 at the American Museum of Science and Energy.

During the lecture, find out how atom smashers are used on Earth to investigate the mysteries of exploding stars. Some of the effects discussed include cosmic cannibalism, thermonuclear traffic jams, and stellar alchemy.

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ORNL superconductivity researcher wins prize

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Herbert Mook Jr.

Mook

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researcher Herbert A. Mook Jr. has won the 2012 H. Kamerlingh Onnes Prize, which is awarded for outstanding experiments in the study of superconductivity. He shares this award with O.H. Fischer of the University of Geneva, Switzerland, and T.K. Klapwijk of the California Institute of Technology.

Mook was cited “for several decades of important neutron spectroscopy and diffraction experiments on superconductors, especially those with magnetic tendencies,” an ORNL press release said.

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Auto partnership could make cars lighter, more fuel-efficient

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Cars and trucks could become lighter and more fuel-efficient under a joint partnership announced last week that makes use of research conducted at Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

The joint partnership between Ford Motor Co. and Dow Automotive Systems seeks to develop low-cost, high-volume carbon fiber composites for next-generation vehicles. It will leverage work that The Dow Chemical Company has already begun through partnerships with ORNL.

Ford wants to cut the weight of new cars and trucks by up to 750 pounds by the end of the decade. It’s a key component of the company’s strategy to improve fuel efficiency, according to an ORNL press release.

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