Search PNNL

• PNNL Home
• About
• Research
• Publications
• Jobs
• News
• Contacts

Award Archive

• Society
• Other Honors
• Government

---

2009 Awards

Jerry Johnson Named One of Top 50 Government CIOs

Jerry Johnson, PNNL Chief Information Officer (CIO), was named one of the Top 50 Government CIOs by Information Week. This is Information Week's first-ever compilation of top CIOs in federal, state and local government.

This is not a recognition that was applied for or for which there was a formal nomination process. Rather it's based on the feedback from the network of government CIO peers that Jerry routinely interacts with. Jerry is the only CIO from a DOE national lab among the Top 50.  (Posted 9/1/2009)

Beat Schmid Receives Dual Honor from DOE Office of Science

Beat Schmid recently was honored with two awards by the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science. These two awards recognize Beat's leadership contributions to the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Program, a DOE multi-laboratory, interagency program for global climate change research. The awards honored Beat's three-year terms as a member of the ARM Climate Research Facility Science Board and as leader of the ARM Program's Aerosol Working Group.

The Science Board is composed of highly respected ARM-supported scientists and the external climate research community. During his term, Schmid reviewed large user facility proposals and made funding recommendations. Dr. Wanda Ferrell, Program Director of the ARM Climate Research Facility, included these words on the plaque: "Your contribution has established a solid foundation for ensuring that the best quality science is conducted at the ACRF."

The Aerosol Working Group comprises national and international climate experts whose research is quantifying the impact of aerosols on clouds that affect the Earth's climate system. Dr. Patricia M. Dehmer, Acting Associate Director of DOE's Office of Science, included these words on the award: "Because of your dynamic leadership, the Working Group has made a significant scientific contribution to the ARM program's aerosol science and climate community at large." Beat received the Working Group award at the annual ARM Science Team Meeting in April.  (Posted 4/1/2009)

Kevin Rosso Received Best Paper Award at Geosciences Symposium

Kevin Rosso received the Best Paper from a National Laboratory Award at the 2009 U.S. Department of Energy Basic Energy Sciences Geosciences Symposium. The symposium brought together 50+ U.S. experts in geosciences and related fields to discuss ongoing and future research. Every year, the symposium's committee of observers awards two best paper awards: one to a national laboratory researcher and one to a university researcher.

The award-winning paper Rosso presented was on redox transformations of the iron oxide hematite. Rosso showed that under certain conditions interfacial electron transfer can couple to bulk conduction of electrons yielding transformation to unique crystal morphologies. These results with iron oxide are relevant to water quality, corrosion science, soil evolution, and environmental cleanup.

Rosso is active in the scientific community, having authored or co-authored 90+ peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters. He is a frequent speaker at universities and international symposia. In addition, he is a life fellow of the Mineralogical Society of America and a member of the Geochemical Society and the American Chemical Society. The symposium was held March 12-13, 2009, in Annapolis, Maryland.  (Posted 3/1/2009)

Tom Cook and Team Awarded the CIA Directorate of Science & Technology's 2008 John A. McCone Award

Tom Cook and a team of others were awarded the CIA Directorate of Science & Technology's 2008 John A. McCone Award. The award honors agency employees who bring science and technology to bear on the nation's most challenging intelligence problems. It is presented to teams or individuals whose dedication and accomplishments exemplify the tradition of the Directorate of Science and Technology – deep technical expertise, disciplined program management, and responsiveness to mission. The award acknowledges the importance of teamwork, creativity, innovation, initiative, risk-taking, persistence and determination.  (Posted 1/1/2009)

Donna Magruder and Casey O'Leary Receive DOE Secretarial Honor Award From Secretary Bodman

Donna Magruder and Casey O'Leary were recognized by Secretary Bodman during the Department of Energy Secretarial Honor Awards ceremony in Washington, D.C., Nov. 5.

They were honored for their extraordinary achievement in identifying and neutralizing cyber threats to the DOE. The ceremony recognizes a number of department employees for their outstanding leadership, accomplishments, commitment to excellence and contributions benefiting the organization and our nation.  (Posted 1/1/2009)

Don Baer wins prestigious AVS Nerken Award

Don Baer, Lead Scientist for Interfacial Chemistry at the Department of Energy's EMSL, has received the 2009 Albert Nerken Award from the AVS.

The award recognizes individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the solution of technological problems in areas of interest to AVS. Baer was cited "for seminal contributions towards advancing the application of surface-sensitive techniques to understand environmentally important materials and interfacial processes."

Baer largely attributes the award to Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's rich history of multidisciplinary, team-oriented research that enables significant progress on complex problems. "Although the award is presented to an individual, much of my research has involved participating on and leading teams," he says. "These teams have made important advances in understanding stress corrosion cracking, oxide and mineral surface chemistry, and dynamic behaviors of nanoparticles, as well as in developing and applying interfacial tools in EMSL that facilitate such advances."

The award was established in 1984 by Veeco Instruments, Inc., in recognition of Albert Nerken for his role as a founding member of AVS, his early work in the area of high vacuum and leak detection, and his contributions to the commercial development of that instrumentation. Presentation of the award takes place at the AVS International Symposium, which this year is in San Jose, California, in November.

Baer is a Laboratory Fellow at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, on whose campus EMSL resides, and a Fellow of AVS. He also is an adjunct professor of physics at Washington State University, Tri-Cities, and an adjunct professor of chemistry at the University of Washington. Baer graduated from Carnegie Mellon University and received his doctorate from Cornell University. He has authored or co-authored more than 200 peer-reviewed scientific journal publications and edited three books and four special journal issues. He is also Reviews Editor for Surface and Interface Analysis, a refereed journal devoted to publishing papers and applying techniques for characterizing surfaces, interfaces, and thin films.  (Posted 6/1/2009)

Mark Morgan Receives Supporting Friend of IEEE Member and Geographic Activities Award

Mark Morgan, Energy & Environment Directorate, received the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 2009 "Supporting Friend of IEEE Member and Geographic Activities Award" from Leonard Bond, director of IEEE Region 6 (Western USA), during a senior management meeting May 28.

IEEE is the world's largest technical society with nearly 400,000 members worldwide, including areas ranging from aerospace systems, computers and telecommunications to biomedical engineering, electric power and consumer electronics among others. Mark has been consistently supporting the activities of the IEEE local Section and the Power & Energy Chapter and encouraging his staff to participate and play leadership roles in the technical society.  (Posted 6/1/2009)

Terence Critchlow Inducted Into World's Largest Computing Society

Terence Critchlow has been elected a Senior Member of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM). ACM, the world's largest educational and scientific computing society with about 92,000 members, delivers resources that advance computing as a science and a profession. ACM provides the computing field's premier digital library and serves its members and the computing profession with leading-edge publications, conferences, and career resources.

Terence, Associate Director of Scientific Data Management, is one of 395 members inducted into the ACM Senior Member program this year. The program, initiated in 2006, includes members with at least 10 years of professional experience who have demonstrated performance that sets them apart from their peers through technical leadership, and technical or professional contributions. ACM Senior Member status recognizes the top 25 percent of ACM Professional Members for their demonstrated excellence in the computing field. ACM's Senior Members join a distinguished list of colleagues to whom ACM and its members look for guidance and leadership in computing and information technology.  (Posted 5/1/2009)

Scott Stephens Recognized by CCHPS as Radiation Safety Technologist of the Year

Scott Stephens, Operational Systems Directorate, has been recognized by the Columbia Chapter Health Physics Society (CCHPS) as the Radiation Safety Technologist of the Year. The CCHPS is a professional organization whose members are specialists in radiation safety and are dedicated to maximizing the beneficial use of radiation while minimizing the risk to people and the environment.

Scott has been at the Lab for the last ten years as a senior radiation protection technician (RPT) in the Radiochemical Processing Laboratory (RPL). He has had the opportunity to interface with several top research scientists in the nation and has developed an excellent working relationship with the RPL staff members. One of Scott's colleagues stated, "Scott is an outstanding RPT and staff member at the Lab. He is consistently recognized by our research customers for his outstanding support, skill, attitude and personal caring."  (Posted 5/1/2009)

Henry Huang Receives IEEE Power & Energy Society Outstanding Young Engineer Award

Henry Huang will receive the 2009 Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Power & Energy Society (PES) Outstanding Young Engineer Award. The award recognizes engineers 35 years of age or under "for outstanding contributions in the leadership of technical society activities including local and/or transnational PES and other technical societies, leadership in community and humanitarian activities and evidence of technical competence through significant engineering achievements."

As a recipient, Henry will designate a college or university to receive a $2,000 electrical engineering scholarship from the society. He is scheduled to accept this award at the awards luncheon July 28 at the IEEE PES General Meeting in Calgary, Alberta. The IEEE is the world's leading professional association for the advancement of technology, with more than 375,000 members in more than 160 countries.  (Posted 4/1/2009)

Heather Colburn and Jon Schwantes Selected to Attend IUPAC Meeting as 2009 Young Observers

Heather Colburn and Jon Schwantes were selected as 2009 Young Observers to attend the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry General Assembly and Congress Meeting.

The U.S. National Committee (USNC) sends U.S. Observers under the age of 45 from industry, academia, and national laboratories to the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) World Chemistry Congress and General Assembly, held every two years. The IUPAC will hold its 45th General Assembly and 42nd Congress in Glasgow, Scotland in August 2009. Established by the U.S. National Committee (USNC) for IUPAC in 1977 to foster interactions with internationally acclaimed scientists in various fields, the Young Observer Programs strives to introduce the work of IUPAC to a new generation of distinguished researchers and to provide the opportunity to address international scientific policy issues.  (Posted 2/1/2009)

Siva Pilli Selected for ASME Early Career Leadership Internship

Siva Pilli, Energy & Environment Directorate, was selected for ASME's Early Career Leadership Intern Program to Serve Engineering (ECLIPSE). Siva has been an ASME member since 2007 and currently serves as peer reviewer for ASME journals. The goal of ECLIPSE is to engage, identify, and begin developing potential leaders for ASME by placing early career engineers in highly visible and productive roles within the ASME organization.  (Posted 2/1/2009)

Evelyn Hirt receives IEEE 2008 Robert S. Walleigh Engineering Professionalism Award

Evelyn Hirt recently was selected by the IEEE-USA board of directors as a 2008 recipient of the Robert S. Walleigh Engineering Professionalism Award for enthusiastic leadership and contributions in a wide range of IEEE-USA professional activities. IEEE is the world's leading professional association dedicated to technological innovation and excellence the benefit of humanity.  (Posted 1/1/2009)

Carbon capture shows major potential in China

Unprecedented study identifies 100 years of carbon storage reservoirs

An international carbon sequestration organization recognized a team of PNNL scientists for their unprecedented research to identify and quantify China's potential capacity for capturing and storing carbon dioxide and to determine its potential viability and cost effectiveness for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

On Oct. 13, Norwegian Minister of Petroleum and Energy Terie Riis-Johnansen presented a Recognition Award to Bob Dahowski, Energy & Environment Directorate, at the Carbon Sequestration Leadership Forum's 3rd Ministerial Meeting held in London. Bob accepted the award on behalf of his colleagues, Casie Davison, EED, and Jim Dooley, Fundamental & Computational Sciences Directorate, and their partners at the Chinese Academy of Sciences' Institute of Rock and Soil Mechanics and Leonardo Technologies, Inc.

Energy Secretary Steven Chu also spoke at the conference and highlighted the team's research in his presentation.

The award came as the team was finishing its report on the five-year study. Their results showed that China has enormous and widely distributed deep geologic CO2 storage formations that could allow for cost-effective, large-scale deployment of capture and storage technologies for at least 100 years.

"For the first time ever, we have quantified the potential for future large-scale carbon capture and storage deployment within China," Bob said. "Our work suggests that CO2 capture and storage can provide a key element of China's portfolio of options for cost effectively reducing greenhouse gas emissions."

These findings are important as the international community looks for ways to balance economic growth and the resulting demands for energy with the need to reduce and mitigate greenhouse gas emissions globally.

Support for this research has been provided by the DOE Office of Fossil Energy, Leonardo Technologies, Inc. and the Global Energy Technology Strategy Program.  (Posted 10/1/2009)

Jim Thomas Receives Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation 2009 Homeland Security Award

Jim Thomas was recently awarded the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation 2009 Homeland Security Award at the US Capital. This significant honor recognizes his international leadership and outstanding scientific achievements in founding and establishing the growing science of visual analytics and the numerous associated technologies that aid in detecting, predicting, preventing, and responding to acts of terrorism.

Jim's scientific leadership in visual analytics has resulted in the emergence and deployment of new information technologies critical to our nation's security. Visual analytics innovations developed under Jim's leadership have been deployed to national and regional analysts and first responders at a number of homeland security agencies and organizations. For example, the Scalable Reasoning System has provided law enforcement investigators with visual tools to discover patterns, trends, and relationships when and where it matters most—where lives are at stake. This technology has been deployed to front-line law enforcement and counter-terrorism personnel at the San Diego area Automated Regional Justice Information System (ARJIS), the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and the Seattle Police Department. The ARJIS Executive Director described this capability as "critical" to officers on the ground.

Other deployed science enables understanding and management of our critical infrastructures e.g. power grid, cyber analytics to detect intrusion and other attacks on our communication networks, financial analytics to detect fraud and money flows, pandemic analytics to detect and plan for likely flu expansions, immigration analytics on applications to speed processing while enabling better detection of potential terrorists, to a host of intelligence applications through visual analytics of blogs and open source information in multiple languages with text, images and video.

This technology also provides far more effective analytics for applications such as energy, environment, economy, health, finance, and other critical parts of our society to every day access and dealing with masses of information on the Web. A unique capability has been developed under Jim's leadership to build test data sets with embedded threats (ground truth) now being used through international contests by IEEE that allows researchers and industry around the world to test and measure their technology, turning Jim's vision into a calibrated science enabling our knowledge workers to detect the expected and discovery of the unexpected^TM.

Equally important to the contributions Jim has made to this scientific field, he has played a critical visionary role in educating our next generation of scientists and engineers. He has led the development of a series of visual analytics workshops and tutorials at the university level. He has inspired degree and certificate programs, academic research programs and classes, workshops, summer camps, and faculty fellowships. His impact on future generations of visual analytics researchers helps ensure a steady pipeline of discoveries and technology solutions that can address homeland security challenges.

These advances would not be possible without the critical funding support from the Science and Technology Directorate of Department of Homeland Security, other members of the Intelligence Community and Department of Defense, U.S. National Science Foundation, our international partners protecting freedoms around the world and the professional society IEEE for providing the international science forums to build, publish and calibrate these new technologies.

Congress established the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation in 1992 to "encourage and support research, study and labor designed to produce new discoveries in all fields of endeavor for the benefit of mankind." Each year, the foundation honors American citizens who improve the world through scientific endeavors. Recipients are selected from hundreds of nominations and are chosen by a panel of science, policy and other experts.  (Posted 9/1/2009)

Ted Poston earns 2009 Battelle Community Spirit Award

Battelle presented its 2009 Community Spirit Award to Ted Poston. This award provides staff an opportunity to recognize their peers for outstanding volunteer spirit. Nominees were evaluated on the level of their volunteer involvement and impact to the community.

Since 1985, Ted has volunteered as a coach, referee, and board official in TCJSA soccer, Columbia Little League in Richland, youth basketball in both Richland and Kennewick, and assisted as a general volunteer in both Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts. Between 1985-2001, Ted dedicated over 2,400 hours to these youth sports activities.  (Posted 8/1/2009)

Bonnie Williams Recognized with 2009 National Mentor Award

Bonnie Williams has recognized with the Adecco 2009 National Mentor Award. Adecco S.A. is a Global Fortune 500 company and the world leader in workforce solutions. The Mentor Award recognizes the top administrative professional who shares their time and talents with their colleagues.

Bonnie was nominated by PNNL's Executive Assistants National Awards Committee. Through her mentoring, Bonnie helps colleagues learn the importance of professionalism and how to apply their skills to future interactions with the Laboratory's national and international clients. Bonnie was honored for mentoring she provided to staff in EED as well as across the Laboratory and even to those outside of PNNL.  (Posted 8/1/2009)

Alexandre Tartakovsky Wins Presidential Early Career Award

Congratulations to Dr. Alexandre Tartakovsky, a computational mathematician at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, for winning a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE). The award honors Tartakovsky's research on subsurface flow that addresses past and future energy needs: cleaning up buried nuclear or toxic contaminants and storing carbon dioxide from fossil fuels underground. Tartakovsky is an acknowledge leader in the field of computational mathematics for subsurface flow and transport in heterogeneous media.

The PECASE is the highest honor given by the U.S. government to scientists and engineers who are at the start of their careers.

Tartakovsky was recognized for his work trying to understand how contaminants move through the subsurface, that subterranean environment made of rocks, air, liquids like water or oil, and bacteria. Ultimately, such work will help reduce the impacts that nuclear and fossil fuel energy use have on the environment. Tartakovsky develops mathematical models to help researchers clean up nuclear or toxic contaminants from past practices or help future waste managers store carbon in the subsurface.

Tartakovsky joined PNNL in 2004. He received his doctorate from the University of Arizona in 2002 and completed a two-year, post-doctoral research program at Idaho National Laboratory before joining PNNL.

For more information, see the PNNL news release.  (Posted 7/1/2009)

Bill Weber Named Distinguished Alumnus by University of Wisconsin Oshkosh

Dr. Bill Weber of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory on being selected for the Distinguished Alumni Award, the highest University of Wisconsin Oshkosh alumni honor given. Weber and eight others will be honored for their professional and civic achievements during homecoming weekend, October 16-17, 2009.

Weber is an internationally recognized expert in defects and radiation effects in materials. His research, often done at the Department of Energy's EMSL, is essential for advanced electronic devices that operate in extreme conditions, developing radiation-tolerant materials for nuclear power, as well as for space exploration and research.

He received his bachelor's degree in physics from University of Wisconsin Oshkosh. While there, he was part of educational programs that allowed him to work and study at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Argonne National Laboratory. With this experience, he went on to get a master's degree and doctorate in nuclear engineering from University of Wisconsin Madison. An active member of the scientific community, he is a Fellow in the American Association for the Advancement of Science, American Ceramic Society, and the Materials Research Society. He is a prolific author, having written or co-written more than 420 peer-reviewed publications and 51 technical reports. He is also an outstanding editor, currently serving as a principal editor for the Journal of Materials Research.  (Posted 6/1/2009)

Kim Fowler Receives LASER Science Education Advocate Award

Kim Fowler is one of five a recipients of a LASER Science Education Advocate Award for exhibiting outstanding advocacy for science education in the state of Washington by promoting the importance of science education among the general public or the education system. LASER is the Washington state Leadership and Assistance for Science Education Reform. Specifically, Kim was recognized for her development of a set of energy, environment and sustainable related activities she brings to classrooms. Each award recipient receives $5,000 to be awarded to the not-for-profit organization or public education entity of their choice for use in its efforts on behalf of science education. Kim has selected the Yakima Valley/Tri-Cities Mathematics, Engineering and Science Achievement (MESA) program.  (Posted 5/18/2009)

Janos Szanyi Wins Fulbright Fellowship to Conduct Catalytic Research in Hungary

Janos Szanyi received a Fulbright Fellowship to spend 5 months in Hungary studying catalysts that may reduce nitrogen oxide emissions from cars and trucks. The Fulbright Fellowship is sponsored by the U.S. State Department. The fellowship provides opportunities for U.S. scientists to conduct research and exchange ideas with their new international colleagues.

During his stay in Budapest, Hungary, Janos will conduct in situ and operando studies aimed at understanding the kinetics and mechanisms of chemical reactions catalyzed by supported platinum/barium oxide systems. He will work at the Chemical Research Center, operated by the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. In addition, he will continue to lead his research at PNNL's Institute for Interfacial Catalysis.  (Posted 4/1/2009)

Sotiris Xantheas Receives Humboldt Award to Collaborate in Germany

Sotiris Xantheas has received an international award from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation to study the ubiquitous solvent: water. The award, presented by German President Horst Keller at the presidential residence in Berlin in early June, will cover Sotiris' travel to the Technical University of Munich at Garching and local expenses during his stay.

While at the university, Sotiris will work with Professor Alfred Laubereau and his students in the Physics Department on interpreting the infrared spectra of aqueous salts. This research into the molecular-level understanding of the interactions of water with various ions and how their presence alters the local structure of water has resulted in numerous scientific articles and stronger collaborations between U.S. and European institutions. This award to Sotiris closes out a series of studies he began 5 years ago as the recipient of the 2004 Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel Research Award.  (Posted 4/1/2009)

Xin Sun Receives Alumna Award

Congratulations to Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's Dr. Xin Sun, who received the prestigious Alumni Society Merit Award from the Department of Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering at the University of Michigan. The award recognizes Dr. Sun for her outstanding professional achievements and her contributions to the society.

Dr. Sun has a broad range of experience in the areas of applied mechanics and computational materials. Her expertise lies in applying the mechanics and materials' basic principles in solving practical engineering problems associated with solid oxide fuel cell design and analyses, advanced laminated armor materials development, joining and forming of advanced lightweight materials for automotive and heavy vehicle applications, advanced high strength steel modeling development, and lightweight automotive glazing design and development.

Dr. Sun, a Staff Scientist in PNNL's Computational Sciences & Mathematics Division, received her undergraduate degree in naval architecture and ocean engineering from China's Shanghai Jiao Tong University in 1990. She then went on to earn two master's degrees and her doctorate, all from the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor.  (Posted 3/1/2009)

Jerry Posakony elected Eminent Member of Eta Kappa Nu

Jerry Posakony was recently elected an Eminent Member of Eta Kappa Nu. Eta Kappa Nu is a unique membership organization dedicated to encouraging and recognizing excellence in the electrical and computer engineering field. Members consist of students, alumni, and other professionals who have demonstrated exceptional academic and professional accomplishments. The designation of Eminent Member is the organization's highest membership grade and is conferred upon those select few whose outstanding technical attainments and contributions through leadership in the fields of electrical and computer engineering have significantly benefited society.  (Posted 1/1/2009)

PNNL Team Selected for 2009 Incite Award - Earns 4 Million Hours on Supercomputers to Study Water's Chemistry

DOE has awarded a team of researchers at PNNL a 2009 INCITE award. The award provides access to powerful supercomputers to model complex processes and analyze large data sets.

The team, which includes Shawn Kathmann, Chris Mundy, Roger Rousseau and Greg Schenter, all of the Fundamental and Computational Sciences Directorate, and a researcher at IBM Research-Zurich, received a total of 4 million hours on two of DOE's Advanced Scientific Computing Research's supercomputers. The team will have 2 million hours on the IBM Blue Gene/P at Argonne National Laboratory. In addition, it will get 2 million hours on the Cray XTs at Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

The 4 million hours is a significant increase from the 1.5 million hours the team received from the 2008 INCITE award and will immensely enhance the team's research, according to Chris, the team leader and principal investigator of the INCITE research.

With the new award, the team will be able to continue running statistical and quantum mechanical calculations to explore the chemical physics of reactions that occur within and at the interface of hydrogen-bonded liquids, like water. The calculations and resulting models will accurately portray reactions under experimentally relevant conditions.

This research requires the processing speed and power of supercomputers. Standard desktop systems are simply incapable of running the proposed calculations.

This research could provide insights on reactions that occur in water and other hydrogen-bonding fluids. "Understanding the reactions that occur in water have far-reaching implications in many areas of science," Chris said. Elucidating the solvation of ions in the vicinity of interfaces and in bulk will help us control many processes in chemistry, atmospheric science, and biology.

This work supports PNNL's mission to strengthen U.S. scientific foundations for innovation by

• developing transformational tools, techniques and facilities, including those for advanced modeling and computation, for the biological, chemical, environmental and physical sciences via EMSL and other user facilities.
• developing tools and understanding required to control chemical and physical processes in complex multiphase environments.

 (Posted 1/1/2009)

---

2009 Fellowships

L. Ruby Leung elected AMS Fellow

Congratulations to Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's Dr. L. Ruby Leung on her election as Fellow of the American Meteorological Society. The Society awards the distinction of Fellow to only two-tenths of one percent of its membership each year. Leung was cited for her outstanding individual contributions and leadership in the development and application of regional climate models. She will be recognized in January 2010 at the Society's 90th Annual Review and Fellows Awards in Atlanta, Georgia.

Leung is a Laboratory Fellow in the PNNL Atmospheric Sciences and Global Change Division and a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. In his nomination letter, Dr. Gerald R. North of Texas A&M University cited Leung's work in regional climate models, an impressive citation record, and her outstanding leadership role within the U.S. Department of Energy climate science community. In addition, he praised her leadership with the National Center for Atmospheric Research in advancing the Weather Research and Forecasting model for climate research, and in projects such as the North American Regional Climate Change Assessment Program, as demonstration of her prominence in the atmospheric and climate science community.

Leung is recognized in the international scientific community for her pioneering contributions in regional climate modeling and research on land-atmosphere interactions and their roles in climate variability and change. Her work on regional climate projections was included in scientific assessments done by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007. In collaboration with the National Center for Atmospheric Research, Leung has been developing and applying advanced regional climate models that will help improve the predictions of climate change and its impacts. Her research on climate change effects has been featured in Science, Popular Science, The Wall Street Journal, National Public Radio, and many other major news outlets.

The AMS, founded in 1919, has a membership of more than 14,000 professionals, professors, students, and weather enthusiasts. The AMS produces nine atmospheric and related oceanic and hydrologic journals, sponsors multiple annual conferences, and directs numerous education and outreach programs and services.  (Posted 10/1/2009)

Steve Mladineo named Fellow of the Institute of Nuclear Materials Management

Steve Mladineo joined Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) in 1993 and has managed the Nuclear Arms Control and Nonproliferation Product Line, has been the PNNL Account Manager for DOE Nonproliferation Offices and has also provided technical support to nonproliferation programs at DOE headquarters. He is currently Senior Advisor within PNNL Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation Programs Sector and provides technical support to the Office of National Infrastructure and Sustainability within the Office of International Material Protection and Cooperation at the National Nuclear Security Administration.

He is a long-time supporter of the Institute of Nuclear Materials Management (INMM) having become a regular member of the Institute in 1994 shortly after beginning his career with PNNL. He became a Senior Member of the Institute in 2000 and has been active with both the Northeast and Pacific Northwest Chapters.

Since joining INMM, Steve has demonstrated sustained leadership and commitment. He has served on the Technical Program Committee, has presented papers and chaired many sessions at the Annual Meetings and has been Chair of the Nonproliferation and Arms Control Division since 2000. He has participated in four quadrennial INMM/ANS International Meetings on Facility Operations-Safeguards Interface and served as the General Chair of the 2008 International Conference held in Portland, Oregon. Additionally, he was awarded the INMM Meritorious Service Award in 2007.

His experience with the INMM has permitted him to interact with colleagues from a broad cross section of the INMM membership, including international colleagues. The INMM mission aligns with the U.S. Department of Energy's National Security mission, as well as the mission of other client-funding sponsors who are represented by PNNL.  (Posted 7/1/2009)

Jean Futrell Elected Fellow of American Chemical Society

Congratulations to Dr. Jean Futrell of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory on being selected for the inaugural class of American Chemical Society Fellows. The American Chemical Society, with more than 150,000 members, is one of the world's largest scientific organizations. This prominent honor, given to only 0.1% of the society's members, reflects Futrell's scientific achievements and his contributions to the research community.

His research focuses on the theory and practice of mass spectroscopy. His work has answered fundamental questions about mass spectrometry, including the behavior of ions. He has developed or modified instruments for specialized research, creating high-pressure and chemical-ionization mass spectrometers. His invention of tandem mass spectrometry is deployed in nearly every commercial mass spectrometer.

In the scientific community, Futrell is a quiet, diplomatic, and highly effective leader. He has served as chair and past chair of the American Society of Mass Spectrometry; he is currently on the society's executive committee. He has also served as president and past president of the Council for Chemical Research, which advances scientific research to benefit society. The first director of the Department of Energy's EMSL, Futrell is a prolific writer with more than 400 refereed articles and invited reviews to his name.

Throughout his career, Futrell has been recognized by his peers. As a mass spectrometry expert, he was named the German Mass Spectrometry Society's Wolfgang Paul Distinguished Lecturer-the fourth American to receive such an honor. He won the FH Field and JL Franklin Award, the ACS's top honor for fundamental science in mass spectrometry. Further, he is a Fellow in three societies: the American Physical Society, the American Society for the Advancement of Science, and the World Innovation Foundation.

Futrell and the other ACS Fellows will be honored at a special ceremony during the ACS National Meeting in Washington, D.C., on Monday, August 17, 2009.  (Posted 7/1/2009)

Gary Yang Selected Fellow of ASM International

Gary Yang was elected a 2009 ASM International Fellow. This honor recognizes members of the nearly 100-year-old professional society for their distinguished work in materials research and engineering. Yang was chosen for his contributions in developing materials for energy conversion and storage, and his work on understanding metallic interconnections with electrodes in solid oxide fuel cells.

At PNNL for the Transformational Materials Science Initiative, Yang and his team are developing nanostructured electrodes and electrolytes as well as synthesizing novel structures. These materials could fix the Achilles' heel of wind and solar energy: their intermittent nature. Using new materials and designs, Yang and his team are working on batteries that will move wind and solar from alternative to mainstream power sources.

In research circles, Yang is known for his focused approach to research and his easy-going nature. "Gary doesn't take setbacks to heart," said his manager Darrell Herling. "He just rolls with the punches."

As to his focus, it is obvious in his outstanding publications record. He has written or co-written 140+ scientific papers and book chapters. He has organized or co-organized a dozen of seminars and conferences, and served as editor on numerous proceedings. He has also edited four special issues of journals.  (Posted 7/1/2009)

Gary Yang elected Fellow of ASM International

Gary Yang was recently elected an ASM International Fellow. This honor recognizes members of the nearly 100-year-old professional society for their distinguished work in materials research and engineering. Yang was chosen for his contributions in developing materials for energy conversion and storage, and his work advancing the understanding of metallic interconnections with electrodes in solid oxide fuel cells.

At PNNL, for the Transformational Materials Science Initiative, Yang and his team are developing nanostructured electrodes and electrolytes as well as synthesizing novel structures. These materials could fix the Achilles' heel of wind and solar energy: their intermittent nature. Using new materials and designs, Yang and his team are developing batteries that will move wind and solar from alternative to mainstream power sources.  (Posted 6/1/2009)

SK Sundaram Named Fellow of the Society of Glass Technology

SK Sundaram, Energy & Environment Directorate, was recently named Fellow to the Society of Glass Technology, UK. Fellowship of the Society is awarded to members who have reached prescribed levels of attainment in the business of glass and associated industries and for recognized contributions to the science and technology of glass.

Over the past 15 years, Sundaram has conducted research on various aspects of energy and environments. He is internationally recognized for interdisciplinary research in the areas of millimeter/THz wave technology, nanomaterials/toxicity, integrated infrared photonics, multi-scale materials processing, and materials and sensors for energy conversion.

Dr. Sundaram is now leading a multidisciplinary team of engineers and scientists in a quest to understand degradation mechanisms, protect materials, and develop sensors in challenging gasification environments under the Energy Conversion Initiative at PNNL. He has won numerous awards and honors, including two R&D100 awards.  (Posted 3/1/2009)

David S. Smith Elected Fellow of ASCE

David S. Smith was elected Fellow of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). The ASCE Fellow award is a prestigious honor held by fewer than six percent of its 75,000 regular members and another 60,000 associate, affiliate or student ASCE members. David was recognized for being an outstanding "practitioner, educator, mentor and most of all leader." The ASCE is a non-profit organization dedicated to having engineers positioned as global leaders who strive toward building a better quality of life.  (Posted 3/1/2009)

Bruce Garrett Elected Fellow of Royal Society of Chemists

As director of Chemical and Materials Sciences Division, Garrett has primary responsibility for PNNL's work in developing the tools and understanding to control chemical and physical processes in complex multiphase environments. His major accomplishments in physical chemistry are in developing theoretical approaches to determine rates of molecular processes in gas and condensed phases, including the first consistent molecular theory of gas-to-particle nucleation.

The Royal Society of Chemistry has more than 44,000 members worldwide. The largest chemical society in Europe, the organization works to promote the development, practice, and application of the chemical sciences across the world. In particular, the society encourages the participation of students and young people in chemistry.  (Posted 2/1/2009)

---

2009 Elected Positions and Offices

Cheryl Cejka Picked to Head DOE Tech Transfer Group

The Department of Energy has named Cheryl Cejka, technology commercialization director at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), executive board chair of the agency's Technology Transfer Working Group.

The group is creating a policy framework to streamline technology transfer activities such as licensing at all DOE national laboratories. Laboratory-developed technologies can be used in commercial products after being licensed to outside businesses. The working group's members are from across the DOE's national laboratories.

Cejka has led PNNL's portfolio development and investment, intellectual property management and technology commercialization activities for eight years. PNNL's annual returns from intellectual assets have increased since then. Cejka also oversaw the creation of many technology licensing arrangements, which resulted in new business ventures based on PNNL technologies. Many of these transactions received national recognition for excellence in technology transfer.  (Posted 1/1/2009)

Ron Jarnagin Elected ASHRAE Treasurer

Ron Jarnagin will be assuming the office of Treasurer of ASHRAE for the 2009-2010 Society Year – an opportunity given by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers, an international organization of 51,000 persons. The Treasurer position is one of three senior officers of ASHRAE; the other two are President Elect and President. The term of office is one year for each of the senior positions and it is expected that the candidate will move through the positions to assume the Presidency.

As Treasurer Ron will chair the Finance Committee which is responsible for ASHRAE's $20 million annual budget; will serve as Vice Chairman of Members Council, which oversees all of the volunteer activities in ASHRAE's 14 global regions; will serve as the Vice Chair of ASHRAE's Advocacy Committee, which informs and influences the decisions of Congress on technical matters related to ASHRAE's mission; will serve as a member of the Board of Directors; and also will serve on ASHRAE's Executive Committee, which provides strategic leadership for the Board.  (Posted 6/1/2009)

Mathew Milazzo Named 2009 ANS Glenn T. Seaborg Science and Engineering Congressional Fellow

Matthew D. Milazzo, a nuclear engineer at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, Washshington, was selected as the 2009 ANS Glenn T. Seaborg Science and Engineering Congressional Fellow. During his one-year term beginning in January 2009, Milazzo will work as a special legislative assistant on the staff of Sen. George Voinovich (R., Ohio), where he will serve as a scientific and technical resource on issues related to nuclear energy.

Milazzo believes that his role is to bridge the gap between those who understand science and technology and those who create and influence policy. "I hope to be an honest broker who can create positive changes in perceptions of nuclear power and technologies one person at a time," he said. Milazzo's goals stem from his firsthand experience on Capitol Hill, meeting people who are misinformed about nuclear technology and industry.

Since August 2007, he has served as the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science Congressional Fellow assigned to Sen. Maria Cantwell (D., Wash.). There he provides technical expertise in the areas of energy, climate change, and national security. On the staff of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory since 2005, Milazzo has also delivered programmatic and engineering analysis support to several U.S. government clients. Previously, he served as a business process analyst at PricewaterhouseCoopers in Washington, D.C.

Milazzo also spent six years in the U.S. Navy as a nuclear mechanical operator aboard the USS South Carolina, a guided missile cruiser. He then earned a bachelor's degree in bioengineering and economics from the University of Pittsburgh in 2000 and master's degrees in nuclear engineering and public policy and management from Ohio State University (OSU) in 2004. Milazzo joined ANS in 2002 while a graduate student at OSU, and served as the student section vice president. He now serves on the ANS Public Policy Committee.

Milazzo plans to further the Society's contribution to national policy dialogue. "As climate change legislation continues to take form, the ANS fellow should keep ANS involved by leveraging the organization's substantial technical expertise to secure nuclear power's role in climate change policy," Milazzo stated. Through the coordination of informational briefings to connect government officials with nuclear industry experts, Milazzo hopes to provide direction for programs that aim to expand the peaceful use of nuclear energy while minimizing proliferation risks.

Milazzo, one of four candidates interviewed this year by the ANS Congressional Fellowship Committee, is the ninth person chosen for the fellowship since the program's inception in 2000. ANS is one of more than 30 science and engineering societies that participate in the Partner Scientific Society-sponsored Congressional Fellowship Program administered by the American Association for the Advancement of Science.  (Posted 1/1/2009)

Richard May Named IEEE VAST Symposium Co-chair

Richard May has been unanimously approved by the IEEE VAST (Visual Analytics Science and Technology) Steering committee as the IEEE VAST symposium co-chair with Jörn Kohlhammer from Fraunhofer in Germany. IEEE VAST is one of the fastest growing national and international scientific communities.

IEEE VAST is the first international symposium dedicated to advances in Visual Analytics Science and Technology. The scope of the symposium, co-located with the annual IEEE Visualization Conference (IEEE Vis) and the IEEE Information Visualization Conference (IEEE InfoVis), includes both fundamental research contributions within visual analytics as well as applications of visual analytics, including applications in science, security and investigative analysis, engineering, medicine, health, media, business, and social interaction.

As Deputy Director for the Department of Homeland Security's National Visualization and Analytics Center (NVAC), Dr. May develops opportunities to transfer technologies to meet the needs of regional preparedness experts and coordinates visual analytics research across government and academic partners. He received his B.S. and M.S. in Computer Science from Washington State University and his Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering from the University of Washington.

Throughout his career, Dr. May has focused on designing new technologies and protocols to generate and interact with complex, massive data sets. He has conducted research in video and image processing, information visualization, virtual and mixed reality and visual analytics. In the early 1990s, he transitioned his research from visualizing science to interacting with the visualizations, to better understand the complex nature of the problems being studied. This new focus led to research in both the logical and physical aspects of interacting with electronic information and eventually to looking at analytical processes and visual analytics.  (Posted 1/1/2009)

Irv Schultz Nominated to NRC Committee on Tetrachloroethylene

Irv Schultz was nominated to the National Academy of Sciences National Research Council Committee on Tetrachloroethylene, which is conducting a review of EPA's toxicological assessment of tetrachloroethylene. His research interests cover both ecological and human health issues and uses toxicokinetic methods in conjunction with molecular/biochemical tools to understand the cellular mechanisms and physiological processes determining the retention and adverse effects of contaminants. Highlights of his research efforts include studies of the disposition of drinking water disinfection byproducts in human volunteers, non-human primates and rodent models; development of computational models for the salmon brain-pituitary-gonadal axis and the metabolism and disposition of environmental pollutants in fish, with an emphasis on interspecies scaling.  (Posted 6/1/2009)

Dick Smith Named Editor-in Chief of Journal of Proteomics & Bioinformatics

Richard D. Smith has accepted an invitation to become Editor-in Chief of the Journal of Proteomics & Bioinformatics. Smith sets the direction for the open-access journal and gives final approval for each issue.

