U.S. Department of Energy Research News

Public Release: 19-Jun-2013

Molecular Systems Biology
Expressly unfit for the laboratory
A new Berkeley Lab study challenges the orthodoxy of microbiology, which holds that in response to environmental changes, bacterial genes will boost production of needed proteins and decrease production of those that aren't. The study found that for bacteria in the laboratory there was little evidence of adaptive genetic response.

US Department of Energy

Public Release: 18-Jun-2013
US and Canadian researchers drive towards cheaper fuel cells for electric cars
A million electric cars could be on roads across North America before the end of the decade with the help of research by the United States Department of Energy, Los Alamos National Laboratory and the University of Waterloo.

US Department of Energy

Public Release: 12-Jun-2013

International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control
Livermore develops the world's deepest ert imaging system for CO2 sequestration
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory researchers have broken the record for tracking the movement and concentration of carbon dioxide in a geologic formation using the world's deepest Electrical Resistance Tomography system.

Public Release: 12-Jun-2013

Nature
Genetic maps of ocean algae show bacteria-like flexibility
A seven-year effort by 75 researchers from 12 countries to map the genome of the coccolithophore, Emiliania huxleyi, has revealed a set of core genes that mix and match with a set of variable genes that likely allows E. huxleyi, or Ehux, to adapt to different environments. Their results are described in the latest issue of Nature.

US Department of Energy's Joint Genome Institute

Public Release: 11-Jun-2013

Journal of Analytical Atomic Spectrometry
Research paints new picture of 'dinobird' feathers
The first complete chemical analysis of feathers from Archaeopteryx, a famous fossil linking dinosaurs and birds, reveals that the feathers were patterned--light in color, with a dark edge and tip--rather than all black, as previously thought. The X-ray study took place at SLAC's SSRL.

Department of Energy

Public Release: 11-Jun-2013
NREL teams with Navy, private industry to make jet fuel from switchgrass
The Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory is partnering with Cobalt Technologies, U.S. Navy, and Show Me Energy Cooperative to demonstrate that jet fuel can be made economically and in large quantities from a renewable biomass feedstock such as switch grass.

US Department of Energy

Public Release: 11-Jun-2013
NREL adds eyes, brains to occupancy detection
It's a gnawing frustration of modern office life. You're sitting quietly -- too quietly -- in an office or carrel, and suddenly the lights go off.

US Department of Energy

Public Release: 11-Jun-2013

Nano Letters
'Popcorn' particle pathways promise better lithium-ion batteries
Researchers at Sandia National Laboratories have confirmed the particle-by-particle mechanism by which lithium ions move in and out of electrodes made of lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4, or LFP), findings that could lead to better performance in lithium-ion batteries in electric vehicles, medical equipment and aircraft. The research is reported in te journal Nano Letters, 2013, 13 (3), pp 866-872.

Public Release: 10-Jun-2013

Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics
Testing artificial photosynthesis
Berkeley Lab researchers, working at the Joint Center for Artificial Photosynthesis, have developed the first fully integrated microfluidic test-bed for evaluating and optimizing solar-driven electrochemical energy conversion systems. This test-bed system has already been used to study schemes for photovoltaic electrolysis of water, and can be readily adapted to study proposed artificial photosynthesis and fuel cell technologies.

US Department of Energy Office of Science

Public Release: 10-Jun-2013

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Unfrozen mystery: H2O reveals a new secret
Using revolutionary new techniques, a team led by Carnegie's Malcolm Guthrie has made a striking discovery about how ice behaves under pressure, changing ideas that date back almost 50 years. Their findings could alter our understanding of how the water molecule responds to conditions found deep within planets and could have implications for energy science.

US Department of Energy

Public Release: 5-Jun-2013

Angewandte Chemie International Edition
New all-solid sulfur-based battery outperforms lithium-ion technology
Scientists at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory have designed and tested an all-solid lithium-sulfur battery with approximately four times the energy density of conventional lithium-ion technologies that power today's electronics.

Public Release: 4-Jun-2013
Early career award supports physicist's quest for a top quark partner
A Kansas State University physicist has received the prestigious Department of Energy Early Career Research Award for his collaborative research involving the Large Hadron Collider.

