Feature Articles

Scientists studying bacteria and other microbes didn't anticipate their data would hold the key to studying viruses. But new techniques are allowing researchers from the Joint Genome Institute to use this data to gain insights about viruses' genes and their role in the environment.

A newly installed upgrade of the STAR detector at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) gives nuclear physicists more particle tracks than ever to gain insight into the building blocks of matter and the force that bound them to form the visible matter of our world.

A new idea for smashing beams of elementary particles into one another could reveal how light and matter interact under extreme conditions that may exist on the surfaces of exotic astrophysical objects, in powerful cosmic light bursts and star explosions, in next-generation particle colliders and in hot, dense fusion plasma.

In a new study from the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory, researchers have identified a new boundary layer that emerges between a lithium metal anode and a lithium transition metal oxide (LLZO) electrolyte, potentially leading to improved battery stability.

To find solutions that could help keep power reactors in business, the Light Water Reactor Sustainability team is looking at how nuclear plants can reduce operating costs through innovation in business processes and implementation of new technology.

Canadian researchers used neutrons at ORNL's Spallation Neutron Source to better understand how tempering affects chocolate's microstructure and how that relationship impacts taste.

Argonne's Education and Outreach Programs division partners with a number of organizations to advance STEM-related programs. Among them is the Illinois Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (ILSAMP) program, dedicated to helping underrepresented minority (URM) students working toward a degree in a STEM field. Argonne recently participated in ILSAMP's annual Student Research Symposium, which provides ILSAMP-funded students the opportunity to present their research, network with professional in the Illinois science community and learn more about their chosen field.

Argonne researchers continue to help bioenergy developers manage water resources through the recently released update of an online computer model, Water Analysis Tool for Energy Resources (WATER). Providing an in-depth analysis of water consumption used in the development of bioenergy, WATER allows industry leaders to make better-informed decisions about what types of feedstock are most appropriate for use in water-limited areas.

The team at the BETCy Energy Frontier Research Center is learning how electron transfer processes drive energy-intensive reactions that produce ammonia and other chemicals. Knowing how electrons move could lead to processes that let industrial reactions soar over energy barriers.

The World Economic Forum (WEF) has sought expertise from the US Department of Energy's (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory in addressing cyber resilience issues. In February, the WEF published a study developed with the help of Argonne experts that outlines the steps the electricity industry should take to combat the growing risk associated with operating in an interconnected and interdependent environment, where the consequences of a cyber-attack could have a cascading effect on the electricity ecosystem.