Founded in 2008, the Journal of Proteomics & Bioinformatics strives to provide rapid review and publishing of research in the proteomics and bioinformatics fields. The journal disseminates its articles freely for research, teaching and reference purposes.

Smith, a Battelle Fellow and Chief Scientist of Proteomics at PNNL, is a world leader in developing mass spectrometry for proteomics. He was recently named PNNL's Inventor of the Year for Fiscal Year 2008. Smith has received 36 U.S. patents and 32 foreign patents, seven R&D 100 Awards, the 2003 American Chemical Society Award for Analytical Chemistry and induction as a Battelle "Distinguished Inventor."  (Posted 6/1/2009)

Liem Dang Serves as a Guest Editor of Special Issue of Physical Chemistry Journal

Liem Dang was invited to serve as guest editor on a special issue of The Journal of Physical Chemistry A . This issue was dedicated to the Max Wolfsberg, a leader in theoretical chemistry. Wolfsberg's early work led to the Wolfsberg-Helmholtz approximation, widely used in calculations of molecular electronic energy levels. His descriptions of isotope effects on chemical reactions are widely used by experimental chemists.

As a guest editor, Dang solicited, reviewed, and edited many of the 40 scientific articles that grace this March 2009 issue. Dang is a respected researcher and author on molecular dynamics simulation techniques to study ionic solvation, ion-ligand complexation, and properties of liquid interfaces. This special issue was made possible because of his close work with Wolfsberg during Dang's doctoral research at University of California, Irvine.  (Posted 5/1/2009)

Joshua Adkins Named to NIH Study Section

Joshua Adkins was invited by the National Institutes of Health Center for Scientific Review to serve as a member of the Enabling Bioanalytical and Biophysical Study Section. His term is from July 1, 2009 to June 30, 2013.

This study section reviews grant applications focused on developing new bioanalytical and biophysical tools, emerging techniques and instrumentation. Emphasis is on research that probes the molecular aspects of biological systems using novel technologies or enhancements on existing techniques.

Dr. Adkins' research centers on comprehensive characterization of proteins through space and time to better understand biological systems. His particular interests are challenging biological studies that require bridging the gaps between technology development and biological application. Currently, he is Director for the Center for Systems Biology of EnteroPathogens, the aim of which is to develop therapeutics for the causative agents of Typhoid Fever and the Black Plague.  (Posted 5/1/2009)

Steven Wiley Invited to Join National Research Council Review Panel

Steven Wiley, Lead Scientist for Biology at the Department of Energy's EMSL, was selected to serve as a reviewer on the 2009 National Research Council Research Associateship Programs. The programs fund postdoctoral fellows, senior scientists and engineers, and faculty to work on research problems of their choice in federal laboratories. The Council receives around 800 applications every year for these programs. The NRC selects about 300 of these applications for funding based on a competitive process that includes a review by one of five NRC panels.

One of the five panels is the Life Sciences panel, where Wiley will serve. On this panel, he will evaluate the impact and the approach of the research proposed in the applications four times a year. Also, he will discuss his recommendations with his colleagues on the panel, working to promote only the best possible research. Wiley will serve on the panel for three years.

Wiley was chosen because of his scientific expertise in molecular and systems biology, such as the research into large-scale protein-protein interactions and cell signaling networks. In addition, he is an experienced leader, currently working as the steward for EMSL's Biological Interactions and Dynamics science theme and as Director of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's Biomolecular Systems Initiative. Further, he has experience with advisory committees, including the National Institutes of Health and Burroughs Wellcome Fund.  (Posted 2/1/2009)

Todd Halter Appointed to SciDB Advisory Board

Todd Halter has been appointed to the SciDB advisory board. SciDB is an open source data management system designed to support the needs of scientists across a variety of disciplines. As a member of the advisory board, Halter will be helping to establish the requirements for a new database technology specifically targeting scientific applications.

SciDB grew out of the 1st Extremely Large Databases (XLDB) Workshop and the subsequent Science-Database Workshop. SciDB is designed to meet the growing demands of data-intensive scientific analytics in the public and private sectors. User communities expected to benefit include sciences such as astronomy, biology, geoscience (geology, oceanography, atmospheric science, environmental science), medicine, and physics; science-based industries such as remote sensing, resource extraction (oil, gas, minerals), medical imaging, and pharmaceuticals; and other organizations with vast amounts of data and complex analytical needs such as Internet, telecommunications, and financial services.

Halter, whose appointment began in November 2008, joins Gordon Anderson (PNNL); Tim Axelrod, LSST Corporation; Dirk Duellmann, (CERN); Tim Frazier, Los Alamos National Laboratory; James Frew, University of California, Santa Barbara; Michael Godin, Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute; and Bill Howe, Oregon Health & Science University, on the SciDB advisory board.  (Posted 2/1/2009)

Wenning Liu Appointed to the Editorial Board of Advances in OptoElectronics

Wenning Liu has been appointed to the Editorial Board of Advances in OptoElectronics as an associate editor. Liu's appointment began November 2008. Advances in OptoElectronics is a peer-reviewed open access journal aimed at accelerating worldwide recognition, dissemination, and utilization of the most recent findings and achievements in optoelectronics.

Liu Joined PNNL in 2005 and has more than 18 years of research experience in the fields of computational material, computational mechanics, and mathematics with related expertise in: finite element analysis, fatigue/failure/fracture tests and analyses; thermal-mechanical design; dynamic simulation of high speed impact; and CAD/CAM/CFD design and modeling. In the area of optoelectronics, Liu's research is focused on the reliability analysis, and design of optoelectronic packaging, including failure analysis of optoelectronic packaging, development of automatic alignment algorithm of optoelectronic packaging, and stress analysis of various IC packaging.

Liu has a doctorate from the Harbin Institute of Technology's School of Aerospace Engineering in Harbin, China.  (Posted 1/1/2009)

Kelly Sullivan Elected to Governing Board of Council for Chemical Research

Kelly Sullivan, Office of the Deputy Director for Science and Technology, was elected to the Governing Board of the Council for Chemical Research (CCR) in December 2008. Kelly Sullivan was nominated for the position and her appointment was confirmed by vote from the CCR membership. She will serve a full term of three years and represent the Laboratory and other government and national laboratories on the board.

The Council for Chemical Research, headquartered in Washington, D.C., aims to benefit society by influencing the success of chemistry-related science and engineering research. It promotes cooperation in basic research and encourages high-quality education in the chemical sciences and engineering. The Council's membership comprises more than 200 companies, universities and government laboratories with a combined research and development budget of more than $7 billion.

Kelly Sullivan, who leads the Laboratory's Office of Institutional Partnerships, was already active in the Council for Chemical Research before receiving the current board appointment. She serves as co-chair of The Council's Annual Meeting Planning committee and she co-leads the Graduate Education Action Network.  (Posted 1/1/2009)

Bruce D. Kay Invited to Join Journal of Chemical Physics Editorial Board

Bruce D. Kay has accepted an invitation to join the editorial board of the Journal of Chemical Physics. As a board member, Kay will referee submissions and help monitor the journal's editorial policy in terms of scope covered and paper quality. His three-year appointment begins in January 2009.

The Journal of Chemical Physics, published by the American Institute of Physics, contains articles on research in methods and applications of traditional and newer areas of chemical physics. The institute publishes content online daily and in 48 printed issues a year.

Kay is an international expert in condensed phase chemical kinetics and molecular dynamics. His work provides a detailed understanding of the molecular-level interactions responsible for phase transitions and catalytic reactions. Kay conducts much of his work at the Department of Energy's EMSL, a national scientific user facility at PNNL.

Kay is also known for his experience as a noted author and conscientious reviewer. Kay has written or co-written more than 120 journal articles and technical reports. He mentors many postdoctoral fellows at PNNL both in research and in preparing manuscripts for publication.  (Posted 1/1/2009)

Yanwen Zhang joins Editorial Board of Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research

Yanwen Zhang, a scientist at the Department of Energy's EMSL, has been invited to serve a 3-year term on the advisory editorial board of Nuclear Instruments & Methods in Physics Research, Section B. This journal, published by Elsevier, is one of the top-10 journals by impact factor in the field of nuclear science and technology and covers all aspects of the interaction of energetic beams, such as ion, electron, and photon beams, with solids. Related topics, such as applying ion beam analysis to biological, archaeological and geological samples, are covered. Notable conferences publish their proceedings in this peer-reviewed journal.

At EMSL, Zhang leads materials analysis and modification research projects in the ion accelerator laboratory. Her work covers topics such as single ion impact, nanoscale defect engineering, ion/electron-solid interaction, radiation detector physics, ion-beam modification and synthesis of materials, electrochemical oxidation of nuclear reactor fuel cladding, and application of ion-beam analysis techniques. Because of her research and experience, Zhang has participated in prestigious symposiums, including the 2008 German-American Frontiers of Engineering Symposium and the 14th Annual German-American Kavli Frontiers of Science Symposium. Also, she has won several awards, including the 2005 Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers and the docent title from the Lund University in Sweden.

With her collaborators around the world, she has written or co-written more than 120 journal articles. She is a co-editor for a book Ion Beams in Nanoscience and Technology (Springer Verlag, Berlin). She regularly mentors her postdoctoral fellows and collaborators in writing articles and is known as an outstanding reviewer.  (Posted 1/1/2009)

Eric Richman Joins Canadian Task Group on Lighting and Electrical Power

Eric Richman was invited to become an official member of the Canadian Task Group on Lighting and Electrical Power as they gear up to update Canada's Model National Energy Code for Buildings.

He is lending his expertise to help Canada make its buildings more energy efficient—thus saving energy, saving money and lowering their carbon footprint. Eric, a lighting expert for the DOE's Building Energy Codes Program (BECP), has informally supported the Canadian Task Group on Lighting and Electrical Power since July 2008.

In his work with BECP, Eric supports DOE's Commercial Codes Initiative by helping the primary commercial code-making body in the U.S., American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, increase the stringency and applicability of energy standards for new buildings. In its invitation to Eric, the Canadian group wrote "Your input to date has been invaluable to the Task Group and is greatly appreciated." More Info... (.doc)  (Posted 1/1/2009)

---

2009 Impact on Scientific Community

Kukkadapu Recognized as International Leader in Mössbauer Spectroscopy

EMSL research Ravi Kukkadapu recently received two international honors in the Mössbauer spectroscopy community. At the International Conference on the Applications of the Mössbauer Effect in Vienna, Austria, he was featured as an emerging leader in the Mössbauer community. He received this honor from distinguished Professor John Stevens, Director of the Mossbauer Effect Data Center, a research institute at the University of North Carolina.

In addition, Kukkadapu was invited to give a keynote talk at the upcoming Clay Minerals Group of the Mineralogical Society in the United Kingdom. At this annual conference, he will discuss the effect of iron-mineral (bio)transformations on remediating contaminated aquifers that contain radioactive metals such uranium, technetium, and plutonium. Contaminated aquifers, which can occur during nuclear material production and weapons development, are a problem worldwide.

At the Department of Energy's EMSL, Kukkadapu oversees the facility's ₅₇Fe-Mössbauer spectrometers. These instruments are ₅₇Fe-specific and provide information, such as valence state, coordination geometries, and magnetic hyperfine interactions, on iron-containing materials.

His work focuses on how (bio)transformation of iron-minerals present in the subsurface impact radioactive metal remediation under different biogeochemical conditions. This data will provide insights necessary to develop biogeochemical models for long-term monitoring of contaminated aquifers. He is also active in a number of other projects funded by DOE's Environmental Remediation Sciences Program.

In the last few years, he has written or co-written more than 35 papers on research done on the Mössbauer instruments for high-impact environmental journals. He is a frequently requested speaker at conferences and seminars.  (Posted 7/1/2009)

Jason Zhang Invited to write a chapter for the Handbook of Battery Materials

Congratulations to Jason Zhang on being invited to write a chapter for the Handbook of Battery Materials. This second edition is being published by Wiley-VCH. Zhang's 20-page chapter will focus on recent findings in metal air batteries and will illustrate the technology, barriers, and potential of such devices.

Zhang was selected because of his expertise in lithium batteries. Through PNNL's Transformational Materials Science Initiative, he studies nanostructured materials for energy storage, especially for transportation and portable electronics applications. His work and willingness to share it with the scientific community will advance the frontiers of nanostructured electrochemically active materials in energy storage devices.  (Posted 7/1/2009)

Marvin Warner Selected to Attend the 2009 U.S. Frontiers of Engineering Symposium

Marvin Warner was one of the 88 engineers selected to take part in the National Academy of Engineering's (NAE) 15th annual U.S. Frontiers of Engineering symposium. The participants–from industry, academia, and government–were nominated by fellow engineers or organizations and chosen from approximately 240 applicants.

"In today's challenging economic times, we look more than ever toward our engineering innovators," said NAE President Charles M. Vest. "The U.S. Frontiers of Engineering program brings together a diverse group of this country's most promising young engineers and gives them a forum to discuss multidisciplinary ways of addressing the issues that will carry us into tomorrow's economy."

Marvin's expertise lies in the chemistry and engineering of nanomaterials for applications ranging from detection and environmental remediation to national security challenges. His research is interdisciplinary in nature, and he has demonstrated success in developing business, leading interdisciplinary teams, and establishing collaborations with scientists outside PNNL. He has 18 peer-reviewed publications, 3 book chapters and 2 patents, all related to the development and application of nanomaterials to solve challenging problems in energy, the environment, and national security.

The symposium will be held September 10-12 at the National Academy's Beckman Center at the University of California, Irvine, and will examine engineering tools for scientific discovery; engineering the health care delivery system; nano/micro photonics and new applications; and resilient and sustainable infrastructures.  (Posted 6/1/2009)

PNNL's Tony Janetos Co-authors White House Climate Report

PNNL scientist Anthony Janetos was a key spokesperson at a White House news conference announcing the release of a major new climate change assessment on June 16, 2009. "Global Climate Change Impacts in the United States" summarizes current climate change science and projects regional and national consequences of the changing environment. It also discusses some of the actions society can take to respond to the climate challenge.

The White House Office of Science and Technology, which released the 200-page report, called it the "most comprehensive, authoritative report on global climate change impacts in the United States." The purpose of the report is to increase understanding of climate change and to provide a framework for decision making. The report received widespread media coverage, including from the Associated Press, The New York Times, the Washington Post, Time magazine, National Public Radio, numerous climate change blogs, and Twitter.

Janetos directs the Joint Global Change Research Institute, a partnership between PNNL and the University of Maryland. He wrote the ecosystems section and served on the author team for the full report. The ecosystems chapter concludes that, "Human-induced climate change, in conjunction with other stresses, is exerting major influences on natural environments and biodiversity, and these influences are generally expected to grow with increased warming." Ecosystem impacts include changes in basic processes such as photosynthesis; large-scale shifts in the distribution of plants and animals; and increased threats from fire, pests and disease. These effects are occurring now and are likely to grow, especially in desert, coastal, and arctic environments.

Why it matters: "The most important thing in this report is that the impacts of climate change are not something your children might theoretically see 50 years from now," Janetos told reporters during the news conference. "The thing that concerns me the most is that we have a whole host of impacts that we now observe in the natural world that are occurring sooner and more rapidly and that appear to be larger than we might have expected 10 years ago. If anything, we might have underestimated the rate and the impact of changes in the climate system."

Method: The report summarizes an extensive body of scientific information in layperson-friendly language. The authors drew primarily from 21 synthesis and assessment reports of the U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP).

The USGCRP is a 13-agency group that includes the Department of Energy. PNNL's atmospheric scientists and other researchers contributed to several USGCRP climate studies cited in the report. Also included were other peer-reviewed assessments and research, as well as government statistics, publicly available observations, and advice from expert reviewers.

What's next: This work is part of PNNL's quest to transform the Nation's ability to predict climate change and its impacts. Janetos is now working on expanding the JGCRI's research agenda on integrated assessment to include more sophistication on climate impacts and adaptation. The Global Change Research Act of 1990 requires the USGCRP to conduct an assessment of the impacts of global change in the United States at least every four years.

Acknowledgments: Janetos' work was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Biological and Environmental Research, as part of the U.S. Global Change Research Program.

Research team: In addition to Janetos, the report was authored by 30 people from Federal agencies, universities, national laboratories, and other research institutions.

Reference: Thomas R. Karl, Jerry M. Melillo, and Thomas C. Peterson (eds.) 2009. "Global Climate Change Impacts in the United States." Cambridge University Press, New York.  (Posted 6/1/2009)

Jim Amonette Writes Chapter in New Biochar Book

Jim Amonette wrote a chapter in a new book that is likely to become the definitive reference work on biochar. Published in March, Biochar for Environmental Management is the first book to bring together the expanding research literature on the potential environmental applications of biochar. The material biochar is a form of charcoal that is produced when biomass is burned under low-oxygen conditions to release energy. The book's interdisciplinary approach covers engineering, environmental sciences, agricultural sciences, economics, and policy aspects.

The book's editors selected Amonette to write the chapter entitled "Characteristics of Biochar: Microchemical Properties" because of his reputation as a soil mineralogist and chemist, his interest in soil-carbon sequestration, and his current research in the characterization and usage of biochar. Amonette's chapter focuses on the chemical makeup of biochar at the microscopic and molecular scale.

Generation and storage of biochar in soil may offer a long-term soil-based solution to the global climate change problem. The process transforms the biological matter into a more stable form of carbon, slowing the release cycle and thereby keeping more carbon out of the atmosphere. Amonette's work focuses on what happens when the biochar is added to soil. "The potential for biochar to permanently sequester atmospheric carbon is on the order of a billion tons per year, if sustainable practices are used," said Amonette.

Amonette has 29 plus years of research experience and has been with PNNL since 1986. He has authored or co-authored 57 plus peer-reviewed scientific journal publications, 20 book chapters, 40 technical reports, and 6 patents.  (Posted 6/1/2009)

Xiao-Dong Zhou Leads Organization of Important Symposium at Electrochemical Meeting

Dr. Xiao-Dong Zhou of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's Transformational Materials Science Initiative is organizing a symposium on Advanced Materials and Concepts for Energy Harvesting. This high-visibility symposium will increase awareness of the grand challenges and emerging opportunities facing researchers seeking ways to more effectively generate and store electricity for applications such as hybrid automobiles.

Dr. Zhou was asked to organize the symposium because of his personal and leadership skills. At PNNL, he performs leading-edge research on cathodes for solid-oxide fuel cells, thermoelectric oxides, and nanocomponents for more effective solar cells.

For the symposium, Dr. Zhou has invited speakers, including twelve members of the National Academies, who will present discoveries at the frontier of high-temperature materials and of conversion and storage of energy, including fuel cells, solar cells, and batteries. Technical discussions will focus on which technologies are most promising for further study.

This event is part of the 215th meeting of the Electrochemical Society, which will take place in San Francisco, California, May 24-29, 2009.  (Posted 5/1/2009)

Yuehe Lin Co-Edits Nanotechnology Book

Yuehe Lin, a Laboratory Fellow at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, is a primary editor of the Handbook of Electrochemical Nanotechnology. Recently released by American Scientific Publishing, the two-volume set was written as a reference for researchers, students, and professors.

Comprehensive and up-to-date, the books contain a total of 20 chapters written by leading researchers from academia and research institutes. The first volume contains an overview of this emerging field. The second volume explores potential applications, including nanoelectronics, sensors, and energy storage and conversion. In addition, the texts demonstrate that electrochemical nanotechnologies can solve significant technical barriers and potentially revolutionize research in emerging areas.

Lin was selected as primary editor based on his contributions to the fields of electrocatalysis, chemical sensors, biosensors, and biomedical nanotechnology. He has distinguished himself through his outstanding program development skills, his mentoring activities, and his publication excellence. Lin has authored more than 200 peer-reviewed publications and has more than 10 patents, half of which have been licensed to industrial partners for commercialization. Lin is a section editor of the Encyclopedia of Microfluidics and Nanofluidics. He also serves as editor and editorial advisory member of 18 international journals.  (Posted 5/1/2009)

Tim Scheibe Chosen Darcy Distinguished Lecturer

Timothy D. (Tim) Scheibe has been selected as the 2010 Henry Darcy Distinguished Lecturer in Ground Water Science. Scheibe, a staff scientist at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, was invited by the National Ground Water Research and Educational Foundation to spend next year lecturing at colleges and universities to educate and create interest in groundwater science and technology.

He will give lectures and meet with students and faculty at 30 to 50 host institutions across the United States and internationally. The lecture series has reached more than 70,000 students, faculty members, and professionals since 1987. Scheibe will offer each host institution the choice of two lectures:

• Beyond the Black Box: Integrating Advanced Characterization of Microbial Processes with Subsurface Reactive Transport Models
• Quantifying Flow and Reactive Transport in the Heterogeneous Subsurface Environment: From Pores to Porous Media and Facies to Aquifers.

Since joining PNNL in 1992, Scheibe's research has focused on characterizing and modeling natural subsurface heterogeneity and its impacts on contaminant transport in groundwater systems. Recently, he worked on subsurface biogeochemistry problems, including microbial transport in groundwater and bioremediation of metals and radionuclides. Scheibe is currently working on simulations of coupled flow, transport, and biogeochemical processes. Most of his research has been for the U.S. Department of Energy's Environmental Remediation Sciences Program and its Scientific Discovery through Advanced Computing (SciDAC) program.

The Darcy Lecture Series was established in 1986 in honor of Henry Darcy, a French engineer whose investigations established the physical basis on which groundwater hydrogeology has been studied since 1856. The National Ground Water Association is a nonprofit organization of more than 13,000 U.S. and international groundwater professionals.  (Posted 5/1/2009)

Jason McDermott Plays Major Role in Book Publication

Jason McDermott played a leading role as primary editor of Computational Systems Biology . Recently published by Humana Press, the book was written for molecular and cellular biologists, bioinformaticians, and geneticists.

Comprehensive and up-to-date, Computational Systems Biology serves to motivate and inspire all those who wish to develop a complete description of a biological system. In the book, expert investigators contribute chapters which bring together biological data and computational and/or mathematical models of the data to aid researchers striving to create a system that provides both predictive and mechanistic information for a model organism.

The volume is organized into five major sections involving network components, network inference, network dynamics, function and evolutionary system biology, and computational infrastructure for systems biology. More info...

McDermott, along with Computational Sciences & Mathematics Division's Haluk Resat, Ron Taylor, and Mudita Singhal, all contributed to several chapters in the book, as well.  (Posted 4/1/2009)

Yanwen Zhang to Serve as Guest Professor at Peking University

EMSL researcher Yanwen Zhang has accepted an invitation to serve a two-year term as Guest Professor of Peking University. In this capacity, she will monitor Ph.D. students at EMSL who are mainly supported by the Chinese government and help strengthen materials research at the university, until March 2011. Zhang will visit Peking University approximately twice yearly, and the university professors, researchers and students will also visit EMSL as part of the collaboration.

The invitation was extended by Professor J. F. Zhou, the President of Peking University.

At EMSL, Zhang leads materials analysis and modification research projects in the ion accelerator laboratory. Her work covers topics such as single ion impact, nanoscale defect engineering, ion/electron-solid interaction, radiation detector physics, ion-beam modification and synthesis of materials, electrochemical oxidation of nuclear reactor fuel cladding, and application of ion-beam analysis techniques. Because of her research and experience, Zhang has participated in prestigious symposiums, including the 2008 German-American Frontiers of Engineering Symposium and the 14th Annual German-American Kavli Frontiers of Science Symposium. Also, she has won several awards, including the 2005 Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers and the docent title from the Lund University in Sweden. With her collaborators around the world, she has written or co-written more than 120 journal articles.  (Posted 3/1/2009)

Julia Laskin Honored in Prestigious Russian Journal

Julia Laskin was honored in Mass-Spectrometria, a prestigious Russian mass spectrometry journal. The tribute honored Laskin's 2008 Biemann Medal given for outstanding achievement in mass spectrometry by a young scientist.

Dr. Jean Futrell, a renowned expert in mass spectrometry, wrote the tribute, which can be found in volume 5, issue 4 of the journal. Futrell honored Laskin for her internationally recognized contributions to mass spectrometry, ion chemistry, and ion surface reactions. Her research in these areas provides an important background for the development of new analytical approaches in tandem mass spectrometry.

Laskin also is actively involved in building the next generation of scientists. She hosts and advises visiting scientists and graduate students from U.S. and foreign universities at the Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, a DOE national user facility at PNNL. Also, Laskin mentors post-doctoral fellows and undergraduate summer interns. She has authored or co-authored more than 70 peer-reviewed articles.  (Posted 3/1/2009)

Bill Morgan Named Scientific Director of NASA Summer School

Bill Morgan has been named Scientific Director of the 2009 National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Space Radiation Summer School (NSRSS). The school, which is held at Brookhaven National Laboratory, June 1-20, offers graduate students, postdoctoral fellows and junior faculty the opportunity to learn about the unique characteristics of space radiation and how to perform experiments exposing targets to high-energy, high-charge particles. The NSRSS was designed to provide a pipeline of researchers to tackle the challenges of harmful radiation exposure to humans traveling on space exploration missions.

Morgan, who is Director of Radiation Biology and Biophysics at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, will select and invite lecturers, coordinate the courses, and ensure attendees learn all the chemistry, physics and biology of radiations commonly encountered in space. He is also featured in the NASA Space Radiation Program Winter 2008/2009 Newsletter Space Radiation Spotlight on William F. Morgan.

Morgan is a leading researcher in the fields of radiation biology and the long-term biological effects of radiation exposure. He leads PNNL's Low Dose Program, which is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Biological and Environmental Research. Morgan is a scientific representative for regulatory agencies such as the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation, the International Commission on Radiological Protection, the National Council for Radiation Protection and the Environmental Protection Agency's Science Advisory Board Radiation Advisory Committee.  (Posted 2/1/2009)

Changing Paradigm of Data-Intensive Computing Makes Journal Cover

A PNNL-authored article by Richard Kouzes, Gordon Anderson, Stephen Elbert, Ian Gorton, and Deb Gracio on the Changing Paradigm of Data-Intensive Computing was selected as the cover feature for the January IEEE Computer Society journal.

The article describes PNNL's leading-edge research to develop new classes of software, algorithms and hardware to provide timely and meaningful analytical results from an exponentially growing tidal wave of complex scientific, energy, environmental and national security related data in the new information-dominated age.  (Posted 1/1/2009)

Wayne Martin Recognized as One of America's 2008 Most Accomplished African American Engineers

Wayne Martin has been recognized as one of America's 2008 most accomplished African American engineers by the Black Equal Opportunity Employment Journal.

Over the past 30 years, Wayne has served as a environmental scientist and program manager for technology development for complex environmental problems and conducted an extensive array of experiments related to the study of contaminant migration in the subsurface using numerous analytical instruments. He has worked predominantly on national problems associated with hazardous waste management, although he has had international involvement with the International Atomic Energy Association working with an international committee for developing procedures for radioactive tracer techniques and studies in understanding contaminant migration mechanisms and problems. These approaches are instrumental in the investigation and identification of the environmental fate of radioactive and inorganic species in the subsurface.

His recognition also includes his efforts to increase involvement of under-represented minorities in the engineering and scientific fields and for his leadership and significant contributions to the Tri-Cities community.  (Posted 1/1/2009)

---

2008 Awards

Larry Runyon Receives Deputy Director's Award for Individual Excellence from DOE Office of Intelligence and Counterintelligence

Larry Runyon received the Deputy Director's Award for Individual Excellence at the second annual DOE Office of Intelligence and Counterintelligence Award Program April 30, 2008, in Washington, D.C. Larry was recognized for his outstanding performance in executing his responsibilities as the Deputy Senior Counterintelligence Officer for the PNNL Counterintelligence Program, and in particular, for his diligence, aggressiveness, thoroughness and overall professionalism demonstrated during his investigation of two high-profile cases of national impact that ultimately became models for the entire DOE counterintelligence community.

Larry's efforts over the last six-plus years investigating the two unique, complex and high-profile CI cases, and his ultimate application of the facts developed in those cases into a successful case study workshop were the basis for the award  (Posted 5/1/2008)

Jerry Posakony named recipient of 2009 IEEE Honorary Membership

Jerry Posakony has been named the recipient of the 2009 IEEE Honorary Membership "for pioneering contributions in ultrasonic techniques for medical diagnosis and nondestructive evaluation."

Each year the IEEE Awards Board recommends a select group of recipients to receive the IEEE's most prestigious honors. As of Dec 2007 there were only 27 IEEE Honorary members worldwide out of more than 376,000 IEEE members.

The grade of Honorary Member is a significant honor bestowed by the Institute and is awarded for life to an individual. It was established through the Bylaws of the IEEE, with the following description: Honorary Members are elected by the Board of Directors from among those who have rendered meritorious service to humanity in the IEEE's designated fields of interest and who are not members of the IEEE.

Through its global membership, IEEE is a leading authority on areas ranging from aerospace systems, computers and telecommunications to biomedical engineering, electric power and consumer electronics among others.  (Posted 12/1/2008)

Bill Samuels Shares ACS Regional Industrial Innovation Award

A new technology that de-ices planes and airport runways and pavements with less impact to the environment has garnered its development team the Regional Industrial Innovation award from the American Chemical Society.

The technology – D3: Degradable by Design Deicer – was created by a team of scientists from Battelle and PNNL. D3 is a family of non-toxic biodegradable fluids used to remove and prevent the formation of snow and ice on aircraft, airport runways, roads and pavement. It also can prevent snow from sticking to deiced surfaces, providing additional protection.

The team members are Bill Samuels, Fundamental and Computation Sciences Directorate; and Satya Chauhan, Nicholas Conkle and Melissa Roshon, Battelle.

D3 was developed to be more environmentally friendly and is manufactured primarily from bio-based materials. The award-winning deicing — EcoFlo for aircraft deicing/anti-icing and Battelle-RDF for runway pavement deicing/anti-icing — substantially reduce toxicity levels and potential environmental damage as well as corrosion of aircraft materials while providing the same performance and benefits of other commercial deicing products.

The technology is available for use by the military and commercial airlines for aircraft and runway deicing and also is potentially available for consumer deicing products. The evaluation of these products for military use was partially funded by two Defense Department programs — Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program and Environmental Security Technology Certification Program. D3 also received a 2004 R&D 100 Award for aircraft deicing/anti-icing as well as a 2008 R&D 100 Award for runway deicing/anti-icing.

 (Posted 7/16/2008)

Moe Khaleel Named Mechanical Engineer of the Year by ASME

Moe Khaleel, director of the Computational Sciences and Mathematics Division and a PNNL Fellow, received the "ASME Setting the Standard 2008 Mechanical Engineer of the Year award" from the Columbia Basin Section of ASME (American Society of Mechanical Engineers) International.

Khaleel was recognized for his leadership and contributions to computational engineering, specifically in increasing thermal efficiency of data centers, and fuel cell technologies. Khaleel's current research interests are tuned to world energy systems and the future role for fuel cell systems. He is the national coordinator for a program dealing with the modeling and simulation of Solid Oxide Fuel Cell as part of the Solid Energy Conversion Alliance. His work in this area is highly cited by the engineering and scientific communities.

As director of PNNL's Computational Sciences and Mathematics Division, Khaleel leads the effort to provide scientific and technological solutions through the integration of high-performance computing, data-intensive computing, computational sciences, mathematics, scalable data management, and bioinformatics to advance the Laboratory's mission areas.

 (Posted 7/1/2008)

PNNL's Lu Verdugo selected top mentor in the country

Lu Verdugo received the inaugural National Mentor Award at The International Association of Office Professionals (IAAP) annual meeting in New Orleans on July 30. The award was sponsored by Adecco, a national personnel recruiting firm. The Mentor Award recognizes the top administrative professional who is willing to share their time and talents with their colleagues. Lu was honored based on the mentoring program she created and implemented among administrative staff in the Physical and Chemical Sciences Division as well as for her mentoring activities with staff lab-wide. Her accomplishments were judged best in the country by the panel which received 275 nominations. She is the lead administrator for the Physical and Chemical Sciences Division of the National Security Directorate and was this year's recipient of the Laboratory Director's Award of Administrative Excellence and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's Administrator of the Year.  (Posted 7/1/2008)

Julia Laskin Awarded Biemann Medal for Achievements in Mass Spectrometry

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory chemist Julia Laskin has received the Biemann Medal, the highest honor granted to a young scientist by the American Society for Mass Spectrometry. Laskin accepted the award at the ASMS annual conference June 3 in Denver, where she also delivered a lecture on her research to the nearly 7,000 scientists attending the conference.

The international award recognizes Laskin's contributions to better understanding the activation, fragmentation and deposition of large molecules when they collide with surfaces. Her research is of interest to the broad scientific community and directly advances Department of Energy goals to develop biomaterials and biological processes for clean energy production, as well as to create biologically inspired systems, novel catalysts and biosensors. Other findings by Laskin and her collaborators provide fundamental insights into the analysis of complex molecules present in biofuels, petroleum and aerosols.

"Julia is a leader whose research is expanding the frontiers of science and contributing to vital DOE missions in energy, environment and national security," Laboratory Director Mike Kluse said. "Her accomplishments exemplify the dedication and impact of our outstanding young scientists."

Laskin also received the Department of Energy's Office of Science Early Career Scientist and Engineer and the Presidential Early Career Achievement Award in fall 2007.

Laskin earned a master's degree in physics from the Physico-Mechanical Division of the Leningrad Polytechnical Institute in Russia in 1990, and a doctorate in physical chemistry from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in Israel in 1998. She joined PNNL as a postdoctoral research associate in 2000 and earned the laboratory's M.T. Thomas Award for outstanding postdoctoral achievement in 2002. She is now a chief scientist.

Laskin's work is funded by DOE's Office of Basic Energy Sciences and takes place at the William R. Wiley Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, a DOE scientific user facility at PNNL. EMSL is one of the world's foremost resources for mass spectrometry experts and instruments.  (Posted 6/1/2008)

Michael Brambley Receives ASHRAE Distinguished Service Award

Michael Brambley received the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers Distinguished Service Award. The award salutes members for giving freely of their time and talent to the Society.  (Posted 6/1/2008)

SK Sundaram Recognized for Contributions in Ceramics Field

SK Sundaram was honored with a "Profiles in Excellence" from the American Ceramics Society. This distinction spotlights division members who have been selected by their peers as a person of excellence.

SK, a Chief Materials Scientist at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, is internationally recognized for interdisciplinary research in the areas of millimeter/THz wave technology, nanomaterials/toxicity, integrated infrared photonics, and materials in extreme environments.

He has won numerous awards and honors, including two R&D100 awards. SK has held visiting appointments at Harvard, MIT, and Princeton. As a AAAS Fellow, he was honored for his "leadership and innovative contributions to a diverse cross-section of materials sciences, particularly new tools for synthesis and characterization of novel materials, diagnostics, and nanomaterials."  (Posted 2/1/2008)

Evelyn Hirt Receives Distinguished Service Award for Excellence in Nanotechnology

Evelyn Hirt was presented with the 2008 Nanotechnology Council's Distinguished Service Award. Evelyn was recognized for her outstanding service for the benefit and advancement of the IEEE Nanotechnology Council.

The IEEE Nanotechnology Council is a multi-disciplinary group whose purpose is to advance and coordinate work in the field of Nanotechnology which is carried out throughout the IEEE in scientific, literary and educational areas. The Council supports the theory, design, and development of nanotechnology and its scientific, engineering, and industrial applications. Between 2001 and today, Evelyn has held over ten positions with the Council, making her an excellent choice for this honor. The award garners Evelyn a $1,000 honorarium and a commemorative plaque.

At PNNL, Evelyn is a Principle Professional and Engineer with subject matter expertise in systems (hardware, software and integration) and controls. She will be formally presented the award at the IEEE NANO 2008 conference to be held in Texas this August.  (Posted 2/1/2008)

Bing Liu Receives 2008 Engineer of the Year Award from Washington Society of Professional Engineers

Bing Liu was named 2008 Engineer of the Year by the Washington Society of Professional Engineers. Bing was presented with this prestigious award at an Awards Banquet on February 22, 2008.

While nominations are submitted by the local chapters of professional societies such as ASHRAE, IEEE, and ASME, the Engineer of the Year Award is sponsored by the Washington Society of Professional Engineers. WSPE is a professional association, established in 1937, representing over 600 engineers from all fields of practice.

Bing, a senior research engineer, has focused her research primarily on the areas of Building and HVAC system energy efficiency, building energy use, and energy efficiency standards. Bing and her team have provided support through their analysis to DOE's decision making that will result in more stringent federal standards for packaged terminal air conditioners and heat pumps.  (Posted 2/1/2008)

Rob Pratt Receives IEEE Region 6 Northwest Area Outstanding Engineer Award

Rob Pratt received the IEEE Northwest Area Region 6 Outstanding Engineer Award. Rob received this award for his leadership in the Lab's Energy System Transformation Initiative which formed the DOE GridWise program.

IEEE is the world's leading professional association for the advancement of technology. This Award is designed to recognize IEEE members of Region 6 who have made outstanding contributions to their profession. It recognizes the development of new technical concepts, significant patents, development of new devices, development of applications, new designs, and significant cost reductions using known techniques.