US Department of Energy

Public Release: 4-Jun-2013

Nature Communications
Los Alamos catalyst could jump-start e-cars, green energy
Los Alamos National Laboratory scientists have designed a new type of nanostructured-carbon-based catalyst that could pave the way for reliable, economical next-generation batteries and alkaline fuel cells, providing for practical use of wind- and solar-powered electricity, as well as enhanced hybrid electric vehicles.

Public Release: 4-Jun-2013

Nature Communications
Stanford scientists create novel silicon electrodes that improve lithium-ion batteries
Stanford University scientists have dramatically improved the performance of lithium-ion batteries by creating novel electrodes made of silicon and conducting polymer hydrogel, a spongy material similar to that used in contact lenses and other household products. The scientists developed a new technique for producing low-cost, silicon-based batteries with potential applications for a wide range of electrical devices.

Stanford University/Precourt Institute for Energy, US Department of Energy/SLAC

Public Release: 3-Jun-2013
June 2013 story tips
The following are story ideas from the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory for June 2013.

Public Release: 2-Jun-2013

Nature Materials
Printing innovations provide 10-fold improvement in organic electronics
SLAC and Stanford researchers have developed a new, printing process for organic thin-film electronics that results in films of strikingly higher quality.

US Department of Energy Office of Science

Public Release: 30-May-2013
Sandia, SRI International sign pact to advance hydrogen and natural gas research for transportation
Sandia National Laboratories and SRI International, an independent research and innovation center, will join forces to explore, test and evaluate a broad range of hydrogen and natural gas fuel systems and components for transportation applications under a new agreement. The five-year memorandum of understanding is the first agreement in Sandia's new Center for Infrastructure Research and Innovation, an alternative fuel research and innovation facility.

Public Release: 28-May-2013

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Scientists develop CO2 sequestration technique
Lawrence Livermore scientists have discovered and demonstrated a new technique to remove and store atmospheric carbon dioxide while generating carbon-negative hydrogen and producing alkalinity, which can be used to offset ocean acidification.

Public Release: 28-May-2013
Key hydrogen report now available on OpenEnergyInfo wiki site
As part of the Open Government initiative launched by the Obama Administration, Sandia National Laboratories' Technical Reference on Hydrogen Compatibility of Materials has made its debut on the Energy Dataset of OpenEnergyInfo, or OpenEI. This will make the publication more widely available and easier to access.

DOE Fuel Cells Technologies Office

Public Release: 27-May-2013

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Salmonella uses protective switch during infection
For the first time, researchers have found a particular kind of molecular switch in the food poisoning bacteria Salmonella Typhimurium under infection-like conditions. This switch, using a process called S-thiolation, appears to be used by the bacteria to respond to changes in the environment during infection and might protect it from harm, researchers report this week online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Early Edition.

National Institutes of Health

Public Release: 23-May-2013
PNNL staff recognized for scientific accomplishments, moving technologies into the marketplace
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory honored more than 165 staff for their creation, development and commercialization of intellectual property at PNNL's annual Intellectual Property Commercialization Recognition & Rewards Program banquet.

US Department of Energy

Public Release: 21-May-2013
Solar and lithium ion car race winners announced
Ninety-seven teams from 28 Colorado schools participated in today's car competitions hosted by the US Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory. The student teams raced solar and lithium ion powered vehicles they designed and built themselves.

US Department of Energy

Public Release: 21-May-2013

Environmental Science & Technology
Going green: Nation equipped to grow serious amounts of pond scum for fuel
A new analysis shows that the nation's land and water resources could likely support the growth of enough algae to produce up to 25 billion gallons of algae-based fuel a year in the United States, one-twelfth of the country's yearly needs. For the best places to produce algae for fuel, think hot, humid and wet. Especially promising are the Gulf Coast and the Southeastern seaboard.

US Department of Energy

Public Release: 20-May-2013
Not just blowing in the wind: Compressing air for renewable energy storage
A comprehensive study into the potential for compressed air energy storage in the Pacific Northwest has identified two locations in Washington state that could store enough wind energy to power about 85,000 homes each month.

Bonneville Power Administration, DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Public Release: 16-May-2013

Nano Letters
Artificial forest for solar water-splitting
Berkeley Lab researchers have created the first fully integrated artificial photosynthesis nanosystem. While "artificial leaf" is the popular term for such a system, the key to this success was an "artificial forest."

US Department of Energy Office of Science