Rob is a research scientist for Energy Technology Development. His leadership in the Lab's Energy System Transformation Initiative which formed the DOE GridWise program has also been instrumental in establishing the "smart grid" Movement, including smart grid legislation in the recent federal energy bill. Rob has also made significant contributions to the Grid-Friendly Appliance effort, the Pacific Northwest GridWise Demo, and the Energy Infrastructure which have all helped to advance electrical engineering in the region.  (Posted 1/1/2008)

Kevin Rosso named Virginia Tech Collefge of Science's Outstanding Alumnus

Kevin Rosso was honored by Virginia Tech for his outstanding research and contributions to the scientific community. Each year the university's alumni association selects, from each academic college, a gifted person who has graduated in the past decade. Rosso received the award from the College of Science, where he earned a doctoral degree in geochemistry in 1998. As a user of EMSL, Rosso leads internationally recognized research in environmental spectroscopy and biogeochemistry. He is an expert in mineral-water interface geochemistry, combining scanning probe microscopy and ab initio molecular modeling. He is known for his insightful models of electron transfer kinetics in environmental systems. His recent studies illuminate the relationship between bacteria and environmental metals, such as iron and uranium.  (Posted 12/1/2008)

Wei-Jun Qian Named "Rising Star" by Genome Technology

Dr. Wei-Jun Qian is one of 30 "rising young stars" named by Genome Technology magazine in its third annual "Tomorrow's PIs" special edition. The magazine offers readers a chance to see large-scale biological research through the eyes of some of the best and the brightest young scientists who are poised to make significant contributions to their areas of interest.

Qian, a senior scientist at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, is an expert in the rapidly growing field of proteomics—the study of proteins. He was chosen because of his contributions toward the development and application of innovative techniques that have enabled large-scale, quantitative investigations of proteins in challenging clinical samples.

His current research involves developing and applying novel mass spectrometry-based proteomics approaches for quantifying changes in proteins from mammalian cells, tissues, and biofluids. This work is helping the scientific community gain a better understanding of cell signaling and discovering novel mechanistic or diagnostic protein biomarkers for human diseases. Qian has authored or co-authored 57 peer-reviewed publications and three book chapters.

The young investigators were nominated by scientists who are established leaders in the field today. Dr. Richard D. Smith, PNNL's chief scientist for proteomics and Battelle Fellow, nominated Qian. An interview with Qian entitled "Step by Step, a Better Mass Spec" appears in the December 2008/January 2009 issue of Genome Technology.  (Posted 12/1/2008)

PNNL Researchers Earned Top Honors at SuperComputing Conference

Christopher Oehmen, Lee Ann McCue, Bobbie-Jo Webb-Robertson, Scott Dowson, Justin Almquist, Jason McDermott, and Chandrika Sivaramakrishnan won this year's SuperComputing (SC08) HPC Analytics Challenge. The Analytics Challenge encourages innovative and sophisticated analysis and visualization techniques in a meaningful application that supports the discovery of knowledge. This high-visibility venue provides a great opportunity to showcase PNNL's leadership in data-intensive computing, scientific visualization, and HPC scientific applications "Our entire team is thrilled that we won, "Oehmen said, who led the winning team. "It's an honor to be a part of this international competition. We could not have completed the challenge without the support of our sponsors at the Department of Energy, National Science foundation, and internal investments from the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory."  (Posted 11/1/2008)

Alan Waltar Receives World Nuclear Association (WNA) Award for "Distinguished Contribution to Peaceful Worldwide use of Nuclear Technology"

Alan was one of three individuals to receive the WNA Award on September 4th in London for his influence on and commitment to the value of nuclear technology.

He was honored for his "committed belief in nuclear technology, a strong and creative intelligence, a remarkable lack of ego, and a great generosity to his fellow man" according to the WNA Director General. Alan's long history in nuclear education was highlighted by his leadership at the WNU Summer Institute. At PNNL, Alan provides consult for various initiatives as a senior advisor.

The WNA Director General, John Ritch, described Alan as a "superlative educator of our future nuclear leaders" and an "educator to his bones...a charismatic inspiration."  (Posted 9/1/2008)

Gary Spanner Named Outstanding Alumnus of the Year by CBC Foundation

Gary Spanner, Tech Deployment and Outreach Directorate, has been named the CBC 2008-2009 Outstanding Alumnus of the Year by the Columbia Basin College Foundation. Gary manages the PNNL Economic Development Office. Gary, who attended CBC in 1972 and 1973, received this award from the CBC Foundation board chairman, Don Paddock, Sept. 17 in front of more than 300 CBC faculty and staff. He was honored for his professional achievements, civic leadership, community service and support of the college.  (Posted 9/1/2008)

Subhash Singhal receives the 2008 Grove Medal

Subhash Singhal received the 2008 Grove Medal for sustained advances in fuel cell technology. He accepted the honor at the Fuel Cells Science & Technology 2008 conference in Copenhagen, Denmark, where he gave the opening address. The medal commemorates Welsh judge, inventor and physicist Sir William Robert Grove, who created the first fuel cell in 1839. It is the fifth international award to recognize Subhash's contributions to fuel cell research. As a Battelle Fellow at PNNL, Subhash provides senior technical, managerial and commercialization leadership to the Lab's fuel cell program.  (Posted 8/1/2008)

EMSL researcher to receive International Immunology's Outstanding Merit Award

EMSL researcher Ljiljana Paša Toli? was among the authors of a paper that was selected to receive International Immunology's Outstanding Merit Award for the article of exceptional value for 2007. The paper is "Preferential Recognition of a Microbial Metabolite by Human V2V2 T Cells INTIMM-06-0286.R1" [19(5):657-673, published May 2007], authored by Kia-Joo Puan, Chenggang Jin, Hong Wang, Ghanashyam Sarikonda, Amy M. Raker, Hoi K. Lee, Megan I. Samuelson, Elisabeth Märker-Hermann, Ljiljana Paša Toli?, Edward Nieves, José-Luis Giner, Tomohisa Kuzuyama, and Craig T. Morita, the latter an EMSL user from the University of Iowa. The editors of the journal present this award in special recognition of the article deemed to exhibit the highest distinction in immunological research.  (Posted 7/1/2008)

Aircraft Operations Receive Gold Standard Recognition

A prestigious national award recognized the stellar safety program of PNNL research aircraft used around the world for atmospheric research. The federal Interagency Committee for Aviation Policy awarded its highest Gold Standard Certificate to the Department of Energy for PNNL's excellent safety and operations management of the Research Aircraft Facility. The award recognizes the three-decade record of Bob Hannigan and his team of John Hubbe, Bill Svancara, Dick Hone, Rich Barchet, Ruth Keefe, and Bev Johnson for safe operations of the G-1 aircraft at PNNL and other research aircraft worldwide under contract to PNNL.
More details  (Posted 7/1/2008)

Yong Wang awarded 2008 Distinguished Alumni Award

In recognition of his outstanding career and tireless support to the School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering, Yong Wang, Energy and Environment Directorate, has been awarded the Washington State University 2008 Distinguished Alumni Award. Yong is an adjunct professor in chemical engineering and bioengineering at WSU and a guest professor at Tianjin University (China); Sichuan University; Dalian University of Technology; and Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics. He currently serves on the editorial board of Catalysis Today and the Journal of Nanomaterials and is the program committee chair for the American Chemical Society's Petroleum Division (2006-2008).

He has organized numerous international and national conferences and has more than 100 peer reviewed publications, more than 50 invited presentations, 52 issued U.S. patents, and two books focused on microreactor and process intensification.  (Posted 6/1/2008)

Zhenrong Zhang Receives M.T. Thomas Award for Postdoctoral Research

A scientist at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Dr. Zhenrong Zhang was selected as the 2007 recipient of the M.T. Thomas Award for Outstanding Postdoctoral Achievement. This award recognizes her breakthrough science regarding the reactions on the surface of titanium dioxide, TiO₂(110), a promising material with applications in catalysis and other areas. These breakthroughs are the result of her refinements to experimental instrumentation, allowing atomic-level measurements.

The award, first presented in 1996, acknowledges outstanding accomplishments by postdoctoral fellows who conduct their research in the Department of Energy's Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, a national scientific user facility at PNNL.  (Posted 5/1/2008)

Dick Weller Earns Honorary Professorship for International Scientific Collaboration

Dick Weller of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory was awarded a diploma by the Scientific Council of the Institute of Veterinary Medicine in Veterinary Science in Kyiv, Ukraine, conferring upon him the title of "Honorary Professor of the Institute of Veterinary Medicine." Weller is only the second person ever to be so honored in the history of the Institute. Weller received the diploma while at the Institute to deliver an invited presentation, "Veterinary Oncology: A Short History."

Weller promotes scientific collaboration between PNNL and other U.S. institutes and supports veterinary education. Over the last five years, he also has worked closely with the Ukraine Academy of Agrarian Science, in particular with its major veterinary institutes—the Institute of Clinical and Experimental Medicine (in Kharkov) and the Institute of Veterinary Medicine (in Kyiv)—both educational centers as well as research and development (R&D) institutes.

Working with professional colleagues at each institute, Weller has helped determine how to upgrade their biosecurity and biosafety practices related to R&D conducted to improve ways to diagnose, treat, and control animal diseases that could affect food safety and pose a public health concern. He helped develop plans for how to manage and safely handle disease-causing organisms used when conducting research activities at the institutes. Together, they have developed proposals for different but related ways of improving biosecurity and biosafety practices such as the proper use of protective clothing, the proper use of biological safety cabinets, and changing work flow patterns to minimize the number of people coming in contact with potentially dangerous microorganisms.

Engaging with peers in the biological world to build bridges that will sustain common understanding and mutual respect over time has been particularly rewarding for Weller. "I listen as a scientific peer, because my personal and professional interest is in trying to help solve professional problems," he said. "We have laid the groundwork for trust and a dogged stewardship of what we think they [the Institutes] deserve to have done" in the interests of biosecurity and biosafety.  (Posted 4/1/2008)

Yanwen Zhang Invited to Attend Prestigious Kavli Symposium in Germany

A world-leading reputation for advancing the frontiers of materials science has landed a PNNL researcher a prestigious invitation to attend a renowned international science symposium. Yanwen Zhang, PNNL senior research scientist at EMSL, a DOE scientific user facility, has been selected to attend the 14th Annual German-American Kavli Frontiers of Science Symposium June 11-14, in Potsdam, Germany.

Zhang's research includes theoretical and experimental materials science and engineering. She works closely with computational scientists, biochemists and nuclear engineers worldwide to develop models that predict the performance of materials. For example, she led a project that is critical to research on materials science and radiation physics involving ion-solid interactions. The project developed a new capability to accurately measure ion-slowing processes in solids, leading to better predictions of ion-stopping. This capability is important for rapidly expanding applications in nuclear reactors, fusion technology, and radiation detection.

Author or co-author of more than 100 peer-reviewed journal articles and other publications, Zhang also has received several prestigious awards and fellowships, including a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers.

The symposium is co-sponsored by the Alexander Von Humboldt Foundation and the U.S. National Academy of Science. It is designed to provide an overview of opportunities in a wide range of scientific disciplines and to enable future science leaders to build networking relationships with their colleagues. Since 1989, more than 100 past attendees have been elected to the National Academy of Science and eight have received Nobel Prizes. Additional information can be found at www.nasonline.org.  (Posted 3/1/2008)

Ron Walters receives National Intelligence Medal of Achievement

Ron Walters received the National Intelligence Medal of Achievement from the Director of National Intelligence. Ron was recognized for his extraordinary technical leadership as the architect of several groundbreaking efforts that have substantially increased the nation's ability to prepare for and respond to acts of bioterrorism and natural disease outbreaks.  (Posted 1/1/2008)

---

2008 Fellowships

Six PNNL scientists elected AAAS fellows

Scientific association honors researchers for advancements in chemistry, engineering, physics and atmospheric science.

Six scientists from the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory have been named fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Election as a fellow recognizes the researchers' exceptional efforts to advance science or its applications.

The PNNL honorees and the AAAS sections that elected them are Don Baer, physics; Michel Dupuis and Chuck Peden, chemistry; Cindy Bruckner-Lea and Yong Wang, engineering; and L. Ruby Leung, atmospheric and hydrospheric sciences. They join 28 PNNL researchers previously chosen as AAAS fellows.

Don Baer
Don Baer specializes in the use of spectroscopy and other advanced techniques to reveal the behavior of atoms and molecules at or near the surfaces of materials. AAAS honored him "for research and capability development that significantly advance molecular-level understanding of environmentally important interfacial processes relevant to nanoparticle reactivity, mineral dissolution and stress corrosion cracking."

Baer is a laboratory fellow and lead scientist for interfacial chemistry at EMSL, a DOE national scientific user facility located at PNNL. He also is an adjunct professor of physics at Washington State University, Tri-Cities, and an adjunct professor of chemistry at the University of Washington. He is a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University and received his doctorate from Cornell University.

Cindy Bruckner-Lea
Bruckner-Lea was recognized "for groundbreaking contributions to the field of bioengineering, particularly for development of biosensors and bioanalytical systems at the interfaces between chemistry, biology and engineering."

Bruckner-Lea manages PNNL's chemical and biological sciences group. Her research focuses on the development of biodetection systems for national security, environmental and medical applications. She earned her bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from the University of California, Davis, and her doctorate in bioengineering from the University of Utah.

Michel Dupuis
Dupuis pioneered the use of information technology to address fundamental problems in chemical theory and research. The AAAS fellowship recognizes his "distinguished contributions to the fields of computational and theoretical chemistry, particularly for the development of electronic structure methods and computer codes for the simulation of molecular properties and reactivity."

Dupuis is a laboratory fellow and associate director in PNNL's Chemical and Materials Sciences Division. He completed his undergraduate work in engineering at Ecole Polytechnique in Paris and earned his doctorate in theoretical chemistry at the State University of New York, Buffalo.

Ruby Leung
Discovering unexpected impacts of climate change, such as changes in water resources in the United States and East Asia, has brought international recognition to Leung. AAAS honored her "for outstanding contributions to the development and application of regional climate models."

Leung is a laboratory fellow in the PNNL Atmospheric Sciences and Global Change Division. She holds a bachelor's degree in physics and statistics from the Chinese University of Hong Kong and a master's and doctorate in atmospheric science from Texas A&M University.

Chuck Peden
Peden is at the forefront of research to control emissions from diesel and other fuel-efficient engines. He was selected "for distinguished contributions to the fundamental understanding of catalyst materials and processes for vehicle emission control that have enabled the implementation of new technologies."

Peden is interim director of the laboratory's Institute for Interfacial Catalysis. Author of more than 200 peer-reviewed articles and presentations, Peden received his bachelor's degree in chemistry from California State University, Chico, and his master's degree and doctorate in physical chemistry from the University of California, Santa Barbara.

Yong Wang
Wang was honored "for groundbreaking contributions to the fields of reaction engineering and catalysis innovations that enable novel approaches to process intensification in important energy areas." Holder of more than 100 issued and pending U.S. patents, Wang is an authority on the development of chemical processes to produce hydrogen for fuel cells and on the conversion of biomass into fuels and chemicals.

Wang is a laboratory fellow and associate director of the laboratory's Institute for Interfacial Catalysis. He earned bachelor's and master's degrees in chemical engineering from Chengdu University of Science and Technology, China, plus a master's degree and a doctorate from Washington State University. Wang is an adjunct professor of chemical engineering at WSU and recipient of the university's 2008 Alumni Achievement Award  (Posted 12/1/2008)

John Vienna Elected ACerS Fellow

John Vienna, Energy & Environment Directorate, was named as Fellow in the American Ceramics Society. Dr. Vienna has published over 150 journal articles, conference papers and technical reports in materials science and its applications to waste management. He has performed independent research in basic waste form materials chemistry, nucleation and growth kinetics, waste form processing, and thermodynamics of multi-component, multi-phased waste forms. Dr. Vienna has developed waste forms for excess nuclear materials and wastes at several US and international nuclear waste sites.  (Posted 9/1/2008)

Greg Piepel Elected Fellow of the American Society for Quality

Greg Piepel, Lab Fellow of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and Fellow of the American Statistical Association, was elected as a Fellow of the American update tblAward Society for Quality (ASQ) in recognition of his significant contributions to quality.

In September 2008, the Board of Directors of the ASQ elected Piepel a Fellow of the Society for his "outstanding contributions to the experimental design and analysis of mixture experiments; for important applications of statistics and quality to nuclear waste immobilization; and for service to the profession."

Greg has worked for over 30 years developing and applying statistical methods for mixture experiments. A mixture experiment involves mixing ingredients of an end-product in various percentages (which must sum to 100), and measuring properties of the end-products. Greg has developed and applied statistical methods for designing mixture experiments as well as understanding, modeling, and optimizing. Applications have included immobilization of nuclear waste in glass and grout, alloys and other materials, pharmaceuticals, and food. Greg is one of the top-two experts in statistical methods for mixture experiments, and has taught short courses in the topic for many years.

ASQ is a knowledge-based global community of quality experts, with nearly 85,000 members dedicated to the promotion and advancement of quality tools, principles, and practices in their workplaces and in their communities.  (Posted 9/1/2008)

Kathy Pryor Recognized as Fellow by Health Physics Society

Kathy Pryor, a Chief Health Physicist at PNNL, was recognized as a 2008 Fellow by the Health Physics Society (HPS) committee. This prestigious recognition is designed to honor senior members of the Society who have made significant administrative, educational, and/or scientific contributions to the profession of health physics.

Kathy has been a member of HPS since 1980 and served the Society through her participation in numerous committees, as a Director and currently as Secretary. Kathy is a Certified Health Physicist and has also advanced the professionalism of Health Physics through her continuing work with the American Board of Health Physics and the American Academy of Health Physics  (Posted 5/1/2008)

Bill Weber Elected Fellow of Materials Research Society

Bill Weber was selected as an inaugural Fellow in the Materials Research Society. This is the first year, since being founded in 1973, that the society has honored notable members for their contributions to advancing materials research. Weber received this honor for his "seminal contributions, leadership, mentoring and innovative research on defects, defect properties, ion-solid interactions, radiation effects and models of radiation damage processes in glasses and ceramics."

Weber's research is focused on the fundamental understanding and accurate modeling of the effects of atomic-level defects and radiation on ceramics. This research is essential for advancing electronic devices, developing radiation-tolerant materials for new nuclear power reactors, and addressing concerns regarding the stability of nuclear waste.

Because of his belief in sharing the results of his work with the broader scientific community, Weber has authored or co-authored more than 350 peer-reviewed publications and 50 technical reports, many of which have been cited extensively. For example, in the MRS Journal of Materials Research and MRS Bulletin, his 21 articles have earned more than 840 citations. Currently, he is finishing a 6-year stint as a principal editor and member of the editorial board on the Journal of Materials Research.

In addition to his research and publishing, Weber takes the time to mentor new scientists at PNNL. While reviewing papers and discussing comments is a painful chore to some, Weber enjoys the stimulating conversations and watching new scientists grow during their career.  (Posted 2/1/2008)

---

2008 Elected Positions and Offices

Bruce Kay Appointed to DOE Basic Energy Sciences Advisory Committee

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's Dr. Bruce D. Kay recently accepted appointment to the Basic Energy Sciences Advisory Committee. This committee helps solve complex scientific and technical issues for Basic Energy Sciences, part of the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science. Through BES, researchers expand the scientific foundations for energy technologies and understand and mitigate the environmental impacts of energy use.

As a part of the 25-member committee, composed of experts from academia, national laboratories, and other institutions, Kay will provide recommendations on research and facilities priorities, appropriate balance among scientific disciplines, and collaboration among research institutes and industries. Undersecretary for DOE's Office of Science Dr. Raymond Orbach selected Kay for this assignment.

Kay was chosen for his internationally recognized leadership in the chemical sciences. His research at PNNL examines condensed phase chemical kinetics and molecular dynamics aimed at gaining a detailed physical understanding of the molecular-level interactions responsible for phase transitions and catalytic chemical reactions. A Fellow of the American Physical Society, AVS: Science and Technology of Materials, Interfaces, and Processing, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Kay has written more than 120 journal articles and technical reports and given nearly 200 invited lectures at forums around the world  (Posted 2/1/2008)

Evelyn Hirt voted 2009 president-elect for IEEE-USA

Evelyn Hirt has been voted 2009 president-elect for IEEE-USA. IEEE is the world's leading professional association dedicated to technological innovation and excellence for the benefit of humanity. Evelyn's work focuses on technology systems and controls that are applied to a broad range of research, development and deployment and management system activities.

Evelyn will begin her three-year term Jan. 1. She will serve one year as president-elect, one year as president and chief executive officer, and the final year as past president.

"It's a huge honor," Evelyn said. "I view this as the perfect opportunity to help raise general awareness of how math and science contribute to the overall success of the country."

Earlier this year, Evelyn received the 2008 IEEE Nanotechnology Council Distinguished Service Award in recognition of her outstanding service for the benefit and advancement of the council.  (Posted 12/1/2008)

Yong Wang serves second term on editorial board of Catalysis Today

Yong Wang, Associate Director of the Institute for Interfacial Catalysis, has been invited to serve a second term on the Catalysis Today Editorial Board. Wang joined the board in 2005. He was recently invited by the journal's publisher, Elsevier, to continue the service due to his effort on editorial issues and encouraging his peers to publish in the journal.

A Laboratory Fellow at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Wang is active in the scientific community. He is the author or co-author of 100+ peer-reviewed publications and has 54 issued US patents. He served as co-editor of two books. Also, he is an Adjunct Professor of Chemical Engineering at Washington State University.  (Posted 12/1/2008)

Brian Hatchell elected to executive committee of American Nuclear Society Robotics and Remote Systems Division

Brian Hatchell was elected to the executive committee of the American Nuclear Society (ANS) Robotics and Remote Systems Division. During his three-year term Brian will attend executive committee meetings and will be the editor for the Division's newsletter. Brian has been a member of ANS since 1999 and was the technical program co-chair for the 9th Topical Meeting on Robotics and Remote Systems in 2001.  (Posted 10/1/2008)

Leonard Bond elected Director, IEEE Region 6 (Western USA)

Leonard Bond, Laboratory Fellow, National Security Directorate, has succeeded to the position of director, IEEE region 6 (Western USA). In this position he has leadership of the nearly 60,000 members of IEEE in 12 western states. He also serves as a director for IEEE (09-10), the world's largest technical society with near 400,000 members worldwide and on the board of directors for IEEE-USA, the U.S. IEEE Regions. Leonard began his two-year term as director on Jan. 1. Since his election, he already has served two years as director-elect and after his time on the board of director he will serve two years as past-director. "After 34 years of membership in IEEE it is an opportunity to give back to an organization which was invaluable in my career development. It is a real privilege and honor to be serving on the board of directors," Leonard said. "In 2009, which is the 125th anniversary of IEEE, I view this as an opportunity to increase awareness of the importance of science literacy and the role of technology in meeting global energy needs and addressing climate change challenges."  (Posted 10/1/2008)

Eric Nyberg selected as Editor of TMS proceedings "Magnesium Technology 2009"

Eric Nyberg has been selected as Editor of The Minerals, Metals and Materials Society (TMS) proceedings, "Magnesium Technology 2009." Eric was also elected as the 2009 Chairman for the TMS Lightweight Metals Division committee on Magnesium and organizer for the 2009 Magnesium Technology Symposium to be held in San Francisco next February. Eric is the U.S. Technical Committee chairman for a unique 3-country automotive project, "Magnesium Front End Research and Development," a D.O.E. funded collaboration between the U.S., China and Canada on developing enabling technolgies for a magnesium intensive front end vehicle.  (Posted 7/1/2008)

David King Elected Secretary of ACS Division of Fuel Chemistry

David King of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory was elected Secretary of the American Chemical Society's Division of Fuel Chemistry. This division of the world's largest scientific society helps the research community share results that promote efficient and environmentally acceptable fuel production and use.

As the Secretary, King will supervise elections for the division. The process currently involves mailing out hundreds of paper ballots, encouraging responses, and tallying the results, a time-consuming process he plans to modernize. In addition, he will take the minutes at meetings and will oversee various communication products.

His involvement in the division was a natural, given his catalysis research at PNNL. As part of PNNL's Institute for Interfacial Catalysis, King is the Executive Secretary for the annual advisory committee meeting for the Laboratory's Catalysis Initiative.

In addition, he is conducting research in producing hydrogen fuel from biomass, designing solid oxide fuel cells to use natural gas directly, and removing undesirable sulfur molecules from liquid and gaseous fuels. He provides technical leadership for PNNL's Energy Conversion Initiative, facilitating environmentally friendly coal gasification and coal combustion processes. Finally, he serves as team lead for catalysis science and application in the Hydrocarbon Processing Group of the Energy and Environment Directorate.

King's term began in the spring 2008 and lasts through spring 2010.  (Posted 5/1/2008)

Joel Pounds and Thomas Weber Appointed Committee Chairs for Society of Toxicology

Dr. Joel Pounds and Dr. Thomas Weber were recently appointed as committee chairs for the Society of Toxicology by Society president George Corcoran. The Society is the leading organization dedicated to creating a safer and healthier world by advancing the science of toxicology.

Pounds will serve as Chair of the Society's Research Funding in Toxicology Committee. This committee is charged to identify, formulate, and recommend strategies and mechanisms to the Council to increase conventional and alternative sources of funding for research and training in toxicology. Pounds' appointment is through 2011.

Pounds is director of the Center for Novel Biomarkers of Response at PNNL, which is funded by the National Institutes of Health. He also leads the Systems Toxicology of Nanomaterials focus area of PNNL's Environmental Biomarkers Initiative. Pounds' research has focused on the cellular and molecular toxicity of lead and other metals, metal-metal interaction, and mathematical modeling of the response to metal mixtures. His current research includes use of mass-spectrometry based proteomic and NMR-based metabonomic instrumentation for characterization of biological responses to environmental stressors including nanomaterials.

Weber will serve a 2-year term as Chairman of the Society's Contemporary Concepts in Toxicology Committee. The committee is charged with identifying and developing strategic conferences for the Society. He is a scientist within PNNL's Environmental Biomarkers Initiative and is actively engaged in research supporting the U.S. Department of Energy's Low Dose Radiation Research Program. His work focuses on the intersection between effective wound healing and carcinogenesis with the long-term goal of identifying key regulatory steps that can be exploited to improve human health. Other research interests center on new frontiers in protein kinase regulation.  (Posted 4/1/2008)

Theva Thevuthasan Appointed Chair of AVS Short Course Committee

Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory researcher Theva Thevuthasan was appointed Chair of the Short Course Executive Committee for AVS: Science and Technology of Materials, Interfaces, and Processing. Through this committee, the international society provides scientists, engineers, and technicians with classes in vacuum and equipment technology, materials and interface characterization, and materials processing.

A frequent volunteer and long—time mentor, Thevuthasan served on the Short Course Executive Committee for about 10 years in different capacities. As the committee chair, Thevuthasan ensures the quality of more than 60 courses, such as "Comprehensive Course on Surface Analysis" and "Fundamentals of Vacuum Technology."

During his 3-year appointment, Thevuthasan is eager to continue the society's work to increase short course participation, which began to decline in 2001 based on changes in the semiconductor business. He is leading the committee in developing four focused educational programs this year, based on input from potential and past students.

At EMSL, Thevuthasan is well known for his design and development of experimental instruments with new capabilities. He is a recognized leader and author in ion beam modification and analysis of oxide materials with applications in resolving energy and the environmental issues.  (Posted 2/1/2008)

Baer Elected to Third Term as ASTM International Committee Chair

Don Baer, Laboratory Fellow and Lead Scientist for Interfacial Chemistry at the Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, was elected to a third term as Chair of the ASTM International Committee E42 on Surface Analysis. The committee has jurisdiction over some 25 standards for surface analysis methods and is one of 136 ASTM technical standards writing committees. He began serving the 2-year term—his final—on January 1.

Baer is internationally known for the application of surface analysis methods to examine corrosion processes and the reactive properties of oxide and mineral surfaces. Since joining the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory—on whose campus EMSL resides—he has specialized in the use of surface-sensitive techniques to study how the interactions of a material with its environment alter material properties. Much of his research has involved understanding the roles of surface impurities or contaminants in chemical reactivity, and his current work involves understanding the reaction properties and environmental variability of nanoparticles.

In addition to his EMSL role and research activities, Baer serves as the PNNL coordinator for a series of nanoscience and nanotechnology courses offered at the Laboratory. He is an Adjunct Professor of Physics at Washington State University; an Adjunct Professor of Chemistry at the University of Washington; and a member of the American Vacuum Society (Fellow), the American Chemical Society, the American Physical Society, the Electrochemical Society, and the ISO Technical Committee 201 on Surface Chemistry. He has served in a variety of leadership roles within those professional societies.

Baer has been a member of ASTM International since 1980. ASTM (originally known as the American Society for Testing and Materials) International is one of the largest standards development and delivery systems in the world. ASTM standards are accepted and used in research and development, product testing, quality systems, and commercial transactions around the globe.  (Posted 2/1/2008)

Mark Engelhard Selected to Chair Publications Committee for AVS

Mark Engelhard, a Pacific Northwest National Laboratory researcher in the Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, was appointed Publications Committee Chair for AVS: Science and Technology of Materials, Interfaces, and Processing. Founded in 1953, this international society was focused on vacuum science and technology, critical to developing vacuum tubes, enabling radio broadcasting, radar, and other technologies. Today, the society has broadened its scope to surface science, electronic and magnetic materials, nanoscience, biomaterials and other relevant areas.  (Posted 1/1/2008)

Jason Tomlinson to Lead Interagency Coordinating Committee for Airborne Geosciences Research and Application

Jason Tomlinson was appointed to lead the prestigious national group, Interagency Coordinating Committee for Airborne Geosciences Research and Application. The committee works to increase the effective use of the federal airborne fleet for geoscience research, including national and international field campaigns. The organization consists of federal agencies that sponsor aircraft and related instruments for geoscience research. Members include DOE, National Science Foundation, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Office of Naval Research, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and United States Geological Survey.  (Posted 12/1/2008)

John McCoy elected vice president of regional network consortium

John McCoy was elected by the participants of the Northern Tier Network Consortium (NTNC) to serve as vice president. The NTNC is a regional initiative aimed at creating robust network connections for participating research institutions in the northwestern states. The goals of the NTNC and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) are aligned in their focus to improve network connectivity through investments in regional optical networks. John's work with the consortium will ensure the alignment of PNNL's network implementation with NTNC's plans to create an integrated research and education network capability.

PNNL is proud of John's commitment to educational, research, and economic vitality of the Northern region through his appointment with NTNC.  (Posted 11/1/2008)

Dave Koppenaal to Serve on International Advisory Board for New Journal

David Koppenaal has been invited to serve a 3-year term on the International Advisory Board for the new journal Metallomics: Integrated biometal science. The journal is a Royal Society of Chemistry publication that will be launched in January 2009. Metallomics is the integrated study of metals and metal species and their interactions, transformations and functions in biological systems. The subject is receiving great attention as a new frontier in the investigation of trace elements in biology and is expected to develop as an interdisciplinary science complementary to metabolomics and proteomics.

Koppenaal is a Laboratory Fellow at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory who leads the Biological Separations and Mass Spectrometry Group within the Biological Sciences Division. His research has been principally focused on the development of atomic mass spectrometry for inorganic and isotopic characterization, and the demonstration of new analytical techniques and instruments for environmental, nuclear, non-proliferation and biological/health problems.

Koppenaal and co-workers at PNNL have pioneered the application of inductively coupled plasma/mass spectrometry as a powerful and relevant radioanalytical tool and demonstrated its use for radioactive waste characterization, ultra-trace nuclear forensics use and, most recently, metallomics applications.

His more than 75 publications include several invited review articles, and he is a frequent keynote and plenary lecturer at major conferences. Koppenaal recently completed a 7-year term as Editorial Board member for the RSC publication Journal of Analytical and Atomic Spectrometry. Koppenaal is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the Royal Society of Chemistry and a member of the American Chemistry Society and the American Society for Mass Spectrometry.  (Posted 11/1/2008)

Michael Dupuis Appointed to Journal of Physical Chemistry Advisory Board

Dr. Michel Dupuis has accepted an invitation to join the advisory board of the Journal of Physical Chemistry. As a member of this international board, Dupuis will consult with the board on questions about the journal's policy and future while continuing to referee manuscripts submitted to the journal.

Dupuis was selected for his more than 30 years of expertise in theoretical and computational chemistry, a field of research where he develops and applies theories, methods and computer algorithms to the study of chemical problems. His research deals with the electronic structure and reactivity of molecules, clusters, and materials involved in gas phase and condensed phase chemistry, catalysis, electrochemistry, and biochemistry.

In addition, Dupuis strongly supports the scientific community. He publishes extensively, having authored or co-authored 170+ journal articles. He lectures at many national and international conferences. Also, he routinely mentors college students and post-doctoral fellows and serves as adjunct faculty at Washington State University-Tri Cities.

Founded by the American Chemical Society in 1896, the Journal of Physical Chemistry was recently divided into three journals because of the growth in the field. The Journal of Physical Chemistry A covers experimental and theoretical research on the structure, dynamics, and spectroscopy of molecules and clusters. The Journal of Physical Chemistry B focuses on material chemistry, thermodynamics, and related fields. It is in the top 20 journals of the physical chemistry field. The newest journal, Journal of Physical Chemistry C, focuses on nanoscience. Each journal is published weekly.  (Posted 11/1/2008)

Baer Named Reviews Editor for Journal

Don Baer was selected to serve as the Reviews Editor for Surface and Interface Analysis. This international, refereed journal is devoted to publishing papers on developing and applying techniques for characterizing surfaces, interfaces, and thin films. As the Reviews Editor, Baer will work with world-leading scientists to obtain articles on topics of interest to the journal's audience of materials scientists, physicists, physical chemists, and others. In addition to traditional review articles, he will encourage leading scientists to prepare perspectives on current research directions and technology advances and tutorial articles. At the Department of Energy's EMSL, Baer is the Lead Scientist for Interfacial Chemistry. He is internationally known for applying surface analysis methods to examine the reactive properties of oxides and mineral surfaces, determining behaviors of nanostructured materials, and understanding corrosion processes. He specializes in using surface sensitive techniques to study surface interphase reactions and materials surface chemistry. In the scientific community, Baer is in demand. He has authored or co-authored more than 200 peer-reviewed articles, edited books and special journal issues, and lectured at major conferences. He is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the AVS and a member of the American Physical Society and the Electrochemical Society, among others. He has served as an associate editor on Surface Science Spectra since 1991. In addition, he serves on the Surface and Interface Analysis publication's advisory board.  (Posted 10/1/2008)

Steven C. Baker Appointed Chair of ANSI N 13.6 Working Group

Steven Baker was appointed chair of an American National Standards Institute Working Group. The group will evaluate the current occupational radiation exposure records systems.  (Posted 10/1/2008)

Jim Dooley Appointed Associate Editor of Greenhouse Gas Mitigation Journal

Jim Dooley, a senior staff scientist with the Joint Global Change Research Institute, was named associate editor in October for the world's first peer-reviewed journal to cover carbon dioxide capture and storage technologies. The publication, the International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, focuses on greenhouse gas abatement options with an emphasis on the power, manufacturing, and production industries. The journal covers issues associated with greenhouse gas mitigation, carbon dioxide capture and storage, alternative mitigation options, implementation case studies, and policy and economic assessments of these advanced energy systems. Elsevier publishes the journal.

Dooley was formerly a member of the editorial board for the journal since its inception in 2007. In his new role as associate editor, Dooley is responsible for ensuring that submitted papers meet scientific standards, coordinating reviews, and communicating with authors. He will cover papers related to integrated systems, economics, and economic modeling of systems related to carbon dioxide capture and storage and low-carbon energy systems.

At the Joint Global Change Research Institute, Dooley leads research related to the role of carbon dioxide capture and storage in addressing climate change. Dooley co-developed a state-of-the-art geographic information-based model for examining the large-scale deployment of carbon management technologies in the United States. Dooley and his research team have authored more than 100 technical reports and peer-reviewed articles on the role of technology and climate change. He was a significant contributor to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's Special Report on Carbon Dioxide Capture and Storage, a 2005 landmark international scientific assessment on the role of carbon dioxide capture and storage in addressing climate change. The Joint Global Change Research Institute, in College Park, Maryland, is a partnership of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and the University of Maryland.  (Posted 10/1/2008)

Steven Baker Appointed Chair of ANSI N 13.6 Working Group

Steven Baker, Energy & Environment Directorate, was appointed chair of an American National Standards Institute Working Group. Baker is an accomplished Health and Safety Manager specializing in radiation protection support services with proven ability to direct technical operations and lead employees in support of company goals and vision. The working group will evaluate the current occupational radiation exposure records systems.  (Posted 10/1/2008)

Mike Schwenk appointed to board of directors for Washington Technology Center

Washington State Governor, Chris Gregoire, appointed Mike Schwenk, Director of Technology Deployment and Outreach, to the board of directors for the Washington Technology Center. The WTC is a statewide economic development organization focused on technology and innovation. The organization's board is comprised of business and academic leaders who serve as the governing arm of the state-charted agency, which promotes technology and innovation-based economic development throughout Washington. Mike will serve a three-year term. Mike has 30 years of technical and business management experience in government, non-profit and corporate settings. For the past ten years, he has championed numerous efforts that moved research out of the science laboratory and into the business community. His service on numerous regional and national boards and policy committees for government, industry and academia gives the Lab a leadership position in the national debate on how to collaborate across large research organizations.  (Posted 9/1/2008)

Yuehe Lin Named to Second Term on Advisory Board for Chemistry Journal Talanta

Dr. Yuehe Lin has been named to a second term on the advisory board of Talanta. This long-standing international scientific journal publishes original pure and applied analytical chemistry research. As a member of the board, Lin reviews submissions and advises the editors to accept, reject, or suggest changes to the submittals, driving high-quality results into the scientific literature.

Lin was asked to continue on the board because of his diligence, thoroughness, and expertise in nanotechnology, particularly in developing nanobioelectronic devices and nanomaterials for biomedical diagnosis and drug delivery. He is also known for developing microanalytical systems to perform environmental and biomedical analyses, and synthesizing nanoengineered catalysts for fuel cells as part of PNNL's Institute for Interfacial Catalysis and as a user at the Department of Energy's EMSL .

Lin has been actively serving on international scientific community for many years. After finishing his first term as the North American Editor of the Journal of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Lin continues to serve for the journal as an Associate Editor. Lin also serves on the editorial advisory boards of 15 other international journals.

 (Posted 7/1/2008)

Katrina Waters Appointed to Editorial Board of Toxicology Journal

Dr. Katrina Waters, a senior research scientist at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, has been appointed to the Editorial Board of Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology for a three-year term beginning July 1, 2008. The toxicology journal publishes original scientific research pertaining to action of chemicals, drugs, or natural products to animals or humans.

Dr. Waters is currently involved in the Systems Toxicology of Nanomaterials focus area of the Environmental Biomarkers Initiative and the PNNL Center for Novel Biomarkers of Response. Her research includes biosignature discovery from integrated microarray and proteomic data describing lung inflammation from nanoparticle exposure and environmental exposures, including disease susceptibility factors. Dr. Waters joined PNNL in 2004. Prior to that, she was a senior research biochemist in Molecular & Investigative Toxicology at Merck Research Labs in West Point, PA. (July 2008)

 (Posted 7/1/2008)

Steven Wiley appointed to Burroughs Wellcome Fund Advisory Committee

Steven Wiley, Lead Scientist for Biology at DOE's EMSL, was appointed to an advisory committee for the Burroughs Wellcome Fund, a private, philanthropic organization. The committee will evaluate applications for their Institutional Program Unifying Population and Laboratory-Based Sciences. This program was created to bridge the gap between population approaches to human health and basic biomedical research. The program provides grants of $500,000 per year for 5 years to stimulate graduate student training programs and to bring together scientists working in fundamental sciences as well as those in schools of medicine and public health.

As a member of the advisory committee, Wiley will evaluate and provide guidance on the directions and progress of the institutional program. This includes reviewing numerous grant proposals and attending conferences, such as an upcoming workshop on microbial systems in Denver, Colorado.

Wiley was appointed to the committee, a long-term commitment, because of his scientific and educational expertise in integrating molecular and systems biology, such as the research he is leading as Director of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s Biomolecular Systems Initiative. In addition, he has experience in serving on advisory committees to the National Institutes of Health as well as university advisory committees at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Vanderbilt University.

 (Posted 7/1/2008)

Blaine Metting Appointed to Fourth Term on Oregon Bioscience Association Board

Blaine Metting was appointed to a fourth term on the Oregon Bioscience Association's board of directors for 2008. In this role, Metting represents Battelle and shares responsibility for assessing regional research capabilities for the association. The Oregon Bioscience Association is a non-profit membership association supporting Oregon's bioscience industry.

Metting currently manages the Biological & Environmental Sciences Product Line and the Fundamental & Computational Sciences Directorate's 1831-contract business at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. He joined the Laboratory in 1990 as a Senior Research Scientist, and has been a program manager since 1993.  (Posted 5/1/2008)

Paul Stansbury Elected President of the American Academy of Health Physics

Paul Stansbury has been elected president of the American Academy of Health Physics. AAHP advances the profession of Health Physics, encourages the highest standards of ethics and integrity in the practice of Health Physics, enhances communications among Certified Health Physicists and provides a means for active CHPs to participate in the certification program. As a scientist, Paul specializes in the assessment and mitigation of human health risks in the workplace and the environment.

His experience includes university, private enterprise, and national laboratory positions as a senior technical contributor, line manager, project manager, and professor. He currently is working on a project for U.S. Customs and Border Protection to install radiation portal monitors at all locations where people or materials may enter the country to detect the illicit import of radioactive or nuclear material.  (Posted 5/1/2008)

Tom Metz Named to Proteomic Insights Editorial Board

Dr. Tom Metz has been appointed to the Editorial Board of Proteomic Insights, a new peer-reviewed journal published by Libertas Academica. According to a release from Dr. Hassan Dihazi, editor in chief, the journal covers all areas of proteomics including basic proteomic research; structural, functional, property, and interaction analysis of cellular systems, organelles, and protein complexes; and protein expression profiling for the discovery and validation of diagnostic and prognostic disease biomarkers.

Metz is a Senior Research Scientist for Pacific Northwest National Laboratory; his areas of expertise include metabolomic methods' development and application to disease profiling in biological fluids and tissues, and non-enzymatic modification of tissue proteins by products of glucose and lipid oxidation. Metz began a post-doctorate tenure at PNNL in 2003; he joined PNNL in 2005.  (Posted 5/1/2008)

Moe Khaleel Appointed to Editorial Board of Computers, Materials, & Continua

Congratulations to Moe Khaleel was recently appointed to the editorial board of Computers, Materials, & Continua. CMC publishes original research papers of reasonable permanent value in the areas of computational materials science and engineering, at various length scales (quantum, nano, micro, meso, macro) and various time scales (picoseconds to hours). Both structural as well as functional materials, composite materials, and inorganic as well as organic materials, are of interest. Papers which deal with computational modeling of the mechanics, physics, chemistry, and biology (and their interactions) of all modern materials are welcome. Papers that advance the paradigm of materials by design from the bottom up, and top-down, are strongly solicited.  (Posted 4/1/2008)

Subhash Singhal appointed to Executive Advisory Board

Subhash Singhal, Battelle Fellow and Director of Fuel Cells for PNNL's Energy and Environment Directorate, has been appointed an Executive Advisory Board Member of the Florida Institute for Sustainable Energy (FISE) at the University of Florida. FISE brings together the broad research capabilities at the University of Florida to address societal needs for a sustainable energy future. The institute's structure covers numerous units within the Colleges of Engineering, Business, Law, Building Construction, Liberal Arts and Sciences, School of Natural Resources, and the University Office of Sustainability. FISE provides the necessary umbrella organization to promote interdisciplinary research and education, and its facilities include the FISE Energy Technology Incubator to accelerate commercialization of energy technologies.  (Posted 2/1/2008)

---

2008 Impact on Scientific Community

Justin Teeguarden on NRC Nanomaterial Report Committee

Justin Teeguarden is a member of a National Research Council committee that recently issued a widely publicized report describing serious weaknesses in the U.S. government's plan for research on the potential health and environmental risks posed by nanomaterials. The committee emphasized that an effective national plan for identifying and managing potential risks is essential to the successful development and public acceptance of nanotechnology-enabled products. Nanomaterials are increasingly being used in consumer goods and industry because their size (a nanometer is one-billionth of a meter) gives them unique physical, chemical and biological properties.

The report "Review of the Federal Strategy to Address Environmental, Health, and Safety Research Needs for Engineered Nanoscale Materials" was released December 10, 2008. Teeguarden, who leads research related to computational dosimetry of nanomaterials and health effects at PNNL, joined the committee in May 2008. He leads research related to computational dosimetry of nanomaterials and health effects and has a background in pharmacokinetics, including modeling and risk assessment.  (Posted 12/1/2008)

Singhal Named Founding Member of Washington Science Academy

Subhash Singhal, a Battelle Fellow and fuel cell director at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, has been named one of 104 founding members of the Washington State Academy of Sciences.

WSAS, a non-profit organization created in 2005 by the state legislature, conducts commissioned studies and prepares scientific reports on issues of public importance. The studies assist with informing public policy-makers, facilitating new research initiatives, or providing program review and assessment. WSAS represents many academic disciplines and diverse industries, including aerospace, agriculture, computer science, energy, engineering, ecology and transportation.

"It is extremely important to provide scientific and technological analysis to help our state leaders make informed decisions on so many challenging issues," said Singhal, who as a founding member may submit nominees for election to the Academy.

Singhal is a world leader in solid oxide fuel cells. He provides senior technical, managerial and commercialization leadership to PNNL's fuel cell program. He joined the Laboratory in 2000 after nearly 30 years leading fuel cell development at Siemens Power Generation (formerly Westinghouse Electric Corporation).

Singhal received the 2008 Grove Medal for sustained advances in fuel cell technology. He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering and a fellow of four professional societies: American Association for the Advancement of Science, American Ceramic Society, ASM International and Electrochemical Society. He also is a senior member of the Mineral, Metals, & Materials Society and has served on many national and international advisory panels. Singhal earned a doctorate in materials science engineering from the University of Pennsylvania. He received a master's in business from the University of Pittsburgh, a bachelor's in metallurgy from the Indian Institute of Science, and a bachelor's in physics, chemistry and mathematics from Agra University.

Singhal has authored more than 85 scientific publications, edited 14 books, received 13 patents, and given more than 250 plenary, keynote or other presentations worldwide. He is an adjunct professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Utah and serves on advisory boards of the University of Florida's Department of Materials Science and Engineering and Institute for Sustainable Energy.  (Posted 11/1/2008)

Scott Baker appointed by NAS as delegate of U.S. National Committee to the International Union of Microbiological Societies

Scott Baker has been appointed by the National Academy of Sciences to be one of six delegates of the U.S. National Committee to the International Union of Microbiological Societies (IUMS) with rights to vote during the IUMS General Assembly. In addition, Scott was elected to serve as the IUMS Mycology Division vice-chair. The vice-chair is responsible for the next International Congress of Mycology in 2011 and serves on the IUMS executive board.  (Posted 9/1/2008)

Bruce Garrett Advises National Science Foundation Program

Dr. Bruce Garrett was selected as advisor to a National Science Foundation Partnership in International Research and Education Program entitled Theoretical and Computational Chemistry: Potential Energy Surfaces, Collisions with Surfaces, and Electronic Non-Adiabatic Reactions. The program builds relationships between U.S. and international institutions. The goal is to promote globally engaged, U.S. researchers. The program teams U.S. college students and mentors abroad on specific research projects.

As an advisor, Garrett evaluates the work of the team developing algorithms and software to simulate electrons and atomic nuclei in large carbon-based molecules. Garrett was asked to join because of his expertise in theory, simulation, and mentoring.

As director of PNNL's Chemical and Materials Sciences Division, Garrett leads the work to develop tools and understanding required to control chemical and physical processes in complex multiphase environments.

 (Posted 8/1/2008)

Institute of Physics recognizes article by Scott Chambers for potential to advance frontiers of materials research

Top editors at the Institute of Physics selected a review article written by EMSL user Scott Chambers (PNNL) for its potential to significantly advance the frontiers of materials research. The institute assembles a select set of articles that demonstrate thought leadership in physics and promotes the articles through IoP Select. Chambers' 8-page article reviews the scientific opportunities and challenges of molecular beam epitaxy, or MBE. He was asked to write the article because of his research at PNNL, including his work with the Institute for Interfacial Catalysis and his work developing oxide MBE at EMSL. The article is published in Journal of Physics: Condensed Matter 20:264004 (July 2008)  (Posted 7/1/2008)

Tony Janetos on climate change impacts

Dr. Tony Janetos gave testimony on climate change impacts to the U.S. House of Representative Committee on Energy and Commerce in Washington, D.C. on June 26, 2008. He spoke to the Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality on the subject, "Climate Change: Costs of Inaction," drawing from a recent national assessment that he and others led. Janetos directs the Joint Global Change Research Institute, a partnership of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and the University of Maryland. View a webcast or a PDF of the printed testimony from Janetos and the other panelists.  (Posted 7/1/2008)

Eric Smith Selected for Prestigious NAE Symposium

Eric Smith, a radiation detection instrumentation specialist at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, has been invited to participate in the 2008 U.S. Frontiers of Engineering Symposium in September.

This is the sixth year in a row a PNNL staff member has been invited to attend the annual symposium, which brings together a select group (fewer than 100) of the nation's outstanding young engineers (between 30-45 years old) from industry, academia and government to discuss pioneering technical work and leading-edge research in various engineering fields and industry sectors. Attendees are selected based on having "demonstrated accomplishment in engineering research and technical work with recognizable contributions to advancing the frontiers of engineering."

Smith is a senior research scientist/engineer at PNNL advancing science and developing technologies in the area of applied radiation detection. His achievements include:

• National recognition for technical contributions and leadership in the development and evaluation of radiation detection systems for national security and in the development and use of simulation tools for detection scenario analysis.
• Active in developing next-generation sensor technologies for nuclear fuel cycle safeguards.
• Leads a high-visibility, multi-organization effort to develop modeling and simulation tools necessary to evaluate the Advanced Spectroscopic Portal systems for the Department of Homeland Security's Domestic Nuclear Detection Office.
• Technical lead of the DOE Global Nuclear Energy Partnership Safeguards Enhancement Study.
• Current research projects also include the development of advanced radiation transport methods using coupled deterministic-Monte Carlo methods, and the exploration of lead slowing-down spectroscopy for irradiated nuclear fuel assay.
• Taught the "Nuclear Science in Homeland Security" course at the IEEE Nuclear Science Symposium for the last three years and has been an invited speaker at venues ranging from highly technical to community-oriented.

Smith was awarded the IEEE Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Society Radiation Instrumentation Early Career Award in 2006, and was nominated and selected to Senior Member status during that same year. He also received the DOE Outstanding Mentor Award in 2002.

The Frontiers of Engineering Symposium will be hosted Sept. 18-20 by Sandia National Laboratories at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque. It gives early-career engineers an opportunity to learn about cutting-edge developments in fields other than their own. The goal is to facilitate collaborative work and the transfer of new approaches and techniques across fields.

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory is a DOE Office of Science national laboratory where interdisciplinary teams advance science and technology and deliver solutions to America's most intractable problems in energy, national security and the environment. PNNL employs 4,000 staff, has an $855 million annual budget, and has been managed by Ohio-based Battelle since the lab's inception in 1965.  (Posted 7/1/2008)

Yanwen Zhang invited to 2008 German-American Frontiers of Engineering Symposium

Yanwen Zhang has been invited by the National Academy of Engineering to attend the 2008 German-American Frontiers of Engineering Symposium on April 25 - 27, 2008. The symposium will be held at the National Academies' Beckman Center in Irvine, California, and is organized by the NAE and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation. About 60 outstanding engineers, generally not older than 45, from U.S. and German industry, universities, and government labs are invited to discuss leading-edge research and technical work across a range of engineering fields. The NAE believes that convening engineers from disparate fields and challenging them to think about developments and problems at the frontiers of areas different from their own will lead to a variety of desirable results, including collaborative work, the transfer of new techniques and approaches across fields, and establishment of contacts among the next generation of leaders in engineering. Yanwen, a senior research scientist at the Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, has been highly recognized for her contributions in ion-solid interactions, irradiation effects and ion beam techniques. She was selected previously for a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers in recognition of her research in the fields of ion beam physics and ion-solid interactions, especially in the field of electronic stopping in solids.  (Posted 6/26/2008)

Justin Teeguarden Named to NAS Nanoscience Review Committee

Justin Teeguarden was invited to serve as a member of the National Academy of Science's committee to review the National Nanotechnology Initiative's (NNI) Strategy for Nanotechnology-Related Environmental, Health, and Safety Research. The NNI strategy roadmap is to guide federal investments in research for nanotechnology-related environmental, health, and safety research.

Teeguarden is currently active with the Systems Toxicology of Nanomaterials Focus Area, part of PNNL's Environmental Biomarkers Initiative. He leads research related to computational dosimetry of nanomaterials and health effects. In addition, Teeguarden brings to the NAS review a background in pharmacokinetics including modeling and risk assessment.

Teeguarden joined PNNL in 2004. Before that time, he was a senior associate/toxicologist at the K.S. Crump Group and Environ International. He has also served in a range of elected and appointed offices in the Society of Risk Analysis and the Society of Toxicology.  (Posted 5/1/2008)

Bruce Napier Contributes to NAS Committee Report

Bruce Napier served on the National Academy of Sciences Committee on Toxicology investigating the health consequences of the use of depleted uranium in munitions. The first of two planned reports has been issued. This volume, Review of Toxicologic and Radiologic Risks to Military Personnel from Exposure to Depleted Uranium During and After Combat, has been released in prepublication form on the NAS website at . The book reviews the toxicologic, radiologic, epidemiologic, and toxicokinetic data on depleted uranium, and assesses the Army's Capstone Project estimates of health risks to personnel exposed during and after combat. The report recommends that the Army perform a minor reevaluation of the basis for some of its predictions about health outcomes at low levels of exposure, but, overall, the Capstone Report was judged to provide a reasonable characterization of the exposure and risks from depleted uranium. A second report is planned that will deal with public exposures to the residual contamination left in the environment after combat.  (Posted 5/1/2008)

Ian Gorton Provides Leadership for Special Edition of Computer Magazine

Ian Gorton led the development of a special edition of Computer magazine on Data Intensive Computing. Computer is the flagship magazine of the IEEE Computer Society. Ian, who is the chief architect for Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's Data Intensive Computing Initiative, proposed and worked with colleagues Paul Greenfield, CSIRO; Alex Szalay, Johns Hopkins University; and Roy Williams, Caltech, to solicit papers and referee the submissions. Ian's editorial introduces the topic of data intensive computing, and maps out research challenges for the community to address so that ever larger data collections can be handled in a scalable fashion. "The deluge of data that future applications must process—in domains ranging from science to business informatics—creates a compelling argument for substantially increased R&D targeted at discovering scalable hardware and software solutions for data-intensive problems," Ian says. View the special edition.  (Posted 4/1/2008)

James Dooley give Capitol Hill Briefing on Carbon Capture and Sequestration Technologies

Technologies for capturing and storing carbon dioxide emissions hold tremendous promise for addressing climate change, but much work remains to ensure timely, cost-effective deployment in key markets such as the electric power industry. These were some of the key points James Dooley made at a Senate briefing in March, where legislators and other stakeholders explored the business and policy aspects of commercially deploying carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) technologies. CCS is an emerging suite of science and technologies designed to capture carbon dioxide from power plants and store it underground, preventing greenhouse gases from reaching the atmosphere.

Dooley spoke on a panel about issues surrounding large-scale CCS deployment. Dooley, a scientist with PNNL's Atmospheric Science and Global Change Division and the Joint Global Change Research Institute, is an international expert on the role of carbon capture and storage in addressing climate change. He spoke about the marketplace for CCS, geologic storage capacity worldwide, and the potential for large-scale CCS deployment in the United States.

The March 31 briefing, "The Business Case for Carbon Capture and Sequestration," was sponsored by the Center for Strategic and International Studies in partnership with the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, the British Foreign Office, and the Mission of the United States of America to the European Union. The event was convened to shed light on business, economic, and policy considerations important to the future role of CCS. Sen. Jeff Bingaman, Chair of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, opened the briefing, followed by speakers from the business and science communities. Dooley's presentation and those of the other panelists are online.

Dooley served as Lead Author and Cross-Cutting Chairman for a recent assessment of CCS for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which won the Nobel Peace Prize last year. For the Global Energy Technology Strategy Program, he co-authored a number of landmark reports addressing CCS and other climate change mitigation technologies.  (Posted 4/1/2008)

Kevin Rosso Writes Crystal Chemistry Article for International Journa

Kevin Rosso co-authored an article for Zeitschrift für Kristallographie, one of the world's oldest scientific journals. Rosso was part of the eight-author team that prepared "Bonded interactions and the crystal chemistry of minerals." The authors reviewed the last century of research on the bond length, radii, bond strength, and bond valence of minerals and other crystals.

The article reviews research conducted into the bonding structure and reactivity of crystals. Understanding the behavior the electrons in the minerals could lead to advances in fields as diverse as soil remediation and material design.

Further, the article surveys the physical properties of the distribution of electrons for selected minerals and molecules. These surveys were generated with first-principles local energy density quantum mechanical methods; that is, studies that examined the physical interactions of electrons. Some of these surveys were performed using computational tools at U.S. Department of Energy's Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, a national scientific user facility, located at PNNL.

The National Science Foundation, the U.S. Department of Energy, and Bundesminister fuer Bildung und Forschung supported this research.

Citation: Gibbs, GV, RT Downs, DF Cox, NL Ross, CT Prewitt, KM Rosso, and T Lippmann, and A Kirfel. 2008. "Bonded interactions and the crystal chemistry of minerals: A review," Zeitschrift für Kristallographie 223(01-02):001-040.  (Posted 3/1/2008)

Tom Sanquist appointed as human factors expert to National Academy of Engineering Panel

Tom Sanquist has been appointed to the National Research Council Standing Committee on Human Factors for a three-year term. The purposes of the committee, composed of 16 experts from academia and industry, are to provide new perspectives on theoretical and methodological issues concerning the relationship of individuals and organizations to technology and the environment; to identify critical issues in the design, test, evaluation and use of new human-centered technologies; and to advise sponsors on the research needed to expand the scientific and technical bases for designing technology to support the needs of its users.

Tom provides an applied research perspective to the committee, and specialized knowledge in the human factors aspects of homeland security and transportation. His work at PNNL is concerned with developing effective homeland security screening systems, public acceptance of security technology, and general human factors and industrial engineering of complex systems.  (Posted 2/20/2008)

Liz Stephens Liz Stephens Honored for Engineering Achievements and Contributions to MESA Program

Liz Stephens was recognized at both the state and national level at Washington's Mathematics Engineering Science Achievement (MESA) 25th anniversary celebration and awards banquet. Liz received this award for her engineering achievements and commitment to helping the next generation of MESA students achieve their dreams.

Additionally, Liz was named the Most Promising Engineer or Scientist at the Hispanic Engineer National Achievement Awards Conference. Liz was selected for this due to her many contributions in science, her leadership abilities and initiative, her potential for advancement and her involvement in the hispanic community. The award recognizes a professional engineer or scientist with less than eight years experience since earning his or her undergraduate degree.

At PNNL, Liz is involved with improving the energy efficiency of vehicles and energy conversion systems. She supports the DOE Solid State Energy Conversion Alliance program and works with local youth through several education programs.  (Posted 2/1/2008)

Steven Wiley Pens Monthly Column for The Scientist

Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory's Steven Wiley, Lead Scientist for Biology, has accepted an invitation from The Scientist to write a monthly column on his thoughts and opinions about life sciences. His first column, which appeared in the January 2008 issue, provides a perceptive discussion of the oral traditions in life sciences and provides insights into the growing challenges scientists face in gathering and disseminating information. The article can be accessed at http://www.the-scientist.com/article/display/54043/.

Wiley was asked to write the column because of the fresh perspectives he brings as well as his scientific credibility. In particular, the journal's editorial board was impressed with his collaborative research into large-scale protein-protein interactions and cell signaling networks at EMSL as well as his work as the Director of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's Biomolecular Systems Initiative.

While his credentials helped make him a logical choice for this task, it was his lively writing style that had the journal's editors repeatedly ask him to take over the column. "They thought I was entertaining," he noted.  (Posted 2/1/2008)

---

2007 Awards

PNNL's Julia Laskin honored with 2006 Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers

A physical chemist at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory has been recognized with a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers - the highest honor given by the U.S. government to scientists and engineers who are beginning their careers.

Julia Laskin was honored for her leadership in the field of gas-phase ion chemistry and mass spectrometry of large complex molecules that is critical for development of new analytical techniques for improved chemical characterization of synthetic and natural polymers, petroleum, biofuels and other complex samples in biology, environmental science, drug discovery and counter-terrorism. Her internationally recognized research in fundamental reaction kinetics and ion surface reactions provides a basis for understanding the mass spectrometry of high molecular weight compounds and preparation of novel biomaterials.

"These awards reflect our belief that the representatives of the new generation of scientists and engineers honored today are meeting demanding scientific and technical challenges with superior leadership, knowledge and insight," Secretary of Energy Samuel W. Bodman said. "I'm pleased to recognize the extraordinary scientific and technical achievements represented by the awardees' contributions."

Interim Laboratory Director Mike Kluse said he is pleased that for the second year in a row, a PNNL staff member is being honored with this award. "The PECASE awards recognize young scientists at the frontiers of their disciplines," he said. "Julia is a leader whose research contributes to vital DOE missions through significant advancements in biological and environmental science, medical research and counter terrorism."

Laskin is a senior research scientist in the Chemical & Materials Sciences Division of PNNL's Fundamental and Computational Sciences Directorate. She earned a master's degree in physics from the Physico-Mechanical Division of the Leningrad Polytechnical Institute in Russia in 1990, and a doctorate in physical chemistry from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in Israel in 1998. She started at PNNL as a postdoctoral research associate in 2000 and has been a research scientist with the Laboratory since 2003.

Each Presidential award winner received a citation, a plaque and a commitment for continued funding of their work from their agency for five years. Laskin is one of four DOE national laboratory staff members receiving the PECASE award this year.  (Posted 11/1/2007)

Cliff Glantz Awarded for Exceptional Service to DOE Emergency Management

Richard Davis (left), Chair of the EMI Special Interest Group Steering Committee, presents Cliff Glantz with an award for exceptional service during the group's annual meeting in May 2007.

On May 9, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory researcher Cliff Glantz was presented with a special recognition award at the annual meeting for the Department of Energy's Emergency Management Issues - Special Interest Group. In front of about 250 colleagues, Cliff was given the award for sustained outstanding services to the EMI Special Interest Group, "particularly in his role as chair of the Subcommittee on Consequence Assessment and Protective Action [SCAPA] and for exceptional contribution to the DOE Emergency Management Program in general."

For the past five years, Cliff has chaired the SCAPA, which became a part of the EMI Special Interest Group three years ago; prior to that it was an independent DOE committee. Through its working groups, the SCAPA provides DOE and its contractors with technical information and recommendations for emergency preparedness to assist in safeguarding the health and safety of workers and the public. Cliff became involved in these organizations through his work developing consequence assessment models and participating as a meteorologist and hazards assessment team member in the Hanford Emergency Operations Center.

Cliff is a staff scientist in the Applied Atmospheric Sciences Group of the Atmospheric Science and Global Change Division. His emergency preparedness work is supported by the DOE Office of Emergency Management and Policy (NA-41), the Hanford Emergency Preparedness Program, and the Laboratory's Facilities and Operations Directorate.  (Posted 7/1/2007)

PNNL Scientist Honored with National Department of Energy Award

John Zachara, a scientist at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, has been recognized by DOE with the prestigious E.O. Lawrence Award. The Lawrence Award honors scientists and engineers at mid-career for exceptional contributions in research and development that support DOE and its mission to advance the national, economic and energy security of the United States.

Zachara is the sixth PNNL scientist to win the DOE award since its inception in 1959. He will be honored by Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman at a ceremony in late March in Washington, D.C. DOE announced the eight winners earlier today.

Lawrence Awards are given in each of the following seven categories: Chemistry; Environmental Science and Technology; Life Sciences (including Medicine); Materials Research; National Security; Nuclear Technology; and Physics. Zachara was honored in the Environmental Science and Technology category. Each Lawrence Award recipient receives a $50,000 honorarium as well as a citation signed by the Secretary of Energy and a gold medal bearing the likeness of Ernest Orlando Lawrence.

Zachara is the senior chief scientist for environmental chemistry in the Chemical and Materials Sciences Division of PNNL's Fundamental Sciences Directorate. His research has focused on chemical interactions of toxic metals and radionuclides with mineral surfaces and microorganisms that control the rate at which these contaminants move through soils, sediments and groundwater. He has published more than 125 scholarly articles on these subjects. Zachara also has been instrumental in bringing teams of top scientists to Hanford to collaborate with PNNL and Hanford scientists to resolve complex issues of subsurface contaminant migration.

Zachara earned a bachelor's degree in chemistry from Bucknell University in 1973, a master's degree in soil and watershed chemistry from the University of Washington in 1979, and a doctorate in soil chemistry from Washington State University in 1986. He has been at PNNL since 1979.  (Posted 2/7/2007)

Satyanarayana Kuchibhatla Receives American Vacuum Society (AVS) Award

Satya Kuchibhatla received the AVS Graduate Research Award for 2007. The award was established to recognize and encourage excellence among graduate students in the sciences and technologies of interest to AVS. Satya received the award at the AVS 54th International Symposium in Seattle on October 17. He is a graduate student from University of Central Florida conducting research with EMSL researchers Theva Thevuthasan and Don Baer.  (Posted 10/31/2007)

Kathy Pryor Receives National Award from American Board of Health Physics (ABHP)

Kathryn H. Pryor, CHP, was awarded the 2007 William McAdams Outstanding Service Award by the American Board of Health Physics. The McAdams Award is given in recognition of significant contributions to the certification process and the promotion of professionalism in the field of Health Physics. Kathy is a Chief Health Physicist in the ESH&Q Directorate with 25 years of experience, and has served as the Chair of the ABHP, Secretary of the American Academy of Health Physics, and Chair of the Part II Panel of Examiners.  (Posted 8/1/2007)

Alice Dohnalkova Earns Diatome Award from Microscopy Society of America

Alice Dohnalkova was presented with the Diatome Award during the national meeting of the Microscopy Society of America on August 8 in Fort Lauderdale. The award recognizes distinguished scientists who present new and enlightening work in the field of microscopy. Alice received the award for the best use of ultramicrotomy in the presentation "Creating 3D Reconstruction of Cyanobacterium Cyanothece sp. by Alignment of Serial TEM Tomograms." As part of this award, she will receive a trip to Switzerland to visit the Diatome factory, where precision diamond knives are manufactured for electron microscopy applications.  (Posted 8/1/2007)

Xiao-Dong Zhou Recipient of 2007 Young Investigator Award

Dr. Xiao-Dong Zhou was awarded the J. Bruce Wagner Jr. Young Investigator Award from the Electrochemical Society. The award was established in 1998 and is presented every other year to recognize a young member of the Society who has demonstrated exceptional promise for a successful career in science and technology in the field of high temperature materials.

Dr. Zhou will officially receive the award at the Society's fall meeting this October in Washington DC. During the meeting he will give his award keynote lecture, "Defect Chemistry and Charge Transport in Low Dimensional Oxides." Along with the prestigious honor, he will also receive $1,000.

A research scientist at PNNL, Dr. Zhou's interests span the areas of structural, transport and magnetic properties of condensed matters and nonstoichiometric chemistry. He has published numerous peer-reviewed papers, proceedings and book chapters.  (Posted 7/1/2007)

Richland's IEEE Power Engineering Society Wins Outstanding Chapter Award

Henry Huang, Ning Zhou and Kevin Schneider played a leadership role in a big win for the Richland Chapter of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Power Engineering Society (PES). In June, the Chapter was presented the 2006 Outstanding Small Chapter Award. Each year, IEEE-PES honors one small chapter (less than 100 members) and one large chapter out of more than 100 chapters world wide. The award is given based on the best overall set of programs and activities in serving their chapter's membership.

Huang, Zhou and Schneider, the members of the Chapter's 2005-2006 Executive Committee, held 23 technical meetings including a 10-session Profession Engineer Exam review course. In addition, they supported two engineering scholarships at Washington State University Tri-Cities campus and Walla Walla College.  (Posted 7/1/2007)

Stephen Mladineo Receives Meritorious Service Award from the Institute for Nuclear Management

Stephen Mladineo received the Meritorious Service Award from the Institute of Nuclear Materials Management. This award focuses on long-term outstanding contributions to the Institute of Nuclear Materials Management, as well as Steve's noteworthy accomplishments and contributions to the profession.  (Posted 7/1/2007)

Tom Shea receives Distinquished Service Award from Institute for Nuclear Materials Management

Tom Shea was awarded the Distinguished Service Award from the Institute for Nuclear Management. He was presented this award for his long-term contributions to international and domestic nuclear materials safeguards.  (Posted 7/1/2007)

PNNL staff recognized by Columbia Chapter Health Physics Society

Woody Buckner, Tomas Moreno and Rob Sitsler were recognized by the Columbia Chapter Health Physics Society. Woody received the Operational Health Physicist of the Year Award. Tomas was named Radiation Safety Technologist of the Year. And, the Health Physicist of the Year Award went to Rob. "I am extremely proud of Rob, Woody and Tomas," says Robert Ford, Radiological Control group manager. "Each of these awards is a significant professional honor, and the fact that the PNNL Radiological Control group took three of these awards this year says volumes about these guys. The competition in the chapter from Hanford contractors, other local and regional firms, colleges, universities, and local and regional medical companies is stiff. This is a great achievement."  (Posted 5/21/2007)

Jay Grate Wins American Chemical Society Regional Industrial Innovation Award

Jay Grate, Laboratory Fellow in the Fundamental Science Directorate, recently won the American Chemical Society Regional Industrial Innovation Award for his work in developing the patented BSP3 Polymer. The award, to be presented at the ACS regional meeting, June 17-21, celebrates individuals and teams whose creative innovations have contributed to the good of the community and society. An R&D 100 award winner, this BSP3 carbosiloxane compound collects and concentrates vapor molecules from the air. It can be used in detectors for organophosphorus compounds, such as chemical agents. The polymer's properties enable handheld sensor systems to detect toxic vapors quicker and at lower concentrations than was possible using previous materials.  (Posted 5/1/2007)

Jeff Estes Recognized for Leadership in Science Education Reform

The Washington Council of the American Electronics Associations recognized Jeff Estes and four business leaders for their role in making the Washington State's Leadership and Assistance for Science Education Reform (LASER) program a success. Jeff and his team have provided successful strategies for promoting and encouraging science and math, including the nationally recognized LASER program. LASER encourages school districts to initiate, implement and sustain a standards-based, inquiry-centered science education program in grades K-8.  (Posted 3/1/2007)

Richland Section names Rob Pratt 2006 IEEE Engineer of the Year

Rob Pratt received the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Richland Section's 2006 Engineer of the Year award. Rob was awarded this honor for his significant contributions in power grid reliability, renewable energy, energy efficiency and energy conservation.

At PNNL, Rob leads the Electricity Infrastructure Operations Initiative. The initiative recently commissioned the new Electricity Infrastructure Operations Center—a unique, grid-focused technology development, training and technology transfer platform for PNNL and users from utilities and industry. Rob also manages PNNL's GridWise™ Initiative for DOE's Office of Electricity. GridWise has spawned a new DOE program and an industry alliance that share a vision of an information-rich future for the power grid. He leads a team with a focus on communications architecture, advanced control technology, and simulation and analysis of the combined engineering and economic aspects of the future grid.  (Posted 2/1/2007)

Jack Slicks receives Director's Award for Individual Excellence from DOE Office of Intelligence and Counterintelligence

Jack Slicks received the "Director's Award for Individual Excellence" at the first DOE Office of Intelligence and Counterintelligence Award Program. He was honored for his visionary leadership of the PNNL CI Program.  (Posted 12/1/2007)

Wayne Martin Named Black Engineer of the Year for Community Service

An environmental scientist at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory has been nationally recognized for community service through the Black Engineer of the Year Awards Conference.

Wayne Martin, a technical group manager at PNNL, is being honored with the prestigious engineering, science and technology management award for his efforts to increase involvement of under-represented minorities in the engineering and scientific fields and for his leadership and significant contributions to the Tri-Cities community.

This national award is sponsored by the Council of Engineering Deans of the Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Lockheed Martin Corporation, U.S. Black Engineer and Information Technology Magazine. Martin will receive his award at the 22nd Black Engineer of the Year Awards Conference in February in Baltimore.

"Wayne exemplifies the principle of community service and distinguishes himself as a leader locally, regionally and nationally through his service to community," said Battelle President and CEO Carl Kohrt. " His dedication as a role model and mentor and his promotion and encouragement of under-represented minorities in science, engineering and math professions make him truly deserving of this award."

Martin serves as vice-chair of the Board of Trustees at Columbia Basin College and was chair for the past six years. He has been an officer in the Trustees Association for Community and Technical Colleges at the state level. He is also a member of the Washington State University Tri-Cities and the Tri-Cities Education advisory councils, past president of the Pacific Northwest chapter of the National Organization for the Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers, and is on the board of directors for Kadlec Medical Center. He also was a participant in the branch campus study team that resulted in a four-year university being established at WSU Tri-Cities and is a past member of the higher education task force that contributed to the Three Rivers Community Roundtable.

Martin earned a bachelor's degree in wildlife management from Washington State University, a master's degree in radiological sciences from the University of Washington and a doctorate in environmental and natural resource sciences from Washington State University. He worked for PNNL from 1978 to 1993, and rejoined the Laboratory in 1997 following an education leave of absence to obtain his doctorate.  (Posted 11/5/2007)

Doug McMakin wins Christopher Columbus Homeland Security Award

Doug McMakin, National Security Directorate, has been selected to receive the prestigious Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation Homeland Security award for his leadership in developing the millimeter wave holographic body scanning system. The security system detects concealed metallic and nonmetallic items and is being used globally for security in airports and other facilities.

Doug is being recognized in the Border/Transportation Security category. The scanning system currently is being used worldwide in homeland security and counterterrorism efforts. The technology provides security officers with a non-contact, non-ionizing radiation tool that can screen individuals for potentially lethal concealed threats. It has been licensed to L-3 SafeView, which is using the technology as the basis for a line of screening systems, including the SafeScout 100^TM. More than 75 systems are deployed worldwide in locations including Iraq, Israel, Mexico, Europe, South America and Asia in high-risk areas such as airports, subways, border crossings, and government and military facilities.

"This award recognizes the role PNNL researchers play in helping solve the country's greatest homeland security challenges," said Interim Lab Director Mike Kluse. "Doug and his team persevered for many years developing a technology they personally believed in, and I'm pleased the foundation is recognizing these efforts."

The screening systems have been successfully demonstrated in the U.S. and are undergoing further testing by the Department of Homeland Security. In fact, the system will be tested at Phoenix in the near future, with additional machines to be tested at John F. Kennedy International Airport and Los Angeles International Airport.

The foundation recognizes citizens or companies that are making a measurable and constructive contribution related to basic and/or advanced research in the area of homeland security which will result in a significant and positive benefit to society.

Jim Thomas, a PNNL chief scientist, was also one of the top three finalists for the award. He was recognized for his leadership of the Department of Homeland Security's National Visualization and Analytics Center. NVAC is a leading resource for visual analytics technology and tools that detect, prevent and reduce the threat of terrorist attacks.  (Posted 10/15/2007)

Dale Anderson wins Frank Wilcoxon Prize for best practical application paper in Technometrics

Dale Anderson won the Frank Wilcoxon Prize for the paper "Detection and Location of Gamma-Ray Sources with a Modulating Coded Mask." Dale, the lead author, was assisted in writing the article by Randy Hansen, Tony Peurrung and Sharon Wunschel and by non-PNNL contributor, David Stromswold. The article presents two methods of detecting and locating a concealed nuclear gamma-ray source for applications in national security and threat detection. The article appeared in the May 2006 issue of Technometrics, a journal dedicated to the development and use of statistical methods in the physical, chemical and engineering sciences. The Frank Wilcoxon award is presented to the best practical application paper appearing in the previous year's Technometrics.  (Posted 10/1/2007)

Lee Burger wins Glen T. Seaborg Award for Contributions to Actinide Separations

Lee Burger's 2007 Glenn T. Seaborg Award makes four "wins" for Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, second only to Argonne National Laboratory in the number of Seaborg award recipients. Lee joins PNNL scientists Earl Wheelwright, Jack Ryan and John Swanson in receiving this prestigious award to honor their extraordinary accomplishments, gained in more than 200 years of combined expertise in this field.

The Glenn T. Seaborg Actinide Separations Award is a national award recognizing significant and lasting contributions to separating actinide elements, such as plutonium and uranium. This award reflects the judgment of the Actinide Separation Conference Board representatives currently from Argonne, Idaho, Lawrence Livermore, Los Alamos, Oak Ridge, and Savannah River National Laboratories, the Hanford Site, the University of New Mexico, and Washington State University. Read more about the Seaborg honorees.  (Posted 9/12/2007)

Moe Khaleel Receives Lifetime Achievement Award for Contributions to Computational Engineering and Fuel Cell Technologies

Moe Khaleel was presented with a lifetime achievement award for his contributions to computational engineering and fuel cell technologies. Moe received the award after delivering the plenary talk on computational electro chemistry for fuel cells at the 2007 International Joint Conference on Knowledge Management for Composite Materials (KMCM), Nanosciences and Fuel Cells.

The KMCM's audience comprises researchers from R&D organizations, academia, government, policy makers and industry. The conference's theme focused on driving research activities towards Nanoscale phenomena and fuel cell development.

Moe, a Laboratory Fellow, is Director of PNNL's Computational Sciences and Mathematics Division. The division provides scientific and technological solutions through the integration of high performance computing, data intensive computing, computational sciences, mathematics, scalable data management, and bioinformatics to advance the laboratory's mission areas. Moe's current research interests are tuned to world energy systems and the future role for fuel cell systems.  (Posted 8/1/2007)

Elizabeth Stephens named most promising Hispanic engineer

Elizabeth Stephens has received the Hispanic Engineer National Achievement Awards Conference's Most Promising Engineer or Scientist–Undergraduate Degree Award. The award recognizes a professional engineer or scientist with less than eight years experience since earning his/her undergraduate degree. The candidate's early technical contributions should already indicate a promising career.

Elizabeth was chosen due to her contributions to science, leadership abilities and initiative, her potential for advancement and her involvement with the Hispanic community.

Elizabeth currently is involved with improving the energy efficiency of vehicles and energy conversion systems. She supports the DOE Solid State Energy Conversion Alliance program and works with local youth through several education programs. For more information on Elizabeth' award, vist HENAAC.org  (Posted 8/1/2007)

Subhash Singhal Wins Esteemed Fuel Cell Technology Award

Subhash Singhal received the 2007 Fuel Cell Seminar and Exposition Award. Subhash was recognized for this award because of his outstanding leadership and innovation in the promotion and advancement of fuel cell technology.

Dr. Subhash C. Singhal is a Battelle Fellow and Director, Fuel Cells at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) in Richland, Washington, where he provides senior technical, managerial and commercialization leadership to the Lab's extensive fuel cell program. He is a highly regarded, acknowledged world leader in solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs). He joined PNNL in April 2000 after having worked at Siemens Power Generation (formerly Westinghouse Electric Corporation) for over 29 years.

Dr. Singhal is also an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Utah; and serves on the Visiting Advisory Board of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Florida.  (Posted 8/1/2007)

Robbie Tidwell receives Academy of Certified Hazardous Materials Managers' Champion of Excellence Award

For the second year in a row, Robbie Tidwell received the Academy of Certified Hazardous Materials Managers' Champion of Excellence Award. This national award recognizes outstanding work in the profession of hazardous materials management, promotion of the credential, and active participation in local and national ACHMM activities. Robbie has helped the Lab reduce, reuse or redistribute chemicals.

Further, she has helped develop processes to ensure safe handling, and cost- and time-effective procurement, inventorying and handling. In addition, Robbie has served vice president and president of the Eastern Washington Chapter of ACHMM. Under her leadership as president, the chapter attained the National Award of Honor Roll of Champions for the eighth consecutive year.  (Posted 7/1/2007)

Stephen Tratz wins first-place in 2007 SemEval international competition (Computational Linguistics)

Stephen Tratz's commitment to excellence resulted in PNNL winning first-place in the 2007 SemEval international competition for word sense disambiguation systems. In computational linguistics, word sense disambiguation helps determine which sense a word has in any given context. For example, the word bass could mean a type of fish or tones of low frequency. Although the difference may be obvious to humans, WSD can improve the performance of information and knowledge management applications, such as internet searching and navigating.

PNNL developed this particular WSD system for a Department of Homeland Security project. When lab-funding could not cover the required preparation time for the system's entry to the SemEval competition, Stephen prepared and submitted the system output on his own time, which resulted in the win. PNNL has since been invited to submit a paper that describes the system to the 2007 SemEval WSD workshop in Prague this June. Other staff members involved include Alan Chappell, National Security Directorate; and Michelle Gregory, Christian Posse, project lead Antonio Sanfilippo and Paul Whitney, CISD.  (Posted 5/1/2007)

Stephen Tratz wins first-place in 2007 SemEval international competition (Computational Linguistics)

Stephen Tratz's commitment to excellence resulted in PNNL winning first-place in the 2007 SemEval international competition for word sense disambiguation systems. In computational linguistics, word sense disambiguation helps determine which sense a word has in any given context. For example, the word bass could mean a type of fish or tones of low frequency. Although the difference may be obvious to humans, WSD can improve the performance of information and knowledge management applications, such as internet searching and navigating.

PNNL developed this particular WSD system for a Department of Homeland Security project. When lab-funding could not cover the required preparation time for the system's entry to the SemEval competition, Stephen prepared and submitted the system output on his own time, which resulted in the win. PNNL has since been invited to submit a paper that describes the system to the 2007 SemEval WSD workshop in Prague this June. Other staff members involved include Alan Chappell, National Security Directorate; and Michelle Gregory, Christian Posse, project lead Antonio Sanfilippo and Paul Whitney, CISD.  (Posted 4/1/2007)

Awards presented for outstanding education contributions

Three staff members received the Fitzner-Eberhardt Laboratory Director's Award for Outstanding Contributions to Science and Engineering Education at a ceremony on April 26 in the EMSL Auditorium. At the same time, eight staff members were recognized as DOE outstanding mentors.

Interim Laboratory Director Mike Kluse presented the Fitzner-Eberhardt award to James A. Campbell, National Security Directorate; George Last, Environmental Technology Directorate; and Shuttha Shutthanandan, Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory. Mike praised the recipients for their many contributions to science education, and also recognized four other individuals nominated for the award. They were George Chin, Computational and Information Sciences Directorate; Doug Lemon, NSD; Eric Pierce, ETD; and Irvin Schultz, ETD.

Debbie Trader of the DOE Pacific Northwest Site Office announced the DOE Outstanding Mentor Awards. Recipients were Heather Dillon, Energy Science and Technology Directorate; Janelle Downs, ETD; Gregory Exarhos, Fundamental Science Directorate; Steven Goheen, NSD; Pavel Hrma, ETD; Mitchell Pelton, ETD; Irvin Schultz, ETD; and Susan Southard, ETD.  (Posted 4/1/2007)

PNNL Staff Honored for Energy Smart Technologies

Staff in PNNL's Energy Science and Technology Directorate were honored for the role they played in helping PNNL advance energy smart research and development. Mike Davis accepted the award for Best Research and Development in smart grid technology from the organizers of the GridWeek 2007 conference at the Reagan Building in Washington D.C. The award citation recognized PNNL for much of the fundamental thinking behind the smart grid over past two decades.

In the mid-1980s, dozens of researchers at PNNL were already designing first generation data collection systems that were installed in more than 1000 buildings to monitor near real-time electricity consumption for every appliance. Huge data sets were created and analyzed that fundamentally changed the way buildings and equipment were analyzed. Much of this work is still relevant and being used today.

Based on this early work, PNNL developed a broad suite of analytic tools and technologies that resulted in better sensors, improved diagnostics, and enhanced equipment design and operation. From phasor measurement and control at the transmission level to Grid Friendly™ appliances, their imprint on the creation of the next generation electrical system is unparalleled.  (Posted 4/1/2007)

Ram Devanathan Receives Prestigious Invite to International Engineering Symposium

Ram Devanathan has been invited to attend the 2007 German-American Frontiers of Engineering Symposium, organized by the National Academy of Engineering and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation. About 60 engineers, generally not older than 45, from German and U.S. industry, universities and national laboratories were invited because of their innovation, articulation, and leadership.

A Senior Research Scientist in Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's Fundamental Science Directorate, Ram performs leading-edge research on fuel cell electrolytes for the hydrogen economy, radiation-resistant semiconductors, nanoscale phenomena and novel radiation detector materials.

By gathering up-and-coming engineers and challenging them to think about problems and developments at the frontiers of brain research technologies, robotics, smart materials, and space technologies, the symposium hopes to transfer new techniques and approaches across fields, and build connections among the next generation of leaders in engineering. The symposium will be held April 26-28, 2007, in Hamburg, Germany.  (Posted 3/1/2007)

Lai-Sheng Wang Receives 2006-2007 Sahlin Faculty Excellence Award

Lai-Sheng Wang was awarded the Sahlin Faculty Excellence Award for Research, Scholarship and Arts. Washington State University annually presents three Sahlin awards, recognizing excellence in teaching, public service, and research.

An Affiliate Senior Chief Scientist in the Fundamental Science Directorate at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and a professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy and the Program in Materials Science at Washington State University-Tri-Cities, Lai-Sheng Wang is a world leader in nanoclusters research. For example, Lai-Sheng and his colleagues created hollow nanoscale cages of gold atoms, the first known metallic equivalent of the buckyball.

Lai-Sheng showed that the most stable form of gold clusters undergoes shape transformations, a finding that addressed a key issue in fundamental cluster science: understanding the structural evolution of clusters from a single atom/molecule towards the bulk solid. The work has potential applications in energy sciences.

In addition, Lai-Sheng has pioneered the study of solution molecules in the gas phase and developed novel experimental techniques to address fundamental questions of ion solvation and solution chemistry.

During his 20 years in research, Lai-Sheng has written or co-written more than 250 publications. His work has been featured in important journals, including Nature and Science. He is active in the scientific community, working with the American Chemical Society, American Physical Society, Materials Research Society, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

His contributions as a researcher and a professor have been recognized with numerous awards, including the Humboldt Research Award, Guggenheim fellowship, the National Science Foundation creativity award, and the Alfred P. Sloan fellowship.  (Posted 2/18/2007)

Nano-Tech Team Wins Environmental Business Journal Award for Sensor

Yuehe Lin, Guodong Liu, and Chuck Timchalk received a 2006 Environmental Business Journal Technology Merit Award for designing and testing a nanotechnology-based sensor that detects organophosphate insecticides and nerve agents. The award is given by the Environmental Business Journal to recognize notable achievements in the environmental industry.

The sensor is composed of enzymes that self-assemble layer by layer onto tiny, hollow carbon tubes. When the sensor encounters organophosphates, the enzymes slow down. This reduced activity is transmitted as an electrochemical signal through the carbon nanotubes to an attached electrode. By reading the electrode's measurements, users can determine the concentration of organophosphates in environmental samples and biological fluids.  (Posted 1/17/2007)

---

2007 Fellowships

Michel Dupuis Named Fellow in American Physical Society

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory''s Dr. Michel Dupuis was selected as a Fellow in the American Physical Society. The APS, founded in 1899, is a leading voice for physics, including chemical physics, in both the U.S. and international scientific communities. The society publishes several journals, including Physical Review and Physical Review Letters. Dupuis received this honor "for his significant contributions to the development of electronic structure methods and computer codes for the simulation of molecular properties and reactivity."

A Laboratory Fellow, Dupuis has more than 30 years of experience in developing computational chemistry methods and algorithms on supercomputers and their applications to chemical problems. Specifically, his work deals with the characterization of the electronic structure and reactivity of molecules, solids, and interfaces in processes relevant to environmental chemistry, electrochemistry, biochemistry, catalysis, and nanoscience.  (Posted 12/3/2007)

Cesar Izaurralde Selected Soil Science Fellow

Dr. César Izaurralde has been named Fellow of the Soil Science Society of America. This is the highest honor bestowed by the society, which is dedicated to the conservation and wise use of natural resources to produce crops while maintaining and improving the environment. For his outstanding achievements in leadership, professional service and research, Izaurralde was honored with the fellowship award at the society's s annual meeting in November 2007 in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Izaurralde's research at the Joint Global Change Research Institute, a collaboration of PNNL and the University of Maryland, focuses on 1) sustainable agriculture, 2) climate change impacts and adaptation in relation to agriculture and water resources and 3) climate change mitigation through soil carbon sequestration and reductions in soil emissions of nitrous oxide.  (Posted 11/5/2007)

Nine PNNL Researchers Elected Fellows by AAAS

Nine scientists from the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory have been elected Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science for "meritorious efforts to advance science." This is the largest number of PNNL staff selected in a single year and is more than twice as many as any other national laboratory this year.

The nine honorees were elected into five AAAS sections:

Biological Sciences
Anthony Janetos is the director of the Joint Global Change Research Institute, a collaboration between PNNL and the University of Maryland. He is being recognized for "distinguished contributions in ecology and biology of particular relevance to environmental policy." He earned a bachelor's degree in biology from Harvard, and a master's degree and doctorate in biology from Princeton University. He joined PNNL in 2006.
Guritno Roesijadi is a Laboratory Fellow being recognized for "distinguished research contributions on metal detoxification in marine species and in education for developing a doctoral program in integrative biology at Florida Atlantic University." He earned a bachelor's degree in zoology from the University of Washington, a master's degree in fisheries from Humboldt State University, and a doctorate in biology from Texas A&M University. He joined PNNL in 2005.

Chemistry

David Koppenaal is a Laboratory Fellow and Chief Technology Officer at the William R. Wiley Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, a DOE national scientific user facility at PNNL. He is being recognized for "pioneering development of advanced techniques for analytical atomic/isotopic mass spectrometry and for distinguished scientific leadership." He earned a bachelor's degree in environmental chemistry and mathematics from Southwest Missouri State University and a doctorate in analytical chemistry from the University of Missouri at Columbia. He joined PNNL in 1988.
Jun Liu is a Laboratory Fellow being recognized for "distinguished contributions to the development, understanding and commercialization of self-assembled functional nanoporous materials, and to the development of environmentally friendly solution approaches for oriented nanostructures." He earned a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from Hunan University in China, and a master's degree in ceramic engineering and a doctorate in materials science and engineering from the University of Washington. He joined PNNL in 2005.
Lai-Sheng Wang is a professor of physics at Washington State University-Tri-Cities and is an affiliate chief senior scientist at the William R. Wiley Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, a DOE national scientific user facility at PNNL. He is being recognized for "distinguished and innovative contributions to the field of atomic clusters and for pioneering work on gaseous multiply-charged anions." He earned a bachelor's degree from Wuhan University in Wuhan City, China, and a doctorate from the University of California at Berkeley.

 

Information, Computing and Communications

Jim J. Thomas is a Laboratory Fellow and the director of the Department of Homeland Security's National Visualization and Analytics Center. He is being recognized for "distinguished scientific and professional leadership in the field of visualization, including the recent foundation of the field of visual analysis." He earned a bachelor's degree in mathematics from Eastern Washington University and a master's degree in computer science from Washington State University. He joined PNNL in 1976.

 

Physics

Richard Kouzes is a Laboratory Fellow being recognized "for distinguished contributions to defining the technical basis and implementation of nuclear radiation detection systems for applications to homeland security, nuclear structure and neutrino physics." He earned a bachelor's degree in physics from Michigan State University, and a master's degree and doctorate in physics from Princeton University. He joined PNNL in 1991.

 

Social, Economic and Political Sciences

James A. Edmonds is a Laboratory Fellow and a chief scientist at the Joint Global Change Research Institute. He is being recognized for "distinguished contributions to the field of climate change economics, particularly modeling and analyzing interactions of energy, the economy, technology, carbon cycle, and climate." He earned a bachelor's degree in economics from Kalamazoo College, and a master's degree and doctorate in economics from Duke University. He joined PNNL in 1986.
Richard Moss is a senior staff scientist being recognized for "leadership in national and international assessments of climate change and development of the nation's long-term plan for integrated research to address this problem." He earned a bachelor's degree English literature from Carleton College, and a master's and a doctorate in public and international affairs from Princeton. Moss is currently on assignment with the United Nations Foundation.

The honorees will be recognized at the Fellows Forum during the AAAS national meeting in Boston in February. They join 20 PNNL staff members previously elected as AAAS Fellows. Founded in 1848, AAAS has worked to advance science for human well-being through its projects, programs and publications in the areas of science policy, science education and international scientific cooperation.  (Posted 10/25/2007)

Moe Khaleel elected Fellow of ASME

Moe Khaleel, a PNNL Laboratory Fellow, has been elected a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineering. Moe was recognized for his exceptional engineering achievements and contributions to the engineering profession. Moe has held numerous engineering leadership roles, including managing the PNNL hydrogen and transportation programs and the advanced manufacturing product line. He also serves as the national coordinator for modeling activities associated with solid oxide fuel cells for the Solid Energy Conversion Alliance program, and is a member of the Industry Advisory Board of Edison Welding Institute. Moe has won a Federal Laboratory Consortium for Excellence in Technology Transfer Award for superplastic forming of aluminum and the ASME International McGrattan Literature Award.  (Posted 9/28/2007)

SK Sundaram Adds American Ceramic Society Fellow to List of Accomplishments

SK Sundaram was elected Fellow of the American Ceramic Society's (ACerS) by the Board of Directors. SK, a Chief Materials Scientist, was recognized for his significant, scientific contributions in ceramic/glass/materials science and engineering, including laser-glass interactions. Sundaram holds two Fellow honors this year which includes election by the American Association for the Advancement of Science in February 2007.

The ACerS is a global leader among professional organizations in supporting scientific research and emerging technologies with ceramics as a key element. Sundaram will be recognized at the Honors and Awards Banquet at our 109th Annual Meeting this September.  (Posted 5/11/2007)

Mary Ann Parkhurst Named Health Physics Society Fellow

Mary Ann Parkhurst was named a Fellow in the Health Physics Society. This award, presented to senior HPS members, recognizes significant scientific contributions to the health physics profession.

Mary Ann serves as principal investigator and project manager in key radiological and environmental assessments. Some of her most recent projects include leading a 5-year multi-laboratory study characterizing depleted uranium aerosols, which are produced on the battlefield when a DU penetrator perforates conventional or DU armor on combat vehicles. In addition, her team characterized the aerosols' potential health impacts to vehicle crews and first responders.

She also evaluated the environmental and radiological impacts of existing nuclear power plants, leading the technical effort for some of the first U.S. nuclear power plants to apply for a license renewal. Now, she is working on the early site permits and the pre-application for a construction/operating license for a new advanced nuclear power plant.  (Posted 5/1/2007)

---

2007 Elected Positions and Offices

Leonard Bond elected IEEE Region 6 delegate-elect and director-elect

Jae Edmonds Appointed Chief Scientist

Jae Edmonds was appointed by the U.S. Department of Energy as Chief Scientist for the Integrated Drivers and Systems Responses (IDSR) program within the Office of Science's Climate Change Research Program. As the Chief Scientist, Edmonds will provide leadership and advice on integrated assessment to the IDSR program.

Through its support and management of scientific research, the IDSR program provides insights into the interaction of multiple facets of climate change that would not be available from disciplinary research alone. The IDSR program also develops tools that enable economic analysis and scenario development, and provides a framework in which greenhouse gas emissions, climate, climate change impacts, and adaptation to climate change can be simultaneously and consistently examined. One of the principle components of the IDSR program's research portfolio is the development and exercise of integrated assessment models. These models are core decision support tools that can assist decision makers in the determination of safe levels of greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere. They achieve this by formally representing the various determinants of greenhouse gas emissions, including demographic, economic, energy, and land use decision making, as well as through representations of the atmosphere, climate, oceans, and climate impacts and adaptation in an internally consistent framework.

A senior staff scientist at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Jae is also a Laboratory Fellow and Chief Scientist at the Joint Global Change Research Institute, a collaboration between the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and the University of Maryland. He is internationally recognized for his contributions to the field of integrated assessment of climate change and the examination of interactions between energy, technology, policy and the environment.  (Posted 9/1/2007)

Darrell Fisher Named Scientific Director for DOE Isotope Program

Darrell Fisher was named as Scientific Director of the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Nuclear Energy's Isotope Program. In this role, Darrell will bring together the capabilities, resources and requirements of the medical isotope community and national laboratories to address the nation's near- and long-term isotope needs, including cancer treatments, miniature power systems, and other applications.

Darrell, who will continue with his work leading the Laboratory's Radioisotopes Program, was selected because of his outstanding research and work in the scientific community, including the American Nuclear Society, the Society of Nuclear Medicine, and the Health Physics Society.  (Posted 1/17/2007)

Greg Exarhos Elected to 3-Year Term as President of the AVS

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's Dr. Greg Exarhos was elected President of the AVS: Science and Technology of Materials, Interfaces, and Processing. Founded in 1953, this not-for-profit society was focused on vacuum science and technology, critical in the early development of vacuum tubes, enabling radio broadcasting, radar, and other technologies. Today, the society has broadened its scope to include such technologically relevant areas as surface science, electronic and magnetic materials, nanoscience, and biomaterials.

Exarhos joined the society because it provided the best forum for his work in materials science and engineering. His pioneering materials processing approaches have been recognized internationally and have opened up new venues in optical and electronic coatings, new materials designed at the nanoscale, multifunctional ceramics, and hybrid polymer composites.

In addition, Exarhos is actively involved in the operations side of the society. An AVS Fellow, he has been elected to the Board of Directors, served as Chair of the Long Range Planning Committee, and has served as Chair of numerous society-sponsored meetings. He currently serves as the Publications Chair and oversees several journals, including the new open access journal, Biointerphases, that he launched for the society in 2006. Exarhos' election was announced at the AVS International Symposium, Seattle, Wash., in October 2007. He will begin his three-year term in January 2008.  (Posted 11/5/2007)

Ron Schrotke Elected Chair of the ASME Main Committee on Nuclear Quality Assurance

Ron Schrotke was elected Chair of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Main Committee on Nuclear Quality Assurance (NQA-1, Quality Assurance Requirements for Nuclear Facility Applications) for a 3-year term beginning July 1, 2008. ASME NQA-1 is a key national consensus standard for nuclear quality assurance and safety, and is a first choice for the Department of Energy (DOE) nuclear facility applications. ASME NQA-1 is influential in applying quality assurance with the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), the commercial nuclear industry, and the international community. As the Chair of the Main Committee on Nuclear Quality Assurance he reports directly to the ASME Board on Nuclear Codes and Standards. During his term as Chair, Ron will lead the 35 members of the Main Committee, the 10 members of the Executive Committee, and coordinate the 6 Subcommittees reporting to the Main Committee. These Subcommittees are comprised of more than 90 members with memberships that represent a broad cross-section of industry and government organizations – from the DOE and the NRC, and the Defense Nuclear Facility Safety Board (DNFSB) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), as well as; national laboratories, nuclear component suppliers, nuclear utilities, and Japanese industry representatives.

For 15 years Ron has participated at ever increasing levels of responsibility in the ASME technical committees associated with nuclear codes and standards. As a member of the Nuclear Quality Assurance standards efforts he has participated and led revisions to the software requirements of the ASME NQA-1 standard, and developed guidance for dealing with software and with electronic records. Ron has been formally recognized by the ASME NQA-1 Committee for his involvement in developmental efforts. He has also worked with the DOE on several Guides and Orders associated with quality assurance.

At PNNL, Ron is a Project Professional and Engineer in the Quality Assurance Services Group with a specialty in nuclear quality assurance. He has worked for Battelle in Richland for more than 20 years.  (Posted 10/1/2007)

Anne Fix Elected Secretary-Treasurer for the American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG) Division of Environmental Geosciences (DEG)

N.J. (Anne) Fix was elected Secretary-Treasurer by the American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG) Division of Environmental Geosciences (DEG) for a 2-year term beginning July 1, 2007. AAPG was founded in 1917 and is the world's largest professional geological society with over 31,000 members in 115 countries. DEG is dedicated to educating the membership of AAPG and the general public about important issues that affect petroleum energy minerals exploration and production. DEG supports carbon sequestration and climate change projects as well as environmental characterization and remediation. Anne was elected to this position in recognition of her prior service to DEG. The AAPG Grants-in-Aid Committee provide funds to students seeking graduate degrees in the geosciences whose research has application to the search for and development of petroleum and energy-mineral resources and to related environmental geology issues. Anne is currently involved, as the Editor, in soliciting papers and preparing a DEG publication devoted to the outstanding graduate student research in environmental geosciences. As an EMD member she actively participates on the coalbed methane, gas hydrates, and uranium committees' efforts to advance the science of geology. Anne is licensed as a Professional Geoscientist (PG) in Texas and is a Registered Environmental Manager (REM). At PNNL, Anne is a Quality Engineer in the ESH&Q Directorate with subject matter expertise in the environmental sciences. She supports various research projects here at the Laboratory.  (Posted 7/1/2007)

Doug Reid Elected Chair of ASME Local Section

Doug Reid was named Chair of the Columbia Basin Section of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. In Doug's new role, he will conduct board meetings and oversee and report yearly activities to ASME's national organization. Doug has more than a decade of experience in ASME and was an ASME Engineer of the Year nominee.

At PNNL, Doug supports deployment and post-deployment equipment for the Radiation Portal Monitor project. His research interests include technology planning and development and energy conservation.  (Posted 6/1/2007)

Evelyn Hirt Elected Eta Kappa Nu Board of Governors

Evelyn Hirt was elected Member-at-Large to the Eta Kappa Nu (HKN) Board of Governors for a 3-year term beginning July 1, 2007 by its Chapters. Eta Kappa Nu, the Electrical and Computer Engineering Honor Society, is a unique membership organization dedicated to encouraging and recognizing excellence in the electrical and computer engineering field. This 100+ year old organization with nearly 300,000 members consist of students, alumni, and other professionals who have demonstrated exceptional academic and professional accomplishments. The overall governance of HKN is the responsibility of the Board of Governors, a volunteer organization of HKN members that have prominent positions in academia and industry. The Board consists of a president, vice president, past president, secretary, and treasurer, each of whom serves a one-year term. Six directors, four representing each of HKN's geographic regions and two at-large, serve three-year terms. As a long standing member of HKN, Evelyn was elected to this position because of her dedication to the advancement of the profession through excellence, her interest in mentoring students, and her over 30 years of experience at all levels within IEEE. At PNNL, Evelyn is a Principle Professional and Engineer in the ESH&Q Directorate with subject matter expertise in systems (hardware, software and integration) and controls, as well as the Quality Manager for the Computational Information and Sciences Directorate.  (Posted 5/1/2007)

Moe Khaleel Named Associate Editor to ASME Journal

Moe Khaleel appointed Associate Editor to the American Society of Mechanical Engineer's Journal of Engineering Materials and Technology.

The Journal publishes research papers on contemporary engineering and materials technology issues including: principles of mechanical behavior, environmental effects on material response and metals, and materials processing techniques. Moe joins eighteen other associate editors responsible for peer-reviewing and editing the research papers that are published quarterly.

Moe is Director of PNNL'S Computational Sciences and Mathematics Division. The group provides creative scientific and technological solution through the integration of modeling, informatics and knowledge management.  (Posted 5/1/2007)

Josef Matyas and Jarrod Crum Take on New Roles for American Ceramic Society

Shawn Kathmann has been invited to contribute to the new perspectives issue of Theoretical Chemistry Accounts. Shawn was one of just 33 chemists, mainly those whose publications began to appear in earnest in the 1996-1999 time frame, selected to write about emerging areas of theoretical chemistry being pursued by a new generation of scientists.

In his 13-page article, Shawn wrote about the chemical physics of reactions involved in nucleation - the general process of describing phase transformations e.g., from the vapor phase to the liquid phase.

"Nucleation occurs in the manufacture of everything from snow flakes to jet engines turbine blades," said the Staff Scientist. "Yet, there are a lot of questions concerning the underlying processes and mechanisms."

In his article, Shawn shares insights concerning rate constants, molecular interactions, statistical mechanics and their consequences on nucleation phenomena. His article, titled "Understanding the Chemical Physics of Nucleation," is one of the most viewed articles in the issue.

Being asked to share thoughts and ideas about the future directions of research is a chance to influence the direction of scientific understanding.

Citation: Kathmann, SM. 2006. "Understanding the Chemical Physics of Nucleation," Theoretical Chemistry Accounts 116:169-182. Abstract online.  (Posted 3/22/2007)

Novella Bridges Appointed Chair-Elect of Local Section of American Chemical Society

Novella Bridges has been appointed chair-elect for the Richland Local Section of the American Chemical Society. In her one-year term, Novella will be responsible for providing leadership for career development opportunities for women in chemical science fields and promoting women's professional and scientific accomplishments.

In addition to serving as a training lead for the Radiation Portal Monitoring project at PNNL, Novella is involved in the development of radio-labeled composites as therapeutic agents for cancer treatments. She has received several honors and awards, including a 2006 PNNL Women of Achievement award and a 2004 ACS Regional Industrial Innovation Award.  (Posted 2/1/2007)

Justin Teeguarden Lends Toxicology Advice to Biological Modeling Committee

Justin Teeguarden was appointed to a two-year assignment as a councilor to the Biological Modeling Specialty Section of the Society of Toxicology. This committee provides a focused venue to develop and conduct programs and educational activities that emphasize the latest developments in biological modeling. In addition, the committee advocates for the application of these new techniques for improving biological risk assessment processes.

Justin was selected for this role based on his experience in toxicology, risk assessment and computational modeling. His work has resulted in research models that were used in evaluation studies of exposure, dosage and response. His current research focuses on dose-response relationships for industrial chemicals and new nanomaterials.  (Posted 1/31/2007)

Linda Lasure to Represent United States in International Microbiological Society

Linda Lasure has accepted the role of at-large member of the U.S. National Committee for the International Union of Microbiological Societies. During her three-year term on the committee, she will promote the advancement of microbiological sciences in this country and throughout the world. She will also ensure U.S. participation in the International Union of Microbiological Societies through the National Academies of Science and National Research Council.

In addition, Linda will look at broader scientific issues, such as fostering opportunities for younger scientists to become engaged in collaborative research, promoting the responsible conduct of science, and examining advances in meta-genomics.  (Posted 1/26/2007)

Darrell Fisher to Server as Treasurer of Health Physics Society

Darrell Fisher was elected the Health Physics Society treasurer; he will serve one year as treasurer-elect and two years as treasurer. Established in 1956, this nonprofit professional society promotes the practice of radiation safety, including encouraging radiation research, developing standards, and providing information.

For this 6,000 member organization, Darrell will manage and allocate the organization's budget. In addition, he will work with the society's nationally known committees, such as public outreach and education, regarding their budgets. He will also help direct the organization, serving on the senior leadership council.  (Posted 1/2/2007)

Leonard Bond Elected IEEE Region 6 Delegate-Elect and Director-Elect

Leonard Bond was elected the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Region 6 delegate-elect/director-elect for 2007-2008. Starting Jan. 1, 2009, Leonard will serve for two years as the Region Director and will be the delegate on the IEEE Board for the 12 western states region. Region 6 consists of 56,000 members from western Wyoming and New Mexico, all up and down the Pacific Coast from Alaska to California, including Hawaii. Leonard is an expert in ultrasonics and prognostics with more than 250 publications and seven patents.  (Posted 1/1/2007)

John Hardy and Nathan Canfield Elected to Key Roles in Regional Ceramics Society

John Hardy and Nathan Canfield have been elected as President and Vice President, respectively, in the Eastern Washington Section of the American Ceramic Society.

Within their roles, John and Nathan will serve the information, educational and professional needs of the regional ceramics community through the planning of section activities and collaborating with regional ceramic-professionals. This division is vital to supporting scientific research, emerging technologies and current applications, in which ceramic materials are a key element.

John's research in the Energy Materials & Manufacturing group involves the development of air brazes for use in electrochemical devices. In the Ceramics Development group, Nathan's research focuses on solid oxide fuel cell research.  (Posted 1/1/2007)

Jeff Stevenson Appointed Associate Editor by the American Ceramic Society

Jeff Stevenson, a Laboratory Fellow, has been appointed an Associate Editor of the Journal of the American Ceramic Society for a two-year term. This Journal is among the top sources for ceramic materials science research, providing scientists, engineers, and students with critically assessed, original research for nearly 100 years. Ranked first in total citations and third in impact factor among all journals in the materials science-ceramics category, the journal publishes twelve issues per year filled with top quality research that spans the diverse segments of ceramic science. Topics cover a broad range including: glass science, crystal chemistry, microscopy and microstructure, bioceramic science, powder processing and colloidal science. Jeff will primarily be responsible for reviewing and editing manuscripts in the field of solid oxide fuel cells.  (Posted 12/7/2007)

Charles Long Appointed to The Open Ocean Engineering Journal Editorial Advisory Board

Dr. Charles Long was recently appointed editor of the The Open Ocean Engineering Journal, published by Bentham Science Publishers. As editor, Long will review contributed manuscripts, accept or reject papers, and be responsible for gathering new and interesting research for the journal. He will play an important role in influencing the current policies and future direction of the journal.

Long is active in the scientific community and was selected for this appointment based upon his reputation in the field. He currently serves as a member of the Oceans Observations Working Group, which is part of the International World Meteorological Organization Baseline Surface Radiation Network. In addition, he participated in the National Science Foundation's Facilities Assessment subcommittee on In Situ Surface and Surface-Atmosphere Exchange, which includes ocean measurements. For the U.S. Department of Energy's Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Program, Long serves as the Tropical Western Pacific Site Scientist and the Science Translator for the ARM Instantaneous Radiative Flux Working Group.

The Open Ocean Engineering Journal is one of the many new Open Access online peer-reviewed journals. Using an all-electronic format, the journal publishes original research articles, short articles, and review articles in all areas of ocean engineering.  (Posted 12/1/2007)

Mariah Zabriskie named standing chair to the National GEM Consortium Executive Committee

Mariah Zabriskie, Organizational Development Systems Directorate, has been named standing chair to the National GEM Consortium executive committee. PNNL is a major GEM sponsor. Its national mission is to increase the number of underrepresented minorities going into science and engineering graduate programs.  (Posted 11/30/2007)

Mark Engelhard Appointed Associate Editor for Surface Science Spectra

Mark Engelhard has been invited to be an Associate Editor for Surface Science Spectra, an international journal devoted to archiving surface science spectra of technological and scientific interest. It is a peer-reviewed official journal of the AVS Science and Technology Society and is published by the society through the American Institute of Physics.  (Posted 11/5/2007)

Kelly Sullivan Elected to Council for Chemical Research

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's Dr. Kelly O. Sullivan was elected to the Governing Board of the Council for Chemical Research. She will represent the Laboratory on the board.

The Council for Chemical Research, headquartered in Washington, D.C., promotes cooperation in basic research and encourages high-quality education in the chemical sciences and engineering. The Council's membership comprises more than 200 companies, universities and government laboratories with a combined research and development budget of more than $7 billion.

Sullivan, who leads the Laboratory's Office of Institutional Partnerships, already was active in the Council for Chemical Research before receiving the current board appointment. She serves on the Council's Annual Meeting Planning committee and co-leads the Graduate Education Action Network.

At PNNL, Sullivan is responsible for developing and maintaining collaborations and partnerships with colleges, universities and other research institutions that help the Laboratory achieve its missions for the nation and the world. Sullivan also serves on the Board of Directors for Sigma Xi—the Scientific Research Society, and was a member of the National Innovation Initiative team assembled by the Council on Competitiveness, among other national leadership roles.  (Posted 11/5/2007)

Lai-Sheng Wang Appointed to Editorial Board for The Journal of Physical Chemistry

An Affiliate Senior Chief Scientist at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and a professor at Washington State University Tri-Cities, Dr. Lai-Sheng Wang was appointed to the Editorial Advisory Board of The Journal of Physical Chemistry. During his term, Wang will influence the current policies and future direction of this highly respected and highly cited publication.

Wang was selected for this three-year appointment based on his distinguished and innovative contributions to the field of atomic clusters and for pioneering work on gaseous multiply-charged anions. During his 20 years in research, Wang has written or co-written more than 260 publications. He is active in the scientific community, working with the American Chemical Society, American Physical Society, Materials Research Society, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science, where he was recently named a Fellow.  (Posted 11/5/2007)

Dick Smith Elected to HUPO Council

Dick Smith was elected to a 2-year term to the Council of the Human Proteome Organization at the HUPO World Congress in Seoul, Korea, October 10. HUPO is an international scientific organization representing and promoting proteomics through international cooperation and collaborations by fostering the development of new technologies, techniques and training. The HUPO Council is the organization's decision-making body.

Smith, a Battelle Fellow and Chief Scientist and Director of Proteomics for PNNL's Biological Sciences Division, is an internationally known proteomics expert. His current research emphasis involves the development and application of new methods for quantitatively probing the proteome, which is the entire array of proteins expressed by a cell, tissue or organism. Smith is Director of the Proteomics Research Resource for Integrative Biology at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. He has authored or coauthored more than 600 publications, and has been awarded 30 patents and seven R&D 100 Awards.  (Posted 10/15/2007)

Nik Qafoku to Serve Three-Year Term as Associate Editor on Editorial Board of the Soil Science Society of America Journal

Nik Qafoku is serving a three-year term as an associate editor on the editorial board of the Soil Science Society of America Journal. As a member of the board, Nik works to ensure the quality of the articles that are published. In agricultural and soil science, this journal rates at the top in number of citations and third in terms of impact. In serving on the board, Nik has a broad and deep knowledge of the scientific literature. Further, he has and is continuing to build connections with his scientific peers around the world. Through this work, Nik is helping to make top-quality information on soil chemistry available to researchers around the world.  (Posted 6/1/2007)

James R. Campbell appointed Associate Professor of Global Health at George Washington University School of Global Health and Health Services

James R. Campbell was appointed Associate Professor of Global Health, in the George Washington University School of Global Health and Health Services, Washington, D.C. The school is internationally recognized for programs in risk science and environmental health, ecosystems and human health, homeland security, and informatics. Jim joined PNNL in 2005 as a manager in the physical and chemical sciences division. He currently is guiding biological security and biological defense programs and initiatives for national security applications.  (Posted 4/1/2007)

Wayne Hess to Serve on Editorial Board for Laser Chemistry

Manager of PNNL's Chemical Structure and Dynamics Group, Wayne Hess has been selected to serve on the editorial board for Laser Chemistry. With his peers on the board, which include experts from universities, research foundations, and government councils, Wayne will review technical articles that have been screened by a team of associate editors. When he receives the articles, he will study the manuscript and vote for publishing or rejecting it based on the strength of the science and the clarity of the communication.

An international journal, Laser Chemistry focuses on fundamental studies and applications within the field of laser chemical physics and spectroscopy.

Wayne was selected to serve on the editorial board because of his experience in laser-induced reactions in solids and at surfaces, including his ongoing studies in laser desorption from wide-band gap materials, metal oxides, and semiconductors. In addition, he is actively engaged in collaboration with theory groups to understand the dynamical details of condensed phase reaction dynamics, working towards a broad, material-based mechanistic understanding of excited state reactivity in solids and at surfaces.  (Posted 4/1/2007)

Darrell Fisher to Advise Nuclear Regulatory Commission on the Use of Medical Isotopes

Darrell Fisher has been appointed a member of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's (NRC) Advisory Committee on the Medical Uses of Isotopes (ACMUI). The ACMUI advises the NRC on policy and technical issues related to the regulation of the medical use of radioactive material.

Darrell was selected for this appointment because of his strong knowledge of radiation sciences. He specializes in the health effects and dosimetry-related exposure of radioactive materials. In addition, Darrell knows the medical uses of isotopes, has experience with patient advocacy organizations and has worked with cancer patients who have questions about different treatment methods.  (Posted 3/21/2007)

Jim Dooley Appointed to Program Committee on Greenhouse Gas Technologies

Jim Dooley was appointed to the Program Committee for the Ninth International Conference on Greenhouse Gas Technologies (GHGT-9). The GHGT conference series is the premier international symposium for the technical community focused on carbon dioxide capture and storage technologies, and is coordinated through the International Energy Agency Greenhouse Gas R&D Programme. This programme has three main activities:

• Evaluation of technologies aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions,
• Promotion and dissemination of results and data from its evaluation studies,
• Facilitating practical research, development and demonstration activities

The GHGT-9 conference will be held on November 16-20, 2008, in Washington DC, with major sponsorship provided by the U.S. Department of Energy. These conferences are held every two years in the programme' s member countries, AND rotate BETWEEN North America, Europe AND Asia. < / p > < p > Jim IS a senior staff scientist located at the Joint Global Change Research Institute(JGCRI), a collaborative partnership BETWEEN the Pacific Northwest NATIONAL Laboratory AND the University OF Maryland.  (Posted 3/12/2007)

Vanessa Bailey Joins Editorial Board of Soil Biology and Biochemistry

Vanessa Bailey was appointed to the Editorial Board of Soil Biology and Biochemistry, a leading journal that is a forum for research on soil organisms, their biochemical activities and their influence on the soil environment and plant growth. Publication themes include the biochemistry of pesticide and pollution decomposition in soil, microbial aspects of soil pollution, the composition of soil populations, modeling of biological processes in soil systems and the biochemical activities of soil organisms.

As a member, Vanessa will referee submissions and help monitor the journal's editorial policy in terms of scope covered and paper quality. She was chosen for this position because of her scientific reputation as a soil microbiologist and her thorough approach to manuscript review.  (Posted 3/8/2007)

Vanessa Bailey Joins Editorial Board of Soil Biology and Biochemistry

Vanessa Bailey was appointed to the Editorial Board of Soil Biology and Biochemistry, a leading journal that is a forum for research on soil organisms, their biochemical activities and their influence on the soil environment and plant growth. Publication themes include the biochemistry of pesticide and pollution decomposition in soil, microbial aspects of soil pollution, the composition of soil populations, modeling of biological processes in soil systems and the biochemical activities of soil organisms.

As a member, Vanessa will referee submissions and help monitor the journal's editorial policy in terms of scope covered and paper quality. She was chosen for this position because of her scientific reputation as a soil microbiologist and her thorough approach to manuscript review.  (Posted 3/8/2007)

Metting Named Chair of International Scientific Network

Blaine Metting was installed as Chair of the Microalgae Biofixation Network under the auspices of the International Energy Agency Greenhouse Gas Mitigation Research & Development Programme. Metting, who is Biological and Environmental Sciences Product Line Manager at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, replaced outgoing chair Dr. Paola Pedroni of EniTecnologie, the research arm of the Italian oil company Eni.

The Microalgae Biofixation Network was organized based on an initiative by the U.S. Department of Energy and EniTecnologie. Its purpose is to build multi-institutional research collaborations and share scientific findings related to fundamental understanding of photosynthesis and microalgal productivity and applications to greenhouse gas abatement.

Metting was installed at a meeting of the Network at the University of California, Berkeley, February 16, 2007. Fifty international attendees from industry, academia and government attended the meeting. PNNL has been a Network member for 3 years.

PNNL is currently engaged in research with microalgae in the Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory Biology Grand Challenge. The Marine Sciences Laboratory at Sequim, Washington, has DOE Office of Fossil Energy support to investigate the relationship between algal productivity and growth rate.  (Posted 2/23/2007)

Michel Dupuis Named Specialist Editor for Computer Physics Journal

Michel Dupuis to serve another term as a specialist editor for Computer Physics Communications. Published by Elsevier, this journal contains articles on computational models in physics and physical chemistry, computer programs in physics and physical chemistry, numerical methods, algorithms and software.

As a specialist editor, a role he has held with the journal since 1998, Michel reviews articles submitted to the journal, providing comments and assistance to his colleagues around the world. He also suggests special topics and directions for upcoming issues.

The journal''s editorial board asked Michel to take this role because of his thorough and insightful reviews, his impressive publication record, and his extensive knowledge of theoretical and computational chemistry. He is known for his research in developing and applying theoretical and computational chemistry methods relevant to environmental chemistry, electrochemistry, biochemistry, catalysis, and nanoscience.  (Posted 2/23/2007)

Governor appoints Gary Spanner to 3-year term on Sirti board of directors

Washington State Governor Chris Gregoire recently appointed Gary Spanner, Economic Development Office, to serve a three-year term on the Sirti board of directors. Sirti is a state agency in Spokane engaged in technology-based economic development for the Inland Northwest. Having a staff member from PNNL on the board is part of Sirti's strategy to better serve entrepreneurs in Benton and Franklin counties. Gary's term of office runs through June 2009. Sirti board members develop and produce policies and operating procedures, approve the annual operating budget and review annual progress.  (Posted 1/22/2007)

Jonathan Young appointed to the National Research Council Standing Committee on Operational Science and Technology Options for Defeating Improvised Explosive Devices.

Jonathan Young has accepted an appointment to the National Research Council Standing Committee on Operational Science and Technology Options for Defeating Improvised Explosive Devices. The committee organizes studies to research, develop and implement advanced science and technologies to defeat the growing threats and strategies used to assemble and deploy IEDs. Jonathan will provide risk assessment and system engineering expertise. Jonathan''s years of experience in systems and safety engineering, safety analysis and his international recognition as a probabilistic safety assessor make him an excellent choice to serve on this committee.  (Posted 1/8/2007)

Yanwen Zhang Receives Guest Professor Appointment at Peking University

Based on her international recognition and scientific advances in the area of ion-solid interactions, Yanwen Zhang has been awarded a unique offsite Guest Professor appointment at Peking University, one of the top universities in China. There, Yanwen will supervise graduate student research, enhance PNNL-Peking University collaborations, and contribute to strengthening fundamental ion-beam research at the university.  (Posted 1/1/2007)

---

2007 Impact on Scientific Community

Don Stevens identified as one of top innovators and entrepreneurs for 2007

In its October 2007 issue, Seattle Business Monthly magazine named Maury White from Infinia Corporation and Don Stevens from Pacific Northwest National Laboratory among its Top 25 Innovators & Entrepreneurs for 2007. The magazine selected the 25 "emerging talents" based on recommendations from venture capitalists, academics, trade groups, and business leaders from various industries. White, Infinia''s Chief Technology Officer and one of its founders, helped develop the Kennewick, Wash. company''s Stirling engine technology for solar-electric generators, combined heat and power systems, and emerging-nation rural electrification. Stevens, a senior project manager and chemist at PNNL in Richland, Wash., is devising ways to convert cellulose-based byproducts, like poplar trees and corn stalks, into biomass-based fuel and products.  (Posted 12/17/2007)

Dick Smith named to Scientific American 50 list of outstanding leaders

Dick Smith, a Battelle Fellow in the Fundamental and Computational Science Directorate, has been named one of 50 outstanding leaders in the 2007 Scientific American 50—an annual list of 50 key contributors in science and technology. Dick shared the honor for creating a new approach to neurological diagnostics with Desmond Smith of UCLA's David Geffen School of Medicine.

Dick's research may help identify the earliest detectable stages of Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and other neurological diseases. Dick's findings indicate that many neurodegenerative diseases leave a biochemical calling card, or biomarker, that may be used to predict early stages of brain impairment. The understandings from this research may result in the discovery of drug targets for new therapeutic approaches. Many biomedical researchers also believe that detecting disease states before symptoms occur is key to reversing many as-yet-incurable diseases.

Dick's work led to the mapping of proteins in brain tissues. This mapping has allowed scientists to examine the location and abundance of large numbers of proteins within healthy brain tissue, which can be compared to protein portraits found within diseased brain tissues. These differences may help identify neurological diseases at a very early stage and proteins that might be targeted for drug intervention. It's hoped that such diseases might be curbed if caught and treated early enough.

"Dick Smith and his team have pushed the frontiers of proteomics instrumentation far beyond what was imagined just a few years ago," according to Doug Ray, PNNL's deputy director for science and technology. "By integrating new ideas into the tools available to conduct research, they have made comprehensive proteomic mapping possible."

This research was supported by the National Institutes of Health and PNNL's Biomolecular Systems Initiative.

Past Scientific American 50 winners include stem cell researcher Douglas Melton, Nobel prize-winning neurobiologist Roderick MacKinnon, former World Health Organization Secretary General Gro Harlem Brundtland, Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin, and Apple CEO Steve Jobs.  (Posted 12/10/2007)

Chuck Long Co-author on "Hot" Paper about Solar Brightening

Chuck Long and co-authors were recognized for their "hot" paper, reported recently by Essential Science Indicators (ESI). According to ESI, a hot paper represents a key paper in a specific field and reflects rapid and significant numbers of citations since its publication. Dr. Long's article, "From dimming to brightening: Decadal changes in solar radiation at the Earth's surface," appeared in the May 6, 2005, issue of Science. According to the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI) and as reported in ESI, the article has been cited 72 times as of October 3, 2007.

The article discusses evidence showing a reversal in the "dimming" trend (a decreasing trend in downwelling solar energy reaching the Earth's surface) over three decades. Although the causes of these trends are not known, the authors do show that the dimming trend may have acted to somewhat mask the projected global greenhouse warming trend. With the current brightening trend, the projected greenhouse-warming signal might become more apparent.

The ISI uses a special filter to detect hot papers. This involves looking at recently published papers and unusual citation activity in a current period. A list of more than 14,000 journals is maintained by the ISI from which the ESI compiles science performance statistics and science trends data. Both the ISI and ESI are owned and funded through the Thomson Corporation, a leading provider of integrated information-based solutions to the scientific, academic, and government community.

Journal Reference: Wild, M., H. Gilgen, A. Roesch, A. Ohmura, C. N. Long, E. G. Dutton, B. Forgan, A. Kallis, V. Russak, and A. Tsvetkov. 2005. "From dimming to brightening: Decadal changes in solar radiation at the Earth's surface." Science, 308, Issue 5723, 847-850. [DOI:10.1126/science.1103215]  (Posted 11/5/2007)

PNNL Researchers Contribute to Nobel Peace Prize for Climate Change Awareness

Researchers contributed to the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize won by Al Gore and the IPCC. (The Peace Prize medal is a registered trademark of the Nobel Foundation.)

Fifteen researchers in the Atmospheric Science and Global Change Division contributed to the recent Nobel Peace prize awarded to Al Gore and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Through their involvement in the IPCC, the following researchers are helping to shape how the world views climate change: Antoinette Brenkert, Leon Clarke, James Dooley, Sylvia Edgerton, James Edmonds, Meredydd Evans, Steve Ghan, Anthony Janetos, Nels Laulainen, Ruby Leung, Elizabeth Malone, Richard Moss, Hugh Pitcher, Paul Runci, and Steven Smith.

These climate experts have served as convening authors, lead authors, review editors and expert reviewers on IPCC reports, and seminal research from PNNL is cited throughout the reports. These scientists have also contributed intellectual frameworks that influenced IPCC assessments and the broader climate change community in areas as diverse as integrated assessment, technology's role in mitigation, carbon dioxide capture and storage, and social science contributions in addressing climate change challenges.

In a press release following the award announcement, IPCC chairman Rajendra Pachauri stated, "This is an honour that goes to all the scientists and authors who have contributed to the work of the IPCC," emphasizing the world - wide coverage and interdisciplinary work of the IPCC.

Through the years, the depth and breadth of ASGC contributions to a number of IPCC Assessment Reports demonstrate their standing as world class experts and their influence on the scientific, technical AND socio - economic understanding OF climate change.Congratulations to all on such a great honor.

For more information about their specific contributions to the IPCC, see the PNNL press release  (Posted 10/25/2007)

Leung, Janetos, and Edmonds Invited to National Academies Workshop on Climate

Drs. Ruby Leung, Anthony Janetos and James (Jae) Edmonds were invited to participate in the workshop, "Strategic Advice on the U.S. Climate Change Science Program." Hosted by the National Academies, the three-day workshop took place October 15-17 in Washington, D.C. Speakers invited to this workshop are internationally recognized leaders in their field and were encouraged to share their views on the U.S. Climate Change Science Program's future and to help establish scientific objectives.

The workshop was held in response to a recent report by a National Research Council committee evaluating the progress of the U.S.Climate Change Science Program. They concluded that although good progress has been made in understanding and predicting temperature trends and environmental changes, U.S.climate research lacks focus and appropriate funding. The goal of the workshop is to shape the priorities and identify gaps in the U.S. Climate Change Science Program to ensure the long-term success of our nation's climate science. The workshop brings together a broad spectrum of scientists, resource managers, industry, and policymakers.

Dr. Leung is a research scientist and Laboratory Fellow. She gave a plenary presentation on predictive global and regional models, and shared her vision for the U.S.Climate Change Science Program.

Dr. Janetos is a research scientist and the director of the Joint Global Change Research Institute, a collaborative partnership between Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and the University of Maryland. His plenary presentation focused on the need for the U.S.Climate Change Science Program to perform a new National assessment of climate change impacts.

Dr. Edmonds is a senior staff scientist, Laboratory Fellow, and Chief Scientist at the Joint Global Change Research Institute. He co-chaired a working Group on impacts, adaptation, and mitigation of climate change.

The National Academies is a private, non-profit institution, which advises the nation on scientific and technical matters.They bring together committees of experts in all areas of science and technology. These experts address critical National issues and give advice to the federal government and the public. Four organizations comprise the Academies: the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, the Institute of Medicine, and the National Research Council.  (Posted 10/19/2007)

Sotiris Xantheas Selected for Prominent Theoretical Chemistry Lecture

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's Sotiris Xantheas was selected to participate in the Greater Boston Area Theoretical Chemistry Lecture Series. Sotiris was selected based on his research accomplishments in the field of hydrogen-bonded networks and the development of a new interaction potential for water from first principles electronic structure calculations.

For the lecture series, a committee of graduate students from Harvard, MIT, and Boston University select engaging speakers that appeal to a broad cross-section of the student population. As part of the series, each speaker spends a day at each of the three institutions visiting with faculty and delivers a 3-hour lecture at MIT on the evening of the third day. "The invitation to participate in the lecture series highlights the national recognition our work -- funded by DOE's Office of Basic Energy Sciences -- is receiving," said Sotiris. "Being a part of the series gave me the chance to interact with faculty and students, establish future collaborations and get fresh ideas about using our capabilities to open new research directions."

During his visit, which took place during September 24-26, 2007, Sotiris provided the next generation of scientists with opportunities to learn more about theoretical chemistry at PNNL. Also, he discussed opportunities to bring students to the Laboratory for collaborative projects next year.  (Posted 10/1/2007)

Dale Anderson was awarded the Frank Wilcoxon Priz

Dale Anderson was awarded the Frank Wilcoxon Prize for the paper "Detection and Location of Gamma-Ray Sources with a Modulating Coded Mask." Dale, the lead author, was assisted in writing the article by Randy Hansen, Tony Peurrung and Sharon Wunschel, all NSD, and by non-PNNL contributor David Stromswold. The article presents two methods of detecting and locating a concealed nuclear gamma-ray source for applications in national security and threat detection. The article appeared in the May 2006 issue of Technometrics, a journal dedicated to the development and use of statistical methods in the physical, chemical and engineering sciences. The Frank Wilcoxon award is presented to the best practical application paper appearing in the previous year's Technometrics.  (Posted 10/1/2007)

Steve Ghan invited to speak at Gordon Research Conference on Atmospheric Chemistry

Steve Ghan was invited to speak at this year's Gordon Research Conference on Atmospheric Chemistry in August. Speakers at the Gordon Research Conferences are recognized internationally as leaders in the fields of the biological, chemical and physical sciences and are invited to discuss recent advances in their research. Steve focused on the incorporation of aerosol processes and properties in global modeling frameworks, discussing recent work in the field and introducing a path toward meeting future needs in a presentation titled "Aerosols and Gases in Global Atmosphere Models: Current and Future State of the Science."

Held annually since 1931, the conference brings together scientists with common professional interests for a week of intense discussion and examination of the most advanced aspects of their field.  (Posted 9/10/2007)

Pak Chung Wong participates in international seminar on information visualization

Pak Chung Wong participated in an invitation-only seminar in Dagstuhl, Germany that brought together theoreticians and practitioners from around the world to discuss the studies of information visualization and their applications. The findings of the seminar will be released as a book published by Schloss Dagstuhl.  (Posted 9/1/2007)

Jerome Fast invited to speak at the Gordon Research Conference

Jerome Fast was invited to speak at the Gordon Research Conference in July at Colby-Sawyer College, New Hampshire. Speakers at the Gordon Research Conferences are internationally-recognized leaders in their field and are invited to discuss the most recent advances in their research. The theme of this year's conference on radiation and climate was "Integrating multiscale measurements and models for key climate questions." In his presentation, Jerome discussed his recent research during a session on Regional Aerosol Models: Simulation of Chemical Weather.  (Posted 8/1/2007)

Sotiris Xantheas Receives Marie Curie Fellowship - International Award to Share Expertise Abroad

Sotiris Xantheas was selected for a Marie Curie Fellowship for More Experienced Researchers within the Transfer of Knowledge Program. This award helps European institutions develop research capabilities by hosting expert researchers with specialized knowledge.

Through this fellowship, Sotiris will spend up to 2 months over the next 3 years at the Institute of Electronic Structure and Laser (IESL) in the Foundation for Research and Technology—Hellas in Heraklion, Crete, Greece. His travel and local expenses for those visits will be covered by the fellowship.

In his first visit, Sotiris is working with IESL's researchers on establishing a capability for calculating excited states of molecular and ionic clusters. Initial case studies include the accurate calculation of the excited states of pyrrole and its complexes with rare gas atoms (such as argon, krypton and xenon) to explain the qualitatively different results obtained during photofragment slice imaging experiments performed at IESL. These experiments suggest that the clustering with selected rare gas carrier atoms (such as krypton and xenon but not argon) can selectively quench N-H bond fission.

Pyrrole is an ideal model for the study of more complex systems. It is an important source of nitrogen fuel in coal and heavy oils and plays an important role in the synthesis of biologically active compounds and other complexes.

This research is quickly leading to published results. A joint experimental-theoretical paper based on the results of the calculations entitled "Photofragment slice imaging studies of pyrrole and the Xe...pyrrole cluster" has been accepted in the Journal of Chemical Physics.  (Posted 7/1/2007)

Subhash Singhal Appointed to National Academies' Committee

Subhash Singhal was named to a two-year term on the National Research Council's Technical Assessment Committee for the Army Research Laboratory (NRC is a branch of the prestigious National Academies). The committee assists the Army in assessing and improving the quality of its scientific and technical work. In his new role, Subhash will provide technical guidance to the Sensors and Electron Devices Panel.

Subhash, a Battelle Fellow and Director for PNNL's Fuel Cells Program, has conducted and managed major research, development and demonstration programs in advanced materials and energy conversion systems. He is author of more than 70 scientific publications and has edited 12 books, received 13 patents and given more than 205 invited presentations worldwide.  (Posted 7/1/2007)

PNNL Staff Members Help Shape Global Understanding of Climate Change

Several PNNL staff members are helping shape how the World views climate change through their contributions to the Fourth IPCC Climate Change 2007 Assessment Report. IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), which was established by the United Nations and the World Meteorological Organization to provide information relevant to climate change, periodically issues reports to provide a comprehensive and up-to-date assessment of the current state of knowledge on climate change. Since January 2007, IPCC's three Working Groups have issued summaries for policy makers, with complete reports due later this year. PNNL participants include:

Working Group I, "The Physical Science Basis": Ruby Leung, contributing author.

Working Group II, "Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability": Mike Scott and Tony Janetos, lead authors; Liz Malone and Antionette Brenkert, contributing authors.

Working Group III, "Mitigation of Climate Change": Jae Edmonds, lead author; Hugh Pitcher and Leon Clarke, contributing authors; Liz Malone, review editor.

The depth and breadth of contribution demonstrates PNNL staff members' standing as world class experts and their influence on the scientific, technical and socio-economic understanding of climate change. Congratulations and thank you.

For more information, visit the IPCC website  (Posted 6/1/2007)

Bob Scherpelz Receives Award for Article in Russian Publication

Bob Scherpelz won an award for his article in the Russian journal Radiation Safety Problems. Russian counterparts submitted documents the team had prepared to the scientific journal published by the Mayak Production Association; subsequently the paper received the journal's Best Paper of the Year award.

The article is based on the team"s research to reconstruct radiation doses received by Mayak workers in the late 1940s and early 1950s. The Mayak site is similar to the Hanford Site. To reconstruct the doses, the team needed to determine the response characteristics of the film dosimeters used by the site more than 50 years ago. The article describes the calculations and experimental studies on the performance of the dosimeters.

Citation: Smetanin, MY, EK Vasilenko, IV Lyubarskaya, VA Knyazev, MV Gorelov, RI Scherpelz, and JJ Fix. 2006. "Calculation Experimental Studies of Energy and Angular Response of the Film Dosimeters used at the Mayak PA," Radiation Safety Problems No. 4, 2006, pp 46-59 (in Russian).  (Posted 6/1/2007)

PNNL Scientist Selected for National Engineering Symposium

Michelle L. Gregory has been selected to participate in the National Academy of Engineering's 2007 U.S. Frontiers of Engineering Symposium Sept. 24-26 at Microsoft Research in Redmond, Wash. The annual event brings together 100 of the nation's outstanding young engineers from industry, academia and government to collaborate in examining research challenges in various engineering fields and industry sectors.

Gregory is a leader in the field of computational linguistics. She uses computer science, mathematics and psychology to help bridge the gap between human and computer language processing, resulting in more natural-sounding speech synthesis and better speech recognition performance, as well as computational methods to model aspects of discourse. Gregory is widely published, has 2 patents and 4 pending, and also holds an adjunct teaching position at WSU-Tri-Cities.  (Posted 6/1/2007)

Thallapally and McGrail Article Places in April's Top Ten accessed on Chemical Communications' website

Praveen Thallapally and Pete McGrail's article "Sorption of nitrogen oxides in a nonporous crystal" was among the top ten accessed articles on Chemical Communications' website. Accessed 784 times in April, the article focuses on sensor applications and separation of nitrogen oxides (NOx). There is a growing need to stabilize global NOx atmospheric concentrations to help reduce their effect on earth's climate, similar to what is now widely acknowledged is needed for carbon dioxide.

Chemical Communications is the leading weekly journal for publications on important developments in the chemical sciences. Its feature articles and reviews are written by leading scientists within their field and summarize current topical interests or those of cross-disciplinary appeal.

These accomplishments are also announced on the ETD website  (Posted 5/25/2007)

Paul Bredt and Terri Stewart Pave the Way for DOE Roadmap

Paul Bredt and Terri Stewart made significant contributions to DOE's Environmental Management (EM) Roadmap for the Office of Engineering and Technology. This document identifies technology gaps in the EM program, associated risks and proposed strategies to close the gaps and enable the DOE cleanup mission. Paul and Terri provided technical expertise for drafting the strategic initiatives surrounding nuclear waste processing and groundwater and soil remediation.

Paul leads the Advanced Processing and Applications Group, and his current research is focused on the behavior of multi-scaled interfacial systems. Terri leads the Environmental Biomarkers Initiative researching ways to use biomarkers to transform environmental science.  (Posted 5/1/2007)

Xiao-Dong Zhou Presented Nanomaterials Knowledge at International Forum

Xiao-Dong Zhou presented as one of only four invited USA Early Career Participants at the 4th U.S.- Korea Forum on Nanotechnology. Zhou, a research scientist in PNNL's Energy Materials group, delivered an insightful presentation on "Nanomaterials for Energy Applications – Defect and Transport Properties in Nanoscale Oxides," at the April conference held in Hawaii.

The series of meetings focuses on sustainable nanotechnology and energy dealing with the design, synthesis, fabrication, and characterization of nano-materials. Other topics include devices and systems for energy applications such as fuel cells, batteries, hydrogen production and storage, and solar cells.  (Posted 4/1/2007)

Shawn Kathmann invited to contribute to the new perspectives issue of Theoretical Chemistry Accounts

Shawn Kathmann has been invited to contribute to the new perspectives issue of Theoretical Chemistry Accounts. Shawn was one of just 33 chemists, mainly those whose publications began to appear in earnest in the 1996-1999 time frame, selected to write about emerging areas of theoretical chemistry being pursued by a new generation of scientists.

In his 13-page article, Shawn wrote about the chemical physics of reactions involved in nucleation - the general process of describing phase transformations e.g., from the vapor phase to the liquid phase.

"Nucleation occurs in the manufacture of everything from snow flakes to jet engines turbine blades," said the Staff Scientist. "Yet, there are a lot of questions concerning the underlying processes and mechanisms."

In his article, Shawn shares insights concerning rate constants, molecular interactions, statistical mechanics and their consequences on nucleation phenomena. His article, titled "Understanding the Chemical Physics of Nucleation," is one of the most viewed articles in the issue.

Being asked to share thoughts and ideas about the future directions of research is a chance to influence the direction of scientific understanding.

Citation: Kathmann, SM. 2006. "Understanding the Chemical Physics of Nucleation," Theoretical Chemistry Accounts 116:169-182. Abstract online.  (Posted 4/1/2007)

PNNL receives award from International Symposium on Spectral Sensing Research

PNNL received an award from the International Symposium on Spectral Sensing Research for best technical presentation of session (Surface Sensing and Monitoring). Steven Sharpe spoke on "Infrared Spectral Signatures for Stand-off Monitoring: Creation of a Quantitative Library, Its Utility and Limitations." This work was conducted by Tim Johnson and Robert Sams, both of the Fundamental Science Directorate, and Steven Sharpe, National Security Directorate. It was funded under the Office of Nonproliferation Research and Development (NA-22).  (Posted 4/1/2007)

Biosensor Article Made Analytical Chemistry's Most Cited List

Guodong Liu and Yuehe Lin's article on an innovative biosensor for pesticides and nerve agents made the 2006 Top 20 Most Cited Articles in Analytical Chemistry. Their article "Biosensor Based on Self-Assembling Acetylcholinesterase on Carbon Nanotubes for Flow Injection/Amperometric Detection of Organophosphate Pesticides and Nerve Agents" appeared in the February 1, 2006, issue of the journal. The article is already being cited by other researchers.

The article discusses the construction of a sensor, composed of enzymes that self-assemble layer by layer onto tiny, hollow carbon tubes. When the sensor encounters organophosphates, the enzymes slow down. This reduced activity is transmitted as an electrochemical signal through the carbon nanotubes to an attached electrode. By reading the sensor's measurements, users can determine the concentration of organophosphates in environmental samples and biological fluids.  (Posted 4/1/2007)

Roy Gephart invited by the National Academies to participate in workshop on radiation contamination and remediation issues

At the invitation of the National Academies, Roy Gephart, EMSL, is traveling to Russia with an eight-member U.S. team in early June to participate in a workshop, hosted by the National Academies and the Russian Academy of Sciences, on radiation contamination and remediation issues in the former Soviet Union. Cleanup problems will be assessed by the participants for six Russian sites: Kurchatov Institute, Lakes 10 and 11 at Mayak, Andreev Bay, Krasnokamensk Mining Enterprise (Siberia), Almaz Mining Enterprise (North Caucasus), and a site for testing peaceful nuclear explosions (Perm or Ivanovo region). Roy will lead one of the workshop's review sessions. The Russian Academy of Sciences will present the workshop recommendations to the Ecology Committee of the Russian National Security Council. The invitation to the workshop is a reflection of Roy's experience on addressing radioactive waste issues and providing his consultation and expertise to the National Academies and others.  (Posted 4/1/2007)

Two Journal Articles Make ACS Most-Cited List

Two articles by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory staff that appeared in the February 2006 issue of the Journal of Proteome Research are being featured as an American Chemical Society 2006 Most-Cited Article. These are articles published in ACS journals during 2006 that received the most citations in the same year, based on citation data obtained from Thomson Scientific. The two articles are:

• "Normalization approaches for removing systematic biases associated with mass spectrometry and label-free proteomics," by Stephen Callister, Richard Barry, Josh Adkins, Ethan Johnson, Wei-Jun Qian, Bobbie-Jo Webb-Robertson, Dick Smith, and Mary Lipton.

Researchers investigated four techniques for normalizing peptide abundance measurements obtained from high-throughput liquid chromatography-Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry. The peptides came from a protein sample, two Deinococcus radiodurans samples, and two mouse striatum samples. Before normalization, replicate runs from each sample set were statistically different, and after normalization, they were not. For most LC-FTICR MS analyses, linear regression normalization ranked either first or second among the four techniques, suggesting that it was more generally suitable for reducing systematic biases.

• "Characterization of the mouse brain proteome using global proteomic analysis complemented with cysteinyl-peptide enrichment," by Haixing Wang, Wei-Jun Qian, Mark Chin, Vladislav Petyuk, Richard Barry, Tao Liu, Marina Gritsenko, Heather Mottaz, Ron Moore, Dave Camp, Arshad Khan, Desmond Smith, and Dick Smith.

Scientists from PNNL and the University of California-Los Angeles completed the first comprehensive characterization of the whole mouse brain proteome and the most comprehensive proteome coverage for the mammalian brain to date. They took a global proteomic approach for comprehensive profiling of the brain tissue using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry and an extensive protein database for the whole mouse brain. The database generated from this study will be the basis for future quantitative brain proteomic studies using mouse models.

A most-cited article represents critical, new research results influencing the direction of scientific discovery.  (Posted 3/1/2007)

Tony Janetos Helps National Research Council Outline Future of Space-Based Earth Observations

As a member of the National Research Council's Committee on Earth Science and Applications from Space, Dr. Anthony Janetos and his colleagues examined the government's long-term planning for space-based observations of Earth over the next 10 years. Their findings were released during the 2007 American Meteorological Society meeting. Earth Science and Applications from Space: National Imperatives for the Next Decade and Beyond recommended a number of fundamental improvements to existing observation and information systems to provide the United States with crucial scientific information for predicting severe storms and climate change effects. The study was commissioned by groups within the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the U.S. Geological Survey.

Dr. Janetos served on the Executive Committee and chaired the Panel on Earth Science Applications and Societal Needs. He is the director of the Joint Global Climate Change Research Institute, a collaborative partnership between the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and the University of Maryland.  (Posted 1/1/2007)

---

2006 Awards

Fredrickson Named GTL Chief Scientist

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) Laboratory Fellow Jim Fredrickson was appointed Chief Scientist of the U.S. Department of Energy's Genomics: Genomes to Life (GTL) program. This is a new position created by the Office of Biological and Environmental Research (BER) at DOE in September 2005. As Chief Scientist, Dr. Fredrickson provides scientific leadership and guidance in coordination with the GTL Program Manager and other BER staff. His responsibilities include representing the GTL program's science at scientific meetings, with contributions to the scientific literature, and in interactions with national associations such as the National Academy of Sciences and the American Society for Microbiology.

Some of Fredrickson's activities and accomplishments in this new role include the following:

• Co-organizer of the DOE Biomass to Biofuels Workshop hosted by BER and the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy December 6-9 in Rockville, Maryland. At the workshop, he gave a talk on "GTL Crosscutting Science Applied to Biomass." He is currently contributing to the final workshop report.

• Participant in the National Academies Committee review of the GTL program in September. He presented the program's progress and potential and challenges it faces. He was instrumental in helping BER prepare key material that addressed specific questions by the committee.

• Planning of and participation in the Joint Genomics: GTL Contractor-Grantee Workshop IV and Metabolic Engineering Working Group Interagency Conference on Metabolic Engineering 2006 February 12-15 in Bethesda, Maryland.

Fredrickson works closely with the DOE Program Manager and GTL scientists and is helping define GTL performance metrics, milestones, and expected outcomes. He also assists in preparing updated versions of the GTL Science Plan/Roadmap, which define the scientific direction and goals of the program.  (Posted 2/1/2006)

Andy Ward Earns Mickey Leland Mentoring Award

Andy Ward received the Office of Fossil Energy Mickey Leland Energy Fellowship Mentor Award. He was recognized for his loyal and dedicated service beyond the call of duty while serving as a mentor to college minority students focused in geology.

As a mentor, Andy established personal relationships with five interns over the summers of 2004 and 2005. He helped them develop long-term management skills, provided opportunities for students to interact with scientists from various backgrounds, and maintained regular interaction and consistent support.  (Posted 1/1/2006)

PNNL's Harold Tilden Named Hazardous Materials Manager of the Year

The Eastern Washington Chapter of the Academy of Certified Hazardous Materials Managers has announced its awards for 2006. PNNL's Harold Tilden, Environment, Safety, Health and Quality Directorate, was one of two Hazardous Materials Managers of the Year named by the chapter. Harold will be recognized at the chapter's awards ceremony Dec. 7, 2006.  (Posted 12/1/2006)

Frank Garner Receives Outstanding Achievement Award

Frank Garner was honored with the Outstanding Achievement Award by the Materials Science and Technology Division (MST) of the American Nuclear Society. The award recognizes Frank for his significant achievements within material science and technology and for his contributions to the development of nuclear energy.

Frank, who joined PNNL in 1987, was selected for this award, due to his sustained research in the field of structural materials behavior for nuclear fission and fusion systems. Frank's core expertise is in radiation effects on structural materials, and has made influential contributions on understanding the formation of defects in irradiated materials.  (Posted 11/1/2006)

PNNL Staff Members Help Richland Section Win 2006 National ACS ChemLuminary Award

PNNL staff members helped the Richland Section of the American Chemical Society win the 2006 ChemLuminary Award for Outstanding Advocacy on Behalf of Women in the Chemical Sciences. The chapter brought together 100+ middle school girls for a day-long "Girls in Science" event focused on analyzing evidence and forensics to illustrate chemistry in a tangible way. Other activities included a 2-day Girl/Boy Scouts Chemistry merit badges event, college student affiliate poster sessions and innovative local meetings, and hands-on chemistry events on the Umatilla Reservation. PNNL staff members who are section officers or committee chairs and who contributed to this effort include Sam Bryan, Janet Bryant, Tim Hubler, Bruce McNamara, Dennis Wester, Bill Samuel, Therese Clauss, Novella Bridges, Kayte Denslow, Rich Lucke and Amanda Kissire.  (Posted 10/1/2006)

Eric Smith receives IEEE award for significant contributions to radiation instrumentation

Eric Smith was honored by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Society as the recipient of the 2006 Radiation Instrumentation Early Career Award. This award recognizes individuals who have made significant and innovative technical contributions to the fields of radiation instrumentation and measurement techniques for ionizing radiation.

During the span of his career, Eric has made contributions in the areas of novel radiation detection development, advanced simulation methods and in the analysis of radiation detection scenarios. He has demonstrated leadership through participation in national panels and has authored more than 50 publications.

"Eric is still in the early part of career, but he has established himself as a national leader in advancing radiation detection instrumentation for national security applications," said Phil Gauglitz, technical group manager for Radiation Detection & Nuclear Sciences. "He has recently focused his efforts on developing analysis methods and tools to simulate the performance of radiation detectors during realistic scenarios of nuclear material smuggling. Eric's work is having a broad impact on the national research agenda and is also improving the performance of radiation detectors at our country's borders." Eric received the award at the IEEE Nuclear Science Symposium on Oct. 30, 2006.  (Posted 10/1/2006)

Robbie Tidwell Receives Eastern Washington Chapter of the Academy of Certified Hazardous Materials Managers Champions of Excellence Award

Robbie Tidwell received the Eastern Washington Chapter of the Academy of Certified Hazardous Materials Managers Champions of Excellence Award. Her accomplishments include introducing the philosophy of certified hazardous materials managers to PNNL, giving talks around the Northwest on the dangers of household chemicals, and serving as vice president of the Chapter. In September, Robbie will receive her award at the national conference.  (Posted 9/1/2006)

American Chemical Society Honors Jean Futrell for Achievements in Mass Spectrometry

Jean Futrell, Battelle Fellow at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, has been chosen to receive the American Chemical Society's Frank H. Field and Joe L. Franklin Award for Outstanding Achievement in Mass Spectrometry. The award will be presented at the ACS national meeting in Chicago in March 2007.

Futrell was selected for his contributions to the theory and practice of mass spectroscopy. His work often focuses on developing or modifying instrumentation for specialized research purposes, including high-pressure and chemical-ionization mass spectrometers. Through this research, Futrell has addressed fundamental questions in mass spectrometry. Among his many contributions to mass spectrometry instrumentation is the invention of tandem mass spectrometry, a technique employed in most commercial mass spectrometers today. His current research involves collisional activation of complex ions in ion-surface interactions and surface modifications by ion capture.

Author of nearly 300 refereed journal articles and invited reviews, Futrell earned a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering at Louisiana Tech University in 1955, and a doctorate in physical chemistry at the University of California-Berkeley in 1958. He was the first permanent director of the William R. Wiley Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, a major DOE scientific user facility located at PNNL.  (Posted 9/1/2006)

SAMMS Awarded American Chemical Society Regional Industrial Innovation Award

Glen Fryxell, Energy Science and Technology Directorate, is a recipient of the American Chemical Society Regional Industrial Innovation Award. Glen received the award for co-developing and commercializing Self-Assembled Monolayers on Mesoporous Supports, a powerful new class of sorbent materials that combines two novel technologies to selectively sequester heavy metals and radionuclides. SAMMS demonstrates great promise for rapid and effective chemical separation of complex mixtures and remediation of hazardous wastes. SAMMS is versatile and has proven effective for a wide range of applications in industry, medicine, and environmental cleanup. The world's largest scientific society, ACS advances the chemical enterprise and increases public understanding of chemistry.  (Posted 7/1/2006)

PNNL Scientists Win American Statistical Association Outstanding 2006 Statistical Application Award

PNNL scientists, Thomas Ferryman and Brett Amidan, have won the American Statistical Associations (ASA) Outstanding 2006 Statistical Application Award for development of The Morning Report: Advanced Proactive Safety and System Monitoring Tool. The Morning Report analyzes large datasets of aircraft information that aviation safety experts and airline policy makers use to determine subtle but potentially serious safety issues. The ASA presents the award annually for outstanding achievement in the physical, biological, or medical sciences.  (Posted 5/1/2006)

Sriram Somasundaram Named 2006 Tri-Cities Engineer of the Year

As part of National Engineers Week, Sriram Somasundaram was named Tri-Cities Engineer of the Year at the Tri-Cities Feb. 24 Engineers' Week banquet. The award was presented by the Tri-Cities Chapter of the Washington Society of Professional Engineers.

Sriram joined Battelle 17 years ago and works in the areas of energy efficiency in HVAC equipment and commercial buildings, combined heat and power technologies, thermal energy storage, and distributed power generation technologies. He has been named a Fellow in the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and has received the society's Dedicated Service Award. Sriram also received the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers Homer Addams Award and Distinguished Service Award.

He is the founding secretary of the India Association of Tri-Cities and active in the Hindu Society of Eastern Washington.  (Posted 3/1/2006)

Yong Wang Named Asian American Engineer of the Year

As part of National Engineers Week, Yong Wang was named the Asian American Engineer of the Year for his outstanding scientific achievements and contributions to his community. Yong was honored at the Feb. 25 national AAEOY banquet in Seattle.

Since joining the Lab ten years ago, Yong has developed highly active catalysts for microchannel reaction technologies in efforts to reduce energy consumption and environmental concerns in the chemical industry. He has authored more than 90 publications, received two R&D 100 Awards, a Presidential Green Chemistry Award, and holds 57 issued patents, with approximately 30 patents pending. He also contributes his leadership and time to the local Chinese American Association, Chinese Language School and Chinese Alliance Church.  (Posted 3/1/2006)

PNNL Scientists Earn Distinguished Service Awards from American Society for Heating, Refrigeration, and Air Conditioning Engineers

Sriram Somasundaram, Srinivas Katipamula and Michele Friedrich (not pictured) were presented with Distinguished Service Awards from the American Society for Heating, Refrigeration, and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE).

This award recognizes ASHRAE members who have served the Society faithfully and with distinction on committees or have otherwise given freely of their time and talent on behalf of the Society. The awards were presented at the Society's Annual Meeting in Quebec City, Canada, during the Plenary Session on Saturday, June 24, 2006.  (Posted 2/1/2006)

PNNL's Larry Runyon Awarded 2005 Council Chairman of the Year Award for Leadership

Larry Runyon, deputy chief of Counterintelligence, National Security Directorate, has been awarded a 2005 Council Chairman of the Year award for his leadership of the American Society for Industrial Security International's Information Asset Protection Council. In addition, the Council he leads received a Distinguished Achievement Award. Both were formally recognized at the ASIS International 2006 Volunteer Leadership Conference in Washington, D.C. Larry's Council promotes programs and best practices to assist organizations in protecting sensitive info assets from careless/unauthorized disclosure and unlawful/unethical acquisition. ASIS is the premiere organization for security practitioners.  (Posted 1/1/2006)

Craig Aalseth Receives International Early Achievement Award

Craig Aalseth, a senior research scientist at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, has received the Early Achievement Award from the IEEE Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Society, a prestigious international award given every two years.

Aalseth joined PNNL in 1998 as a graduate research fellow and became a permanent staff member in 2002. His most notable technical leadership is through significant roles in the Majorana Collaboration, a proposed next-generation double-beta decay probe of neutrino mass, and in working to develop an advanced ultratrace radionuclide detection capability.  (Posted 1/1/2006)

PNNL Scientist Receives Leadership Development Award from ACS

Kayte Denslow, a scientist at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, has been selected to receive a Leadership Development Award from the Younger Chemists Committee of the American Chemical Society. The award enables her to participate in a YCC Leadership Development Workshop in late January held in conjunction with the ACS Leaders Conference in Baltimore, Md. This YCC program recognizes emerging leaders in the profession and helps them prepare for the leadership opportunities at volunteer organizations, such as ACS, and in their professional career. According to the notification letter from YCC Chair Katherine Glasgow, "YCC recognizes your past contributions and your leadership qualities. The committee also believes that you have tremendous potential to be a successful leader."  (Posted 1/1/2006)

Peggy Vasquez selected in national competition for America's Next Top Administrative Professionals

Peggy Vasquez, Executive Assistant for the Director of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, was one of three national finalists for the America's Next Top Administrative Professional Award, in conjunction with the 14th annual Administrative Professionals Conference. The award acknowledges three exceptional administrative candidates from a national pool of nominees, who were judged on their contribution to the team, dedication to colleagues and clients, and multi-tasking abilities to advance the goals of the company and its values. Peggy has been asked to serve as a member of the selection committee for next year's Top Administrative Professional Award.  (Posted 12/1/2006)

Battelle Fellow Subhash Singhal Recognized for Outstanding Contributions to Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Technology

In addition to receiving the Christian Friedrich Schoenbein Gold Medal from the European Fuel Cell Forum, Singhal has been appointed to the editorial board of Elsevier's Journal of Power Sources; honored by the American Chemical Society with a symposium on chemistry of fuel cells in his name at its meeting in San Francisco, awarded Joint ASM International/Indian Institute of Metals Visiting Lecture Award by ASM International for 2006, appointed a member of the peer committee on materials engineering for a three-year term (2006-2009) by the National Academy of Engineering, appointed chair of the publications committee by the Electrochemical Society for a four-year term (2006-2010), and listed in Marquis Who's Who in Science and Engineering 2006-2007.  (Posted 10/1/2006)

Lai-Sheng Wang Receives 2006 Humboldt Research Award

The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation presents up to 100 of these awards annually and invites the recipients to conduct research projects of their choice in Germany for six months to a year.

An Affiliate Chief Scientist in the Fundamental Science Directorate at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and a professor of physics at Washington State University-Tri-Cities, Lai-Sheng is a world leader in nanoclusters research. For example, Lai-Sheng and his colleagues created hollow nanoscale cages of gold atoms, the first known metallic equivalent of the buckyball. In addition, he pioneered the study of multiply charged negative ions and began the study of solution molecules in the gas phase.

During his 20 years in research, he has written or co-written more than 240 publications. His work is often featured in top journals, including Science and Nature. He is active in professional societies, including the American Chemical Society, American Physical Society, Materials Research Society, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. In 2003, he was named a fellow in the American Physical Society.

His work as a researcher and a professor has been recognized with several important awards, including the Guggenheim fellowship, Washington State University distinguished faculty award, the National Science Foundation creativity award, and the Alfred P. Sloan research fellowship.  (Posted 10/1/2006)

PNNL Researcher Receives Highest Fuel Cell Honor

Schoenbein Medal honors achievements of Subhash Singhal

Fuel cell pioneer Subhash Singhal, a Battelle Fellow and Director, Fuel Cells at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, has received the Christian Friedrich Schoenbein Gold Medal for his outstanding contributions to solid oxide fuel cell technology. The biennial award is the highest honor presented by the European Fuel Cell Forum.

The medal is named for the Swiss scientist who is credited with identifying the fundamental chemistry of fuel cells and, together with Sir William Robert Grove, for the creation of the fuel cell in 1839.

Singhal joined PNNL in April 2000 after nearly 30 years at Siemens Westinghouse Power Corporation, where he led development of solid oxide fuel cell technology from a laboratory curiosity to fully integrated 200 kW power generation systems. At PNNL, Singhal provides senior technical, managerial and commercialization leadership to the laboratory's fuel cell program.

A member of the National Academy of Engineering, Singhal is a Fellow of four professional societies — American Ceramic Society, Electrochemical Society, ASM International, and American Association for the Advancement of Science — and a senior member of TMS, the Mineral, Metals & Materials Society. He also has served on numerous national and international advisory panels.

Singhal has authored more than 75 scientific publications, edited 13 books, received 13 patents and delivered over 225 plenary, keynote and other invited presentations worldwide. He is an adjunct professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Utah and serves on the Visiting Advisory Board of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Florida.

The award was presented to Singhal by Professor John Kilner, chairman of the Seventh European Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Forum and Ulf Bossel, chairman of the European Fuel Cell Forum during the closing ceremony of the forum's July meeting in Lucerne, Switzerland.  (Posted 8/1/2006)

PNNL Scientist Lead Organizer for Workshop to Identify Future Steps for Next Generation of Regional Climate Modeling

PNNL scientist Ruby Leung was the lead organizer of the international, invitation-only Regional Climate Modeling workshop "Research Needs and Directions of Regional Climate Modeling Using WRF and CCSM" held March 22-23, in Boulder, Colorado. Bill Kuo, Phil Merilees, and Joe Tribbia, National Center for Atmospheric Research, were co-organizers of the workshop, which was sponsored by NCAR's Mesoscale and Microscale Meteorology and Climate and Global Dynamics Divisions.

More than 60 scientists from the United States and across the world attended the workshop to discuss the future steps needed to advance the state of the science in regional climate modeling.  (Posted 6/1/2006)

Olga Anna Kuchar Selected to Participate in National Academy of Engineering 2006 U.S. Frontiers of Engineering Symposium

Olga Anna Kuchar, Computational and Information Sciences Directorate, has been selected to participate in the National Academy of Engineering's 2006 U.S. Frontiers of Engineering Symposium. The three-day symposium, to be held in Dearborn, Michigan in September, brings together a select group of the nation's outstanding young engineers from industries, universities and government laboratories. Olga currently is conducting research on methods for teaching computers to solve problems like humans do; that is, strategizing, identifying hidden relationships or patterns in data, and associating and applying different areas of knowledge to the problem. This methodology is achieved through mathematical and logical techniques that can be converted to computer code. She also conducts research on improving human understanding of information through visualizations, applying game-based techniques to real-world issues, and encoding graph storyboards for quick data pattern identification.  (Posted 6/1/2006)

Wayne Martin Named One of Top Minorities in Science of 2006

Wayne Martin received Science Spectrum's Trailblazer 2006 Top Minorities in Research Science award. This award honors Hispanic, Asian American, Native American, and Black professionals in the science arena whose leadership and innovative thinking on the job and in the community extend throughout their industry. For more than 25 years, Wayne has conducted, directed, and led research in subsurface contaminant migration and waste storage. He is also a supporter of educational activities including Chair of the Board of Trustees for Columbia Basin College, the National Urban League's Black Executive Exchange, the WSU Tri-Cities Advisory Council, and the Black Engineer of the Year Awards Conference.  (Posted 5/1/2006)

Abrefah Receives Emerald Honors Award for Outstanding Scientific Accomplishments

John Abrefah received the Emerald Honors Award for Professional Achievement during the 2006 Minorities in Research Science Conference. This award is given to a highly experienced, mid-career scientist who has made significant discoveries, made important advances in his career, and is acknowledged as a leader of large research and development initiatives. John was selected for this honor because of his outstanding research activities in nuclear material science and engineering. He was also chosen because of his involvement in national professional organizations including the American Nuclear Society, National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers, American Society for Testing Materials and National Technical Advisory Group for International Standard Organization.  (Posted 5/1/2006)

Ann Miracle Joins Editorial Board of International Publication

Congratulations to ETD's Ann Miracle for being selected to serve a three-year term on the editorial board of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry. As a board member, Ann will review aquatic toxicology related manuscripts that are submitted for publication. In this role, she will review 15 to 20 manuscripts a year.

Ann was chosen for this position because of her expertise in environmental sentinels. At PNNL, Ann leads the Lab's efforts in predicting ecosystem change and damage. In addition, she is involved in national and international workshops dealing with the use of genomics technologies to solve environmental issues.  (Posted 1/1/2006)

---

2006 Fellowships

Five PNNL Researchers Elected Fellows by AAAS

Five scientists from PNNL have been elected Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Each was elected Fellow in separate sections of the AAAS. Jim Fredrickson was elected a Fellow in biological sciences. Dick Smith and S. K. Sundaram were elected Fellows in the AAAS sections for chemistry and engineering, respectively. Bill Weber was elected a Fellow in physics, while John Zachara was elected in the AAAS section for geology and geography.

Election as an AAAS Fellow is determined by peer reviewers. Fellows are honored for "meritorious efforts to advance science or its applications." AAAS began honoring its distinguished members with the title of Fellow in 1874.

Jim Fredrickson is a Laboratory Fellow and the Chief Scientist in the Fundamental Science Directorate. He is being recognized for "leadership in the field of microbial ecology and environmental microbiology, with emphasis on subsurface microbiology and biogeochemistry."

He also serves as the Chief Scientist for DOE's Genomics: Genomes to Life program and is the Subprogram Coordinator for DOE's Subsurface Science Program. He has been with PNNL since 1985.

Dick Smith is a Battelle Fellow and Chief Scientist in FSD. He is being recognized for "leadership in analytical chemistry, specifically in the deployment of advanced separation methods with high-performance mass spectrometry for high-throughput proteomics."

He also serves as the director of the National Institute for Health Research Resource for Integrative Proteomics and is an adjunct professor of chemistry at Washington State University and the University of Utah; and an affiliate professor of chemistry at the University of Idaho.

S.K. Sundaram is the Chief Materials Scientist in the Environmental Technology Directorate. He is being recognized for "leadership and innovative contributions to a diverse cross-section of materials sciences, particularly new tools for synthesis and characterization of novel materials, diagnostics, and nanomaterials."

He joined PNNL in 1994 as a post-doctoral fellow and then as a senior research scientist in 1996. He was named chief materials scientist in 2002. He also serves as an adjunct faculty member in the School of Mechanical and Materials engineering for WSU and has visiting appointments at MIT, Harvard, and Princeton.

Bill Weber is a Laboratory Fellow in FSD. He is being recognized for "leadership and innovative research on defects, ion-solid interactions, and radiation effects in ceramics, particularly modeling and simulations of radiation damage processes."

He joined PNNL in 1977. Currently he is the Team Leader for the Material Interfaces Group and serves as the Chair of PNNL's Council of Fellows and the laboratory's Publication Advisory Committee.

John Zachara is the Senior Chief Scientist for environmental chemistry in FSD. He is being recognized for "distinguished contributions to environmental science, particularly for his work on the chemical and microbial processes affecting subsurface contaminant transport at the Hanford site in Washington state.

He is a chief scientist for in-ground contaminants on the Hanford Remediation and Closure Science project and is a member of the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory Advisory Committee.

All five honorees will be recognized at the Fellows Forum at the AAAS national meeting in San Francisco in February. They join 15 current Battelle staff members previously elected as AAAS Fellows. Founded in 1848, AAAS has worked to advance science for human well-being through its projects, programs and publications in the areas of science policy, science education and international scientific cooperation. Science magazine is the chief publication of the AAAS, reviewing and publishing many of the top research papers in the biological and physical sciences. Science was established by Thomas Edison in 1880, and has the highest paid circulation of any scientific journal in the world.

You can read more about these elections in the PNNL Newsroom.  (Posted 11/1/2006)

PNNL's Richard Kouzes Elected Fellow by IEEE

A nuclear physicist at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory has been elected a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. Richard Kouzes is being recognized for his "contributions to nuclear radiation detection systems."

Fellow status is conferred upon IEEE members with an extraordinary record of accomplishments in any of the IEEE fields of interest. The organization first began electing Fellows in 1912. Currently, fewer than two percent of the organization's 356,000 members hold the grade of Fellow.

Kouzes is a Laboratory Fellow and Chief Scientist in PNNL's Computational and Information Sciences Directorate. He earned a bachelor's degree in physics from Michigan State University in 1969; and a master's degree and doctorate in physics from Princeton University in 1972 and 1975, respectively. He originally joined PNNL in 1991, and returned to the Laboratory in 2000.

As the principal investigator and technical lead for the Radiation Portal Monitoring Project at PNNL, Kouzes guided the project team's work to define the threat of illicit radioactive and nuclear materials at U.S. borders on behalf of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, identify the equipment needed, and initiate the modeling and testing activities that led to the successful deployment of radiation detection equipment along the country's borders.

Kouzes has been an active participant in the IEEE Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Society (NPSS) for 25 years, has served as both an elected and appointed member of the Administrative Committee, was a founder of one of the technical committees, and has served as the society's webmaster for the past six years. He also has been a member of the IEEE Computer Society and the IEEE Standards Association.  (Posted 11/1/2006)

Somasundaram Elected ASHRAE Fellow

Sriram Somasundaram has been elevated to the level of Fellow in the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE). Fellow is a membership grade that recognizes distinction in the arts and sciences of heating, ventilation, air conditioning or refrigeration and is earned through achievement as a researcher, designer, educator or engineering executive. It is conferred upon approval by the Society's Honors and Awards Committee and the Board of Directors. Approximately 500 of ASHRAE's 55,000 members are Fellows.

Sriram joined Battelle 17 years ago and works in the areas of energy efficiency in HVAC equipment and commercial buildings, combined heat and power technologies, thermal energy storage, and distributed power generation technologies. He has been named a Fellow in the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and has received the society's Dedicated Service Award. Sriram also received the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers Homer Addams Award and Distinguished Service Award.

He is the founding secretary of the India Association of Tri-Cities and active in the Hindu Society of Eastern Washington.  (Posted 7/1/2006)

---

2006 Elected Positions and Offices

Al Ankrum to lead consortium of four national labs providing technical assistance to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission

Al Ankrum was selected as program coordinator for a consortium of four national labs that have joined efforts to provide technical assistance to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for new reactor licensing. The four laboratories are PNNL, Brookhaven, Oak Ridge and Argonne, and they anticipate substantial involvement in reviewing and evaluating the construction/operating license applications for as many as 20 new nuclear power reactors in the United States over the next few years. The estimated level of effort is about $80 million. Nineteen companies have announced they will seek licenses to build new power plants in the United States, with the first applications to be submitted to NRC in late 2007. Energy Secretary Samuel W. Bodman recently announced that DOE would provide $2 billion in federal risk insurance to companies applying to build nuclear power plants, part of a package of government incentives designed to encourage the building of the country's first nuclear reactors since the 1970s. "This is a positive sign for nuclear energy domestically after more than 30 years without construction of a new reactor in this country," says Al, who is PNNL's relationship manager for the NRC.  (Posted 10/18/2006)

Ray Wildung Appointed by the Secretary of Energy to the Biological and Environmental Research Advisory Committee

Ray Wildung has been appointed by the Secretary of Energy to the Biological and Environmental Research Advisory Committee. BERAC provides advice to the Director of the Office of Science on the many complex scientific and technical issues that arise in the development and implementation of the biological and environmental research program. Ray, a past recipient of the DOE E.O. Lawrence Award, was nominated to this committee because of his research experience and accomplishments in building a fundamental understanding of the long-term behavior of environmental contaminants from energy development and nuclear-defense activities. Ray will be asked to provide advice based on his expertise in the fields of soil science, microbiology, geochemistry and environmental remediation.

 (Posted 4/1/2006)

PNNL's Kelly O. Sullivan Elected to Board of Directors of Sigma Xi

PNNL's Kelly O. Sullivan, director of institutional partnerships at PNNL, has been elected to the board of directors of Sigma Xi, the international honor society of science and engineering. She will serve a three-year term beginning July 1, 2007, and represent Sigma Xi area groups, as well as chapters at industries and state and federal laboratories. Sullivan is affiliated with the Tri-Cities Washington Chapter of Sigma Xi and serves on the society's Strategic Planning Committee.

She joined PNNL in 2001 and is responsible for developing and maintaining collaborations and partnerships with colleges and universities that help the laboratory achieve its missions. Prior to coming to PNNL, Sullivan was a chemistry professor at Mankato State University in Minnesota and at Creighton University in Nebraska. She directed the Creighton Chemistry Players, a team of faculty and students who brought the excitement of chemistry to children and adults through theatre and music. Her research interests focus on the electronic structure of small molecules and ions. Sullivan serves on several national advisory boards to various education-related initiatives and is a speaker on career development for women scientists.

She received a B.S. from Christian Brothers College and a Ph.D. from Texas Tech University. She is a member of the American Society for Mass Spectrometry, the American Chemical Society, the Association for Women in Science, the American Geophysical Union, and other professional societies.  (Posted 12/1/2006)

Deborah Gracio Appointed to Drive Strategy for IEEE Committee

PNNL's Deborah Gracio has been named as a member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Information Technology Strategy Committee (ITSC). The ITSC is a standing committee that works to facilitate the development, maintenance and future implementation of an IT strategic plan for the IEEE.

For two years beginning in January, 2007, Deborah and the ITSC will be responsible for forming subject matter working groups relevant to specific areas in the strategic plan and reporting their recommendations to the IEEE Board of Directors. Deborah's cutting edge technical and management credentials and broad background in computer systems integration and scientific computing made her an excellent choice for this appointment.  (Posted 11/1/2006)

Chuck Peden Elected 2008 Chair of the American Chemical Society Catalysis Secretariat

The secretariat regularly organizes and cosponsors symposia at the national meetings of the ACS, but equally important is the Secretariat's role in integrating ACS divisions' activities concerned with catalysis and surface science to encourage comprehensive coverage of these subjects at ACS national meetings. Chuck's election as chair of the CATL is due, in part, to his longstanding contributions to catalysis science and engineering. He is particularly well-known as a leader in fundamental and applied studies of catalytic materials and processes for the control of vehicle exhaust emissions. His work has spanned the range from basic science, including ultrahigh vacuum surface science experiments on model single crystal catalysts, to applications-oriented efforts that are impacting the practical implementation of new "lean-NOx" reduction technologies.  (Posted 11/1/2006)

Dan Gaspar to Chair Division of American Vacuum Society

Dan Gaspar was elected as the 2007 Chair-elect for the Applied Surface Science Division (ASSD) of the American Vacuum Society. This non-profit, national division's mission is to provide a forum for research and education in the preparation, characterization, modification and utilization of surfaces and interfaces in practical applications.

In his new role, Dan's responsibilities include presiding at all business meetings of the Division, submission of an annual report to the AVS Board of Directors, appointing chairs and members of Division committees and authorizing expenditures. Dan is also serving on the ASSD program committee and as the ASSD Strategic Planning committee chair.

Dan's extensive background in materials characterization and the application of surface analysis methods to address real-world challenges, in addition to his current responsibilities as technical group manager of the Materials Chemistry and Surface Research Group made him an excellent choice for this notable achievement.  (Posted 11/1/2006)

John Abrefah to Serve Consecutive Term on American Nuclear Society Publications Committee

John Abrefah has accepted the reappointment to serve on the Publications, Meetings, Proceeding and & Transactions Committee for the American Nuclear Society. On this committee, John's tasks will involve ensuring technical meetings meet the society's standards for technical and scientific contributions.  (Posted 8/1/2006)

American Physical Society Appoints Chair for Committee on Careers and Professional Development

John Orrell has been appointed chair of the Committee on Careers and Professional Development for the American Physical Society. As chair, John will lead a nine-person team that monitors job market health and trends for physicists and provides modest career development resources. This appointment caps a three-year term. During his time on the committee, John has helped develop Best Practices for universities establishing programs that encourage physics students to explore a wider range of careers available. The committee also has been creating a career development guide for students and researchers that helps them improve non-technical skills.  (Posted 7/1/2006)

Michaele "Mikey" Brady Raap Elected to the American Nuclear Society Board of Directors

Michaele "Mikey" Brady Raap has been elected to the American Nuclear Society's (ANS) Board of Directors in a national election by ANS members. She previously served on the ANS Board from 1998 to 2001. Mikey is the technical project lead at PNNL for nuclear criticality safety evaluations that support the design of the Pit Disassembly and Conversion Facility for converting weapons materials to commercial-grade fuel. Her three-year term on the board will begin in June (See full article...).  (Posted 5/1/2006)

Julia Laskin Appointed to American Society for Mass Spectrometry Board of Directors

Julia Laskin has been appointed to the American Society for Mass Spectrometry Board of Directors. The ASMS promotes and disseminates knowledge of mass spectrometry and allied topics. It currently includes more than 5,500 scientists involved in research and development. Julia will act as treasurer of the Board, making her responsible for funds and annual budget preparation. Julia has been a member of ASMS since 1999. Her research interests focus on the fundamental aspects of collisional activation and dissociation of protonated model peptides. Her research efforts emphasize activation of large ions in a single collision with surfaces using a specially designed Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometer.  (Posted 4/1/2006)

Don Baer Named to Editorial Advisory Board of Surface and Interface Analysis

Don Baer has been named to the editorial advisory board of Surface and Interface Analysis. The journal is devoted to the publication of papers dealing with the development and application of techniques for the characterization of surfaces, interfaces and thin films. Don has frequently published with his collaborators in this journal and will serve in this capacity with more than 20 of his colleagues from national and international academic, industrial, and government institutions.  (Posted 12/1/2006)

Bruce Napier to Advise Environmental Protection Agency

This committee provides advice on the science and technology of protecting people and the environment from radiation exposure. In addition, the committee comments on the science of radiation studies, which are critical to the nation's environmental regulations and policies.

The committee selected Bruce because of his experience and reputation for tackling complex issues. For nearly 30 years, Bruce has developed and operated models on the environmental transport of radiological and chemical contaminants.  (Posted 11/1/2006)

Young Appointed to National Research Committee on Improvised Explosive Devices

Jonathan Young has accepted an appointment to the National Research Council Standing Committee on Operational Science and Technology Options for Defeating Improvised Explosive Devices (IED). The committee organizes studies to research, develop and implement advanced science and technologies to defeat the growing threats and strategies used to assemble and deploy IEDs. Jonathan will provide risk assessment and system engineering expertise.

Jonathan's years of experience in systems and safety engineering, safety analysis and his international recognition as a probabilistic safety assessor make him an excellent choice to serve on this committee.  (Posted 11/1/2006)

Steve Ghan Appointed to Journal of Geophysical Research Editorial Board

Steve Ghan was appointed to a 4-year term as editor for the Atmospheres section of the Journal of Geophysical Research, published by the American Geophysical Union (AGU). In his role as editor, Ghan has authority to accept or reject papers, as well as the responsibility for attracting new and interesting research to the journal. Along with fellow editors, Ghan will play a critical role in assuring the journal continues to be the most important in its field, and serve the needs of both authors and readers.

In his congratulatory letter, AGU President Tim Killeen stated that the search committee spoke highly of Ghan's commitment to improve the journal, notably by promoting additional special sections devoted to specific research areas. They also noted that Ghan's broad research interests and ties to the international research community made him especially qualified to enhance the interdisciplinary aspects of the journal. Ghan joined Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in 1990 and focuses his research on climate modeling.

The AGU is a worldwide scientific community that, through cooperative research, advances the understanding of earth and space for the benefit of humanity. It publishes more than a dozen peer-reviewed journals ranging from earth and oceans to atmosphere, space, and planets.  (Posted 11/1/2006)

Steven Wiley Joins National Institutes of Health Scientific Review Panel

Effective September 28, 2006, he will serve a 4-year term on the Genomics, Computational Biology and Technology (GCAT) Study Section. Study sections review grant applications submitted to the NIH, make recommendations on the applications to the appropriate NIH council or board, and survey the status of research in their fields of science. Members are selected on the basis of demonstrated competence and achievement in their scientific discipline, as evidenced by quality of research accomplishments, publications in scientific journals, and other significant scientific activities, achievements, and honors. The GCAT will consider research grant applications involving global and integrative analyses of biological systems, and the development of new computational and experimental methods. Wiley leads PNNL's systems biology program, developing and leveraging PNNL's unique capabilities in cell imaging, computational biology, and high throughput proteomics to understand cell communication. He was recently named biology lead for the Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory at PNNL. Wiley is the author or co-author of more than 130 scientific journal articles, review articles, and book chapters.  (Posted 10/1/2006)

Benoit Mandelbrot Decorated as Officer in National Order of the Legion of Honor

Benoit Mandelbrot, one of the world's most influential mathematicians and a Battelle Fellow, recently participated in two events. In Paris, Benoit attended a ceremony held by his alma mater, École Polytechnique, where he was decorated as an Officer in the National Order of the Legion of Honor. Benoit was awarded this honor for his legendary work in fractals and contributions to mathematics. The Order, founded by Napoleon Bonaparte, recognizes eminent service to the Republic of France. This is the French equivalent to the National Academy of Science. In Madrid, Benoit gave a plenary talk on "The Nature of Roughness in Mathematics, Science and Art" at the International Congress of Mathematicians. The event attracted a large number of participants, students and mathematicians. ICM is a scientific event that brings together mathematicians from all over the world, and demonstrates the vital role that mathematicians play in our society.  (Posted 9/1/2006)

Carbaugh Shaping National Policy to Monitor and Decontaminate People after a Nuclear Event

Gene Carbaugh has been appointed to the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements study providing recommendations for monitoring people exposed during a nuclear or radiological incident, such as nuclear reactor accident or a dirty bomb detonation. Gene will also help develop methodologies to decontaminate those exposed. The work will help the U.S. government if it is ever forced to respond to a nuclear or radiological incident.

A certified health physicist, Gene was selected for this study because he has 30 years experience in applied internal dosimetry, radiological and environmental safety, radiation measurements and their interpretation, and nuclear reactor maintenance and construction.  (Posted 8/1/2006)

PNNL Researcher Seeks to Enhance Human and Technology Interactions

Tom Sanquist, NSD Staff Research Scientist located in Seattle, has been appointed a member of the National Research Council's Committee on Human-System Design Support for Changing Technology. The appointment runs from 2005 to 2007. The committee is chartered to develop a vision for incorporating human factors engineering considerations into the design process for complex systems, especially in view of technologies that are changing rapidly and increasing in complexity.

The committee members will consider techniques for an integrated, interdisciplinary, adaptable human-system design methodology and tools that can be applied in both civilian and military arenas. A report will be issued by the committee in 2007 with recommendations on a program of research and development required to achieve its findings.

Tom's research at PNNL focuses on the use of analytic and experimental methods for designing and evaluating user interactions with complex systems. He has applied his expertise to intelligence analysis, security systems, transportation, imaging devices, satellite control systems, nuclear power plants, and military command and control. Tom has designed and implemented significant large-scale systems such as the Air Force Satellite Control Network user interface and has performed a variety of human factors work for the Radiation Portal Monitoring Program.  (Posted 8/1/2006)

János Szanyi Appointed to Editorial Advisory Board of Catalysis Letters

János Szanyi was appointed to the Editorial Advisory Board of Catalysis Letters, a widely circulated journal that publishes rapid communications in the broad field of catalysis for the international community. As a member, János will advise the editors on matters concerning the journal, help in gathering quality publications, and review contributed manuscripts. He was chosen for this position because of his contributions and basic research on real and model catalyst systems.  (Posted 7/1/2006)

Jim Fredrickson Appointed to NRC Committee

PNNL Fellow Jim Fredrickson has accepted a provisional appointment as a member of the National Research Council's Committee on the Astrobiology Strategy for the Exploration of Mars. The appointment runs January 2006-September 2007. The committee will undertake a study that defines a scientific strategy for the search for life on Mars. The members will consider techniques appropriate to the detection of extinct or extant life in situ and in the laboratory. Jim's research includes the microbial ecology and biogeochemistry subsurface environments using geochemical and molecular approaches.  (Posted 7/1/2006)

Jim Dooley Appointed to Editorial Board for International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control

Jim Dooley was appointed to the editorial board for the International Journal of Greenhouse Gas Control, the first peer reviewed journal to focus on carbon dioxide capture and storage (CCS) technologies. As a member of the editorial board, Jim's principal responsibility is to assist the journal editors with the refereeing of newly submitted articles. He also will encourage CCS researchers to submit their work to the journal. Jim was chosen for this position because of his cutting edge research on CCS and the role of this class of technologies in addressing climate change for PNNL's Joint Global Change Research Institute and Global Energy Technology Strategy projects. He also was chosen because of his role as the lead author for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's Special Report on Carbon Dioxide Capture and Storage.  (Posted 6/1/2006)

Ellis Appointed to Canadian NMR Advisory Board

Laboratory Fellow Paul Ellis has been invited to a 3-year appointment as a member of the International Advisory Board for the National Ultrahigh-Field NMR Facility for Solids, a joint facility of the National Research Council Canada and the University of Ottawa. The board meets yearly to review the facility operations and provide comments, suggestions, and recommendations on operations. Dr. Ellis chairs the board; other members are Jean-Paul Amoureux (National Superior School of Chemistry in Lille, France) and Mark Smith (University of Warwick, UK).

Dr. Ellis attended a board meeting June 2 in Ottawa that was held in conjunction with dedication of the NMR Facility's 900-MHz spectrometer, which is the only one in Canada dedicated to the study of solids.  (Posted 6/1/2006)

Chartrand Elected Vice President of InfraGard's Evergreen Chapter in Washington State

Greg Chartrand, a counterintelligence officer at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, has been elected Vice President of InfraGard's Evergreen Chapter in Washington State. InfraGard is a partnership between the FBI and the private sector that was established to share information and intelligence regarding critical infrastructures. Chartrand specializes in information sciences and special technologies. He is the first PNNL employee to serve in the role of vice president of InfraGard's Evergreen chapter.  (Posted 4/1/2006)

Bruce Napier to Chair Committee for National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements

Bruce Napier has been appointed Chair of a National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements committee preparing a report on fundamental principles of dose reconstruction. The report will discuss the scientific process of figuring out past radiation exposures of specific individuals.

Bruce was chosen for this position because of his experience in environmental radiation dose reconstruction. For the past 18 years, he has worked on projects collaborating with epidemiological studies, investigating the effects of radiation exposure on the public around both Hanford and the equivalent Russian nuclear facility at Mayak. Bruce is also the chair of both the US-Ukraine and US-Belarus Bi-National Advisory Groups for Chernobyl Studies.  (Posted 3/1/2006)

Richard Benedick Appointed to National Research Council Committee on Analysis of Global Change Assessments

Richard Benedick has been appointed to a National Research Council committee on Analysis of Global Change Assessments. The committee will identify lessons learned from past assessments to guide future global change assessment activities of the U.S. Climate Change Science Program.

Richard was chosen for this position because of his experience in the State Department where he was responsible for U.S. international environmental policies and negotiations, as well as his work on climate policy at PNNL's Joint Global Change Research Institute. He was the chief U.S. negotiator and a principal architect of the historic Montreal Protocol on protection of the ozone layer, and the Special Advisor to Secretaries-General of both the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development and the International Conference on Population and Development.  (Posted 3/1/2006)

---

2005 Awards

Yanwen Zhang Receives 2005 Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers

Yanwen Zhang, a materials physicist at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, today received the 2005 Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers -- the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. government on outstanding scientists and engineers beginning their independent careers. Zhang and 55 other recipients were honored by President Bush earlier today and received their awards from John Marburger, director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.

To be eligible for the presidential award, Zhang first had to be selected by the Department of Energy for its Early Career Scientist and Engineer Award. As a PECASE recipient, Zhang receives a committment from DOE's Office of Science to continue funding the research for which the award was given for five years.

Zhang's research focuses on interactions of energetic ions with solid materials and how those interactions can be applied to the analysis and study of those materials. Zhang developed a novel way of measuring the energy loss of atomic particles as they pass through materials. Accurate measurements of such energy loss were a long-standing problem until Zhang successfully used high-resolution, time-of-flight spectroscopy to determine energy loss over a continuous range of energies.

Because energy loss of high-energy particles is fundamental to irradiation effects, radiation detection, and electronic device manufacturing, Zhang's discoveries have potential applications in nuclear power, national security, nuclear waste management and energy efficient electronics. Zhang, whose research is supported by DOE's Office of Basic Energy Sciences, is a staff scientist in the Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, a scientific user facility at PNNL.

The presidential award embodies the high priority placed by the government on maintaining the leadership position of the United States in science by producing outstanding scientists and engineers who will broadly advance science and the missions important to participating agencies, such as DOE.

The award also recognizes scientists and engineers who show exceptional potential for leadership in scholarship, service and education.

With more than 100 publications and several long-term international research collaborations, Zhang is recognized for her contributions in ion-solid interactions, irradiation effects and ion beam techniques. She also is active in several professional societies, has received many international scientific and academic awards and is involved in educational activities and community service.

She routinely hosts visiting scientists at EMSL's ion-beam user facility, lectures on topics related to ion beam physics, mentors post doctoral fellows, graduate students, summer undergraduates and high school interns, serves on Ph.D. committees, assists local middle schools with Chinese translations, and serves as a judge for local science fairs.

Zhang holds two doctorate degrees - one in engineering physics from Lund University in Sweden and another in science from Beijing Normal University in China.  (Posted 7/27/2006)

PNNL's Marylynn Placet Shares DOE Hydrogen Program Award for Excellence in R&D

(Argonne National Laboratory, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, and others). Marianne Mintz and Michael Wang of Argonne National Laboratory; Margaret Mann, Johanna Levene, and Matthew Ringer of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory; Marylynn Placet of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory; Mike Rutkowski of Parsons Engineering; Steven Lasher and Kurt Roth of TIAX; Brian James of Directed Technologies, Inc.; Dan Mears of Technology Insights; and Joan Ogden of the University of California, Davis, received the 2005 Department of Energy (DOE) Hydrogen Program Award for Excellence in R&D in May. The team of scientists and engineers was recognized for advancing the analysis capabilities of hydrogen production and distribution. Their efforts resulted in an H2A model that provides a clear and transparent methodology, enabling DOE to evaluate various technology options for producing and delivering hydrogen and make decisions in an unbiased manner.

The award was presented at the 2005 Annual Merit Review and Peer Evaluation of the U.S. DOE Hydrogen, Fuel Cells & Infrastructure Technologies Program. The peer-review meeting was held on May 23 - 25, 2005, in Arlington, Virginia. PNNL's role was to assist in the development of the lifecycle costing methodology and develop appropriate financial and feedstock price forecasts for use in the analysis.  (Posted 10/1/2005)

PNNL Power Grid Expert Receives BPA Award

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory researcher and Laboratory Fellow John Hauer received one of the Bonneville Power Administration's highest honors, the BPA Award for Exceptional Public Service.

Hauer is an internationally recognized expert in power system monitoring, analysis and control. After retiring from BPA in 1994, Hauer joined PNNL and continued his pioneering work in improving power system reliability. Although semi-retired from PNNL, Hauer still is active on BPA and Department of Energy projects.

For example, Hauer has been instrumental in the creation and implementation of technologies to reduce blackouts, such as the one experienced by the eastern United States and Canada in August 2003.

The award is part of BPA's 2005 Administrator's Excellence Awards program. It recognizes "outstanding achievements by employees whose innovation, initiative, superior service or courageous acts have made exceptional contributions to BPA's mission, the electric utility industry or to the local community." The Bonneville Power Administration, headquartered in Portland, Oregon, is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of Energy.

Hauer is a 1961 electrical engineering graduate of Gonzaga University and received a Ph.D. in controls systems from the University of Washington in 1968. He is a licensed professional engineer and a life fellow of the Institute for Electrical and Electronic Engineers.  (Posted 8/22/2005)

DOE's Distinguished Associate Award Presented to PNNL Researcher

Richard Moss recognized by Secretary of Energy for leadership in global and climate change research.

Richard Moss, director of the U.S. Climate Change Science Program Office in Washington D.C., and a staff scientist of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, has received the Distinguished Associate Award from the Department of Energy. The award, designated and signed by Spencer Abraham, former Secretary of Energy, recognizes Moss "for his outstanding leadership and individual efforts in global and climate change research and his dedication in helping to integrate ... agency research and develop the Strategic Plan for these combined programs." The award was presented at a ceremony in January by Dr. Raymond Orbach, director of DOE's Office of Science.

The U.S. Climate Change Science Program is the nation's foremost national research program focusing on changes in climate and related environmental systems. The program integrates research from 13 participating federal agencies and departments, and has an annual budget of approximately $1.8 billion.

The Distinguished Associate Award is the highest award for employees of DOE-owned, contractor-operated facilities, such as PNNL. Winners must be nominated by DOE program managers and cannot apply for the honor.

In addition to his role of director of the program office, Moss also holds an appointment as staff scientist at the Joint Global Change Research Institute which is managed by the University of Maryland - College Park and PNNL. From 1993-1998, he served as director of the Technical Support Unit of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change - impacts, adaptation and mitigation working group. He has served as a lead author and general editor of several IPCC assessments, special reports and technical papers.

Moss has also served as program officer at the International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme in Stockholm, Sweden, where he co-authored a report on human drivers of land use and land cover change. Moss served on the faculty of Princeton University from 1989 to 1991. He currently chairs the Task Group on Data and Scenario Support for Impact and Climate Analysis of the IPCC and serves on the editorial board of Climatic Change Magazine. He was named a fellow of the Aldo Leopold Leadership Program in 2001 and was a member of the editorial board of Annual Review of Energy and the Environment from 1994-1999.

He earned a bachelor's degree in English literature from Carleton College in Minnesota in 1977, and master's and doctorate degrees in public and international affairs from Princeton University in 1983 and 1987, respectively.

PNNL (www.pnl.gov) is a DOE Office of Science laboratory that solves complex problems in energy, national security, the environment and life sciences by advancing the understanding of physics, chemistry, biology and computation. PNNL employs 3,900, has a $650 million annual budget, and has been managed by Ohio-based Battelle since the lab's inception in 1965.  (Posted 1/31/2005)

PNNL Team Receives Two ChemLuminary Awards for Volunteer Efforts

Tim Hubler, Sam Bryan and Janet Bryant, all of Environmental Technology Directorate, received two ChemLuminary awards for their volunteer efforts through the Richland Section of the American Chemical Society to "open young minds to science." They were part of a team that organized the Native American Umatilla Reservation Math/Science Fair, Girls in Science Day, Project SEED, and Careers in Chemistry for middle school minority students.

 (Posted 10/20/2005)

Three PNNL Researchers Win Industrial Innovation Awards

Dr. Allison Campbell, Dr. Mary Bliss and Dr. Ned Wogman received Regional Industrial Innovation Awards from the American Chemical Society (ACS).

Campbell received the award for the development of a bioceramic coating for implants that will mimic bone growth and extend artificial implant life.

The team of Bliss and Wogman was honored for their collaboration on the development of a glass fiber neutron detector, a revolutionary radiation monitoring system that uses glass fibers to detect the presence of radionuclides such as plutonium.

Campbell is the director of the William R. Wiley Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory at PNNL. Bliss is responsible for managing the only glass fiber drawing facility in the DOE complex. Wogman is the director of PNNL's Homeland Security Program.  (Posted 8/25/2005)

Sriram Somasundaram Receives ASME Dedicated Service Award

Sriram Somasundaram, Energy Science and Technology Directorate, received the American Society of Mechanical Engineers' Dedicated Service Award in 2004. This award honors outstanding leadership, dedicated service and enthusiasm for advancing the art and science of mechanical engineering. He served as chair of the Advanced Energy Systems Division from 2003-2004, and now is on the Society-wide committees of the Business Development for Conferences and Events, Volunteer Orientation and Leadership Training Academy, the Board on Institutes and the ad-hoc committee to explore the formation of an Energy and Power Institute within ASME. He also is an associate editor of the Journal of Energy Resources Technology.  (Posted 5/19/2005)

Yuehe Lin and C0-Authors Receive Award for Highly Cited Electrochemistry Article

Congratulations to ETD's Yuehe Lin and his co-authors for receiving the 2005 award for the best cited paper published in Electrochemistry Communications. Yuehe's article "Low-potential stable NADH detection at carbon-nanotube-modified glassy carbon electrodes," published in 2002, has been cited extensively.

The paper elucidates the researchers' discovery that electrodes based on carbon-nanotubes have significantly enhanced sensitivity and stability for detecting nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, a molecule that participates in many important biological reactions. This discovery forms the basis for the development of biosensors based on carbon nanotubes. Electrochemistry Communications is ranked second in citation impact in the field of electrochemistry.  (Posted 12/1/2005)

Wayne Martin Named One of Top Minorities in Research Science

Wayne Martin received Science Spectrum's Trailblazer 2005 Top Minorities in Research Science award. This award honors recipients who are distinguished thinkers and doers making a difference in their respective fields. They desire to lead, develop ideas, and change the ways we live and see the world today and in the future.

For more than 25 years, Wayne has conducted, directed, and led research in subsurface contaminant migration and waste storage. He is also a supporter of educational activities including the National Urban League's Black Executive Exchange, the WSU Tri-Cities Advisory Council, and the Black Engineer of the Year Awards Conference.  (Posted 11/28/2005)

Yong Wang Joins Editorial Board of Catalysis Today

Yong Wang has been invited to join the editorial board of Catalysis Today, a serial publication dealing with topical themes in catalysis. As a board member, Yong will help improve the quality of the journal by attending editorial board meetings, promoting the journal, and actively encouraging colleagues and peers to submit high-quality papers.

Yong was selected for this honor because of his contributions in the field of heterogeneous catalysis and microchannel reaction technology to the development of energy efficient technologies. He has also received two R&D 100 awards, a Presidential Green Chemistry Award, and holds 57 issued patents.  (Posted 11/1/2005)

Jonathan Young Appointed Member of National Research Council Committee

Jonathan Young has been appointed to the Committee on Determining Basic Research Needs to Interrupt the Improvised Explosive Device Delivery Chain. The committee is a multidisciplinary group who advises the Office of Naval Research on ascertaining basic research questions in physical science, social science, and engineering that, if answered, could lead to new methods of countering use of improvised explosive devices.

Jonathan will contribute to the deliberations and reporting of the committee. He will also serve on a subcommittee that plans the detailed committee activities. Jonathan was selected because of his expertise in probabilistic risk assessment, systems engineering, and uncertainty analysis.  (Posted 11/1/2005)

Ron Thom Meets with National Research Council to Protect Eroding Shorelines

Ron Thom, working at PNNL's Sequim Marine Research Operations, met with the National Research Council panel, organized by the National Academy of Science, to discuss shore erosion along sheltered coasts. The panel examined the efficiency and environmental effects of erosion mitigation techniques in a two-day workshop. Ron discussed protecting beach shorelines and ways to use vegetation to protect shorelines.

NRC Program Assistant Sarah Capote stated, "We selected Ron as a panel member because of his expertise in mitigating shoreline erosion." For nearly three decades, Ron has studied and resolved complex marine and coastal issues, specializing in nearshore habitat ecology and restoration.  (Posted 10/1/2005)

PNNL's Ram Devanathan Selected to Participate in National Academy of Engineering 11th Annual Frontiers of Engineering Symposium

The three-day event will bring together engineers ages 30 to 45 who are performing cutting-edge engineering research and technical work. The participants — from industry, academia, and government — were nominated by fellow engineers or organizations. The symposium will be held Sept. 22 – 24, 2005, at GE Global Research Center in Niskayuna, N.Y., and will explore aspects of ID and verification technologies, the engineering of complex systems, engineering for developing communities, and energy. Devanathan was one of only 88 engineers nationwide selected to attend the symposium.  (Posted 8/17/2005)

Dr. Leonard K. Peters, Director of PNNL, Selected to Receive Oak Ridge Associated Universities Outstanding Leadership Award

The award was established to recognize individuals who have demonstrated sustained leadership and support of ORAU activities involving member universities and/or national laboratories. The award also includes a grant to support a conference or symposium, which will be used to hold a conference on atmospheric chemistry.

Peters came to PNNL in 2003 with a distinguished career in research, most recently serving as the Vice Provost for Research at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University where he managed Virginia Tech's diverse $230 million research program.

Peters was recognized for this honor at the 59th Annual Meeting of the Council of Sponsoring Institutions, which was held on March 9th in Washington, D.C.  (Posted 3/9/2005)

---

2005 Fellowships

Steve Bruemmer Elected Fellow in National Association of Corrosion Engineers

Steve Bruemmer has been elected as Fellow in the National Association of Corrosion Engineers (NACE). The award was presented at the Corrosion 2006 Conference on March 12-16 in San Diego.

Steve earned his B.S. and M.S. in Metallurgical Engineering from the University of Illinois and a Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering from the Oregon Graduate Institute for Science and Technology. He joined Battelle in 1978 and became a Laboratory Fellow in 1995. He is author or co-author of more than 270 technical publications; author for several book chapters; editor of five books, and has given more than 60 invited lectures at conferences and meetings. In addition to being elected Fellow in the National Association of Corrosion Engineers and elected in 2006, he is a Fellow in ASM International and a member of the Materials Research Society and the Minerals, Metals and Materials Society (Past Chairman of the Corrosion and Environmental Effects Committee and Secretary/Treasurer for the Structural Materials Division), and he received Distinguished Service Award in 2002.

While at PNNL, Steve has initiated and led a wide range of basic and applied research programs in materials science as program manager and principal investigator. His research encompasses simple and advanced materials, physical and mechanical properties, and environmental effects on material behavior. The emphasis of his work is on the measurement, understanding, and prediction of microstructural and microchemical effects on the structural reliability of engineering materials. He is an acknowledged leader in the quantification of grain boundary segregation, precipitation, and deformation effects on materials failure.  (Posted 11/1/2005)

Sotiris Xantheas Named American Physical Society Fellow

Sotiris Xantheas has been appointed Fellow of the American Physical Society. Sotiris was nominated for this honor by the Division of Chemical Physics for his fundamental contributions to the understanding of molecular interactions in aqueous systems.

Sotiris is known in the chemical physics community for his research on intermolecular interactions in aqueous ionic clusters and the use of ab-initio electronic structure calculations to elucidate their structural and spectral features and the development of interaction potentials for water. He has received a Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel award and PNNL's Director's award for Outstanding Performance in 2003. Sotiris has written or contributed to more than 75 publications and has received more than 3,500 citations.  (Posted 11/1/2005)

Five PNNL Researchers Elected Fellows by AAAS

Five scientists from the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory have been elected Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Linda Lasure and Steven Wiley were elected Fellows in the AAAS section on biological sciences. Greg Exarhos and Bruce Kay were elected Fellows in the AAAS section on chemistry. Subhash Singhal was elected a Fellow in the AAAS section on engineering. All five will be recognized at the Fellows Forum at the AAAS national meeting in St. Louis in February.

Election as an AAAS Fellow is determined by peer reviewers. Fellows are honored for "meritorious efforts to advance science or its applications." AAAS began honoring its distinguished members with the title of Fellow in 1874.

Greg Exarhos is a Laboratory Fellow in PNNL's Fundamental Science Directorate. He is being recognized for "innovative research on charge transport processes in dielectric films and the use of light scattering methods to probe structure/property relationships."

Prior to joining PNNL in 1980, Exarhos was an assistant professor at Harvard University. He is currently the associate director for interfacial chemistry and engineering in PNNL's Chemical Sciences Division and is the Program Coordinator for the suite of BES Materials Sciences projects within the laboratory.

Exarhos earned a bachelor's degree in chemistry with a minor in physics from Lawrence University in 1970, and a doctorate in physical chemistry from Brown University in 1974.

Linda Lasure manages a team in PNNL's chemical, biological and processing group in the laboratory's Environmental Technology research directorate. She is being honored for her "sustained and effective leadership in industrial microbiology, particularly the innovative use of fungal enzymes in product development."

Before joining PNNL in 2001, Lasure was the president of Lasure and Associates, Vice President of Panlabs, Inc, and had previously served as the president of CellPath, Inc.

Lasure earned a bachelor's degree in biology and chemistry from St. Cloud State College in 1968 and a doctorate in Genetics from Syracuse University in 1973.

Bruce Kay is Laboratory Fellow in PNNL's Fundamental Science Directorate. He was elected for his "innovative use of molecular beams to elucidate chemical kinetics and dynamics at environmentally-relevant aqueous and oxide interfaces."

He has been with PNNL since 1991 and is also an affiliate professor of chemical engineering and of physical chemistry at the University of Washington.

Kay earned a bachelor's degree in chemistry in 1976 from the University of Illinois; and a doctorate in chemical physics in 1982 from the University of Colorado.

Subhash Singhal is a Battelle Fellow in PNNL's Energy Science and Technology Directorate. He is being recognized for "outstanding leadership in developing and promoting solid oxide fuel cells for clean and efficient power generation." Singhal joined PNNL in 2000 and is the director of fuel cells for the laboratory.

Singhal earned a bachelor's degree in physics, chemistry and mathematics from Agra University in India in 1963; a bachelor's degree in metallurgy from the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore, India in 1965; a doctorate in materials science and engineering from the University of Pennsylvania in 1969; and a master's degree in business administration from the University of Pittsburgh in 1977. He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering.

Steven Wiley is a Laboratory Fellow in PNNL's Fundamental Science Directorate. He was elected a Fellow for his "significant contributions in the newly emerging area of systems biology and important achievements in the quantitative analysis of the EGF receptor system."

Wiley has been with PNNL since 2000 and serves as the director of the laboratory's Biolmolecular Systems Initiative and the PNNL Program Office for Systems Biology and Biotechnology.

He earned a bachelor's degree in biology from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville in 1974 and a doctorate in biomedical sciences from the University of Tennessee - Oak Ridge Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences in 1979.

The honorees join 10 current PNNL staff members previously elected as AAAS Fellows.

Founded in 1848, AAAS (www.aaas.org) has worked to advance science for human well-being through its projects, programs and publications in the areas of science policy, science education and international scientific cooperation. Science magazine is the chief publication of the AAAS, reviewing and publishing many of the top research papers in the biological and physical sciences. Science was established by Thomas Edison in 1880, and has the highest paid circulation of any scientific journal in the world.  (Posted 10/20/2005)

John April Named Fellow in American Society of Civil Engineers

John April of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory has advanced to the grade of Fellow in the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). This is the highest technical grade in ASCE that is attained by less than 5 percent of the society's members. The ASCE is the oldest national engineering society in the world, with more than 133,000 members. John has been a member for over ten years. He has over twenty seven years of experience in geotechnical engineering, supporting naval nuclear programs, Indian water rights and project management of large scale environmental restoration projects for private and federal agencies. He rejoined PNNL in August of this year after an eleven year absence and is working on the Radiation Portal Monitor Project as an equipment design authority. For those eleven years John was working for the Hanford Environmental Restoration Project with several management and engineering assignments from proto-type, design, regulatory documentation and his recent achievement of performing dual role of construction management and resident engineer for the Environmental Restoration Facility Expansion Cells 5 & 6.  (Posted 10/19/2005)

César Izaurralde Elected Fellow of American Society of Agronomy

César Izaurralde is a Laboratory Fellow in the Joint Global Change Research Institute, a collaboration of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and the University of Maryland. He is also an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Geography and an Adjunct Associate Professor in the Department of Natural Resource Sciences and Landscape Architecture at the University of Maryland. Dr. Izaurralde earned his Agronomist Engineer degree from University of Córdoba (Argentina) and his M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees from Kansas State University.

Dr. Izaurralde's research focuses in three areas: 1) sustainable agriculture, 2) climate change impacts on agriculture and water resources and 3) climate change mitigation through soil carbon sequestration and reductions in soil emissions of nitrous oxide. He uses modeling and experimental approaches to understand the mechanisms of carbon stabilization in soil and explain production and evolution of nitrous oxide in soil. Dr. Izaurralde's research contributes to a larger program of integrated assessment of global change conducted at the Joint Global Change Research Institute.

Dr. Izaurralde has authored or co-authored 64 refereed journal articles, 26 book chapters, 56 abstracts, 5 computer programs, and 18 extension publications.

Dr. Izaurralde has been an active member of the American Society of Agronomy and the Soil Science Society of America since 1982. He is also an active member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Geophysical Union, and the American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing. He currently serves as invited Associate Editor of the Journal of Environmental Quality.  (Posted 10/1/2005)

PNNL Scientist Appointed to Royal Chemistry Society

Dave Koppenaal, a Laboratory Fellow and manager of Macromolecular Structure and Dynamics at the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, has been appointed a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry, UK. The honor is given to distinguished scientists who have made outstanding contributions to the advancement of chemical science.

Koppenaal was selected for his more than 30 years of experience and achievement in the field of chemistry, and for his internationally recognized expertise in plasma source mass spectrometry. He has been involved in ion source, instrumentation, application and theoretical innovations with this widely-used and applied analytical technology. He has pioneered the application of ion molecule reactions in inductively coupled plasma/mass spectrometry, and also initiated its use as a powerful and increasingly relevant radioanalytical tool. Currently, he is leading a collaboration effort on the design of a new detector technology for mass spectrometry and is active in the development of techniques and methods for use in proteomics and structural and functional biology research. Koppenaal has interacted extensively with UK colleagues and instrumentation manufacturers in many of these endeavors.

Koppenaal earned a bachelor’s degree in environmental chemistry and mathematics from Southwest Missouri State University in Springfield in 1974 and a doctorate in chemistry from the University of Missouri in Columbia in 1978. He has published more than 68 scientific articles, has seven patents and has presented more than 130 lectures internationally. In 1998, Koppenaal was appointed a Laboratory Fellow, the highest distinction of scientific achievement at PNNL. He also is a member of the American Chemical Society, American Society for Mass Spectrometry and Society of Applied Spectroscopy.

RSC (www.rsc.org) has 42,000 members, and was founded in England in 1877. The RSC is the largest organization in Europe for chemical sciences and works to pursue the advancement of chemistry, the dissemination of chemical knowledge and the development of chemical applications.

PNNL (www.pnl.gov) is a DOE Office of Science laboratory that solves complex problems in energy, national security, the environment and life sciences by advancing the understanding of physics, chemistry, biology and computation. PNNL employs more than 4,000, has a $650 million annual budget, and has been managed by Ohio-based Battelle since the laboratory’s inception in 1965.  (Posted 5/16/2005)

---

2005 Elected Positions and Offices

Yong Wang to Chair Program Committee for ACS Petroleum Chemistry Division

Congratulations to ETD's Yong Wang on his appointment as Program Committee Chair of the American Chemical Society's Division of Petroleum Chemistry from 2006 to 2008. The Division of Petroleum Chemistry is a professional network of scientists and engineers interested in the chemistry of petroleum exploration, refining, and effective networking opportunities.

Yong's responsibilities will include identifying topics for future Division symposia for National ACS meetings, pursuing Division participation, and establishing working relationships with other Division Program Chairs. Yong was selected for this honor because of his contributions in the field of heterogeneous catalysis to the development of energy efficient technologies.  (Posted 12/1/2005)

Gary L. Smith Re-Elected to ASTM International Committee C26 on the Nuclear Fuel Cycle

Gary L. Smith has been re-elected to Chair the ASTM International Committee C26 on the Nuclear Fuel Cycle. This committee develops consensus standards that facilitate many aspects of the nuclear fuel cycle, including spent nuclear fuel, waste materials, and repository waste packaging and storage. As C26 Chair, Gary presides over all committee meetings, works with the executive committee to appoint and approve subcommittee chairs, and serves as ex officio member of 13 subcommittees.

Gary is a Fellow of ASTM International and has spent much of his career conducting research on nuclear waste and waste vitrification. Currently, he is on full-time loan to the Hanford Waste Vitrification Project Research & Technology Organization.  (Posted 9/1/2005)

Doug Ray Joins National Academy Chemical Sciences Roundtable

Doug Ray has been appointed to the National Academies' Chemical Sciences Roundtable. The CSR is a unique science-oriented, apolitical forum for leaders of the chemical enterprise. Its objectives are to facilitate enhanced understanding of issues in the chemical sciences and technologies that affect government, industry, academic, national laboratories, and nonprofit sectors, and the interactions among them.

As a member, Doug will attend several annual meetings and organize workshops on highly relevant and important topics. The proceedings of the workshops are made available to the chemical sciences community and are designed to enable follow-up discussion or action by others in the chemical sciences community.  (Posted 12/1/2005)

Michel Dupuis Elected to International Academy of Quantum Molecular Science

Dr. Michel Dupuis, a Laboratory Fellow in the Molecular Interactions and Transformations Group, was elected to the International Academy of Quantum Molecular Science at its 42nd annual meeting held July 2-3, 2005, at Menton, France.

The Academy was created in Menton, in 1967. Originally, the Academy was limited to 25 regular members under the age of 65, with no limit on senior members. The Academy has expanded to 35 regular members under the age of 65 and currently includes 88 members worldwide. The members are selected from scientists from all countries who have distinguished themselves in the broad field of the application of quantum mechanics to the study of molecules and macromolecules. The main goal of the Academy is to provide a forum for international contact and collaboration and a periodical evaluation of the main developments, advances, and promising directions of research in the broad field of its interest. (Adapted from the Academy’s web site.)  (Posted 7/7/2005)

Fuel Cell Pioneer, Subhash Singha, Elected to National Academy of Engineering

Subhash C. Singhal, Battelle Fellow and director of fuel cells research at the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, was one of 74 members elected today to the National Academy of Engineering, the NAE announced in Washington, D.C.

Singhal is PNNL’s only current staff member in the National Academy, which includes NAE, the National Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Medicine and the National Research Council.

Singhal was cited by NAE "for the development and promotion of solid oxide fuel cells for clean and efficient power generation." He is noted for developing high-temperature solid oxide fuel cells, having brought this technology from experimental units that generated only a few watts to fully integrated, 200 kilowatt power-generation systems.

"Subhash is recognized internationally as a leader in solid oxide fuel cell technology," said PNNL Director Len Peters. "This is a wonderful recognition by his peers and members of our nation’s most prestigious scientific and engineering body. Not only are we thrilled for Subhash, but we also take this as a reflection of the world class, high-impact science we do at PNNL."

Singhal leads the technical, managerial and commercialization efforts for PNNL’s extensive fuel cell program. He joined the lab’s Energy Science and Technology Directorate in 2000 after 29 years with Siemens Westinghouse Power Corp. He has conducted and managed major research, development and demonstration programs in advanced materials and energy conversion systems, particularly high temperature fuel cells.

He is author of more than 70 scientific publications and has edited 12 books, received 13 patents and given more than 205 invited presentations worldwide. He is a fellow of the American Ceramic Society, of the Electrochemical Society and of ASM International (formerly known as the American Society for Metals); and a member of the Mineral, Metals & Materials Society and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He serves on numerous national and international advisory committees. He holds a doctorate in materials science and engineering from the University of Pennsylvania and a master’s in business administration from the University of Pittsburgh.

NAE (www.nae.edu) membership is among the highest professional distinctions accorded an engineer, the NAE said in its announcement. Academy membership honors those who have made outstanding contributions to "engineering research, practice, or education, including, where appropriate, significant contributions to the engineering literature" and to the "pioneering of new and developing fields of technology, making major advancements in traditional fields of engineering, or developing/implementing innovative approaches to engineering education."

Today’s elections bring the total U.S. membership to 2,195. Singhal and the other new members will be inducted at a ceremony at the NAE annual meeting on Oct. 9 at its headquarters in Washington, D.C.

PNNL (www.pnl.gov) is a DOE Office of Science laboratory that solves complex problems in energy, national security, the environment and life sciences by advancing the understanding of physics, chemistry, biology and computation. PNNL employs 3,900, has a $650 million annual budget, and has been managed by Ohio-based Battelle since the lab’s inception in 1965.

For more on PNNL’s fuel cells work, see http://www.pnl.gov/energy/fuelcells/index.stm.  (Posted 2/16/2005)

---

2004 Awards

PNNL's Diaz Receives National Engineering and Homeland Security Honors

Diaz recognized twice with distinct honors for leadership in developing homeland security technology.

Aaron Diaz, a staff scientist at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, has been selected to receive two distinct honors for his work in homeland security.

The first is the Outstanding Technical Achievement Award from the Hispanic Engineer National Achievement Awards Corporation (HENAAC). Diaz is the first PNNL staff member to receive this honor, and joins other 2004 winners from IBM, Hewlett Packard and Argonne National Laboratory. Diaz is being recognized for both his technical accomplishments as well as his extensive contributions of community service in the greater Hispanic community.

The second is the Christopher Columbus Fellowship Foundation's (CCFF) Homeland Security Award. Diaz is being recognized in the field of border/transportation security for his scientific research and engineering development of nondestructive and noninvasive ultrasonic technologies.

At PNNL, Diaz led the development of ultrasonic measurement techniques that have resulted in the invention of the Acoustic Inspection Device, a technology being commercialized for use by border patrol agents around the United States. This technology also won an R&D 100 Award and a Federal Laboratory Consortium Award for Technology Transfer in 2003.

Diaz has been an invited speaker at numerous scientific conferences, and has continued that speaking role for minority student audiences ranging from elementary to post-graduate level. He has been active in the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, the International Society for Optical Engineering and the American Society for Nondestructive Testing. Additionally, he continues to make regular visits to his hometown of Toppenish, Wash., where he encourages high school students to pursue studies in science.

He earned a bachelor's degree in physics from the University of California at Santa Cruz in 1989, and has more than 30 publications and technical reports to his credit.

Diaz will receive the HENAAC award during the 16th Annual HENAAC Conference on Oct. 8, in Pasadena, Calif., at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium, a venue that also has hosted the Emmys and the Oscars. He will receive the CCFF Homeland Security Award on Oct. 11 — Columbus Day — at a ceremony held at the Phoenix Park Hotel in Washington, D.C.

HENAAC (www.henaac.org) was established in 1989 to highlight the achievements of Hispanics in engineering, science, technology, and math; to motivate and educate more students to pursue careers in these fields; and to increase the role the Hispanic community plays in maintaining America's status as the world's technology leader. Contributing partners to the HENAAC mission include universities, NASA and the National Academy of Engineering.

CCFF (www.columbusfdn.org) was established by Congress in 1992 as an independent federal agency to "encourage and support research, study and labor designed to produce new discoveries in all fields of endeavor for the benefit of mankind." Governed by a Presidential appointed Board of Trustees, the Foundation seeks to nurture and recognize pioneering individuals and programs which reflect the visionary spirit and pioneering heritage of Christopher Columbus through competitions.  (Posted 9/28/2004)

PNNL Scientist Selected for National Academy Symposium

Yong Wang chosen as one of only 86 in the nation to participate in pioneering engineering event.

Yong Wang, a senior scientist at the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, has been invited to participate in the National Academy of Engineering’s 10th annual Frontiers of Engineering symposium, September 9-11, in Irvine, Calif.

The three-day event will bring together engineers ages 30 to 45 who are performing cutting-edge engineering research and technical work in industry, academia and government. Wang was selected for his work in the development of advanced catalysts and novel reactors for hydrogen production, the development of microchannel reactors and engineered catalyst for microchannel fuel processing, and chemical synthesis and aqueous phase catalysis for biomass conversion.

Wang has more than 20 years of experience in the fields of catalysis and reaction engineering. He has received two R&D 100 Awards, a Presidential Green Chemistry Award, was named the 2004 PNNL Inventor of the Year and the 2003 Battelle Distinguished Inventor. Wang has 88 publications and 30 issued U.S. patents, 15 of which were granted in 2003 and eight already in 2004. Additionally, Wang has co-authored a textbook titled Microreaction Technology and Process Intensification to be published in 2005.

Wang earned a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Chengdu University of Science and Technology in China in 1984, and master’s and doctorate degrees in chemical engineering from Washington State University in 1992 and 1993, respectively.

Wang is the third staff member from PNNL to be selected for this honor, and the second in the last two years. S.K. Sundaram was selected in 2001, and Cindy Bruckner-Lea in 2003. He currently focuses on the development of microchannel reactors for fuel processing and chemical synthesis. He also is an adjunct professor at Washington State University.

The National Academy of Engineering (www.nae.edu) was established in 1964 as an independent, nonprofit institution that serves as an adviser to government and the public on issues in engineering and technology. Its members consist of the nation’s premier engineers, who are elected by their peers for their distinguished achievements.

PNNL (www.pnl.gov) is a DOE Office of Science research center that advances the fundamental understanding of complex systems and provides science-based solutions in national security, energy, chemistry, the biological sciences and environmental quality. Battelle, based in Columbus, Ohio, has operated PNNL for DOE since 1965.  (Posted 9/4/2004)

PNNL Research Team Wins Industrial Innovation Award

Novella Bridges, Darrell Fisher and Anna Gutowska, research scientists at the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, recently received the American Chemical Society’s (ACS) 2004 Regional Industrial Innovation Award. The award is given to individuals and teams whose creative innovations have contributed to the commercial success of their company and to the good of society.

The team is being honored for their collaborative work on development of radiolabeled composites, known as RadioGel™, as therapeutic agents for high dose treatment of solid cancers that cannot be removed surgically. RadioGel™ is an injectable solution that holds the therapeutic radioisotope in place at the target site for highly-localized radiation therapy of cancerous tissue with minimal effects on adjacent healthy tissues and normal organs. It has applications for treating cancers of the liver, pancreas, brain, neck and kidneys.

Bridges, Fisher and Gutowska were presented with the award in June at the ACS 59^th Northwest/18^th Rocky Mountain Regional Industrial Innovation Award Program in Logan, Utah.

Bridges specializes in inorganic chemistry. She earned a bachelor degree in chemistry from Jackson State University in 1994 and a doctorate degree in inorganic chemistry and organometallics from Louisiana State University in 2000.

Fisher has more than 30 years of experience in radioisotope science, and has more than 90 publications and four patents. He earned a bachelor degree in biology from the University of Utah in 1975, and masters and doctorate degrees in nuclear engineering sciences from the University of Florida in 1976 and 1978, respectively.

Gutowska has served as a leader in the field of polymer development. Her extensive research experience is focused on stimuli-sensitive polymer research with a major focus on medical applications. She holds four patents, with several pending, and has more than 24 publications. Gutowska earned a masters degree in chemistry from the University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland in 1978; and a doctorate in pharmaceutics and pharmaceutical chemistry at the University of Utah in 1994.

ACS was founded in 1876, and consists of more than 159,000 members at all degree levels in all fields of chemistry. ACS is actively involved in the science, education and public policy arenas.

PNNL (www.pnl.gov) is a DOE Office of Science research center that advances the fundamental understanding of complex systems and provides science-based solutions in national security, energy, chemistry, the biological sciences and environmental quality. Battelle, based in Columbus, Ohio, has operated PNNL for DOE since 1965.  (Posted 6/25/2004)

Alan Waltar Receives American Nuclear Society 2004 Public Communication Award

Alan Waltar, director of Nuclear Energy at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, has been named the recipient of the American Nuclear Society's 2004 Public Communication Award. According to ANS, he is being recognized for his exceptional achievements in furthering public understanding of the peaceful uses of nuclear energy, and will receive the award at the ANS annual meeting, June 15, in Pittsburgh, Penn.

Waltar has more than 30 years experience in the fields of nuclear energy and nuclear communications. He has published more than 70 scientific articles, written two books and has presented lectures throughout the United States and 15 foreign countries. He served as president of ANS in 1994-1995 and was elected a Fellow of the society in 1984.

His latest book, "Radiation and Modern Life: Fulfilling Marie Curie's Dream", will be published in November, 2004.

Additionally, Waltar helped found the Eagle Alliance in 1996, a national educational movement designed to encourage policymakers to endorse nuclear technologies and to support demonstration of its societal benefits.

He earned a bachelors of science degree in electrical engineering from the University of Washington, a masters of science degree in nuclear engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a doctorate degree in engineering science from the University of California at Berkley. Prior to joining PNNL in 2002, Waltar served as professor and head of nuclear engineer at Texas A&M University, overseeing what is now the largest department of nuclear engineering in the nation.

The ANS Public Communication Award was established in 1983 to recognize and honor individuals for outstanding personal dedication and accomplishment in furthering public understanding of the peaceful applications of nuclear technology. ANS (www.ans.org) was established in 1954 and includes more than 10,000 members.  (Posted 6/15/2004)

Kevin Rosso Awarded Mineralogical Society of America Award for 2004

The Mineralogical Society of America (MSA) has awarded Kevin Rosso, senior research scientist, their Mineralogical Society of America Award for 2004. The MSA Award is one of the most prestigious awards in the entire field of geosciences and is awarded in recognition of outstanding published contributions to the science of mineralogy by individuals near the beginning of their professional careers.

Rosso is well recognized for his work to creatively address long-standing problems in mineral surface chemistry related to reactivity and electron exchange at the mineral-water interface. He earned a doctorate in geological sciences from the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in 1998 and joined PNNL as a full-time research scientist that same year.

The recipient of the MSA Award receives a certificate and is made a Life Fellow of the Society. More information on the award is available at www.minsocam.org/MSA/Awards/MSA_Award.html.  (Posted 12/16/2003)

Scott Chambers Selected as 2004 Recipient of E.W. Mueller Award for Outstanding Research in Surface Science

He is being recognized for advancing the science of molecular beam epitaxy, and applying it to fundamental investigations of the structural, electronic, and magnetic properties of metal oxide films, surfaces, and interfaces.

Chambers, a Laboratory Fellow at PNNL, has 25 years of experience in the fields of surface science and electronic materials. He hold three patents, has more than 150 publications, and is a Fellow of the American Vacuum Society.

Chambers will be recognized for this honor at a reception at the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, in August where he will be presented a certificate of achievement and a prize of $5,000. Additionally, he will be given a series of lectures on his work to a select audience of students, faculty, university administrators, and industry representatives.  (Posted 8/1/2004)

---

2004 Fellowships

PNNL Scientist Named AVS Fellow

Michael Henderson, a scientist at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, has been named a Fellow of the American Vacuum Society (AVS). Henderson was selected for his scientific and technical contributions in pioneering investigations of fundamental phenomena on oxide surfaces. Fellow status is the highest recognition an AVS member can receive. Henderson will be recognized at the AVS Award Assembly on November 17, in Anaheim, California.

Henderson has more than 20 years of experience in the field of chemistry. His current research focus is in molecular-level examination of the chemistry of oxide single crystals in vacuum conditions. He further works to provide fundamental understanding into the physical and chemical properties of complex oxide surface phenomena. He has 90 publications and is a highly regarded professional speaker in his field, with 59 presentations to his credit.

He earned a bachelor's and master's degree in chemistry from Auburn University in Alabama in 1981 and 1984, respectively. He earned a doctorate in physical chemistry from the University of Texas-Austin in 1988. Henderson also served as board member for the Pacific Northwest chapter.

AVS (www.avs.org) was founded in 1953 to promote communication between academia, government laboratories and industry for the purpose of dissemination of information in science and technology. AVS is comprised of more than 6,000 members worldwide.  (Posted 11/17/2004)

PNNL Scientist Appointed American Institute of Fishery Research Biologists Fellow

Duane Neitzel, a scientist at the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, has been awarded the status of Fellow in the American Institute of Fishery Research Biologists (AIFRB). It’s the highest honor the Institute bestows upon a member. Neitzel was selected for this recognition based on his extensive research into hatchery and fisheries projects on the Columbia River and throughout the Columbia Basin.

Neitzel has more than 30 years of experience in the fields of biology and aquatic ecosystems. His research currently is focused on the assessment of impacts to aquatic ecosystems from the development and production of energy, and the management of hazardous wastes. Neitzel’s work has appeared in more than 100 journal articles, symposium proceedings and technical reports.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in zoology from the University of Washington in 1968 and a master’s degree in biology from Washington State University in 1982. Neitzel holds professional certification as a fisheries biologist from the American Fisheries Society and as an ecologist from the Ecological Society of America.

AIFRB (www.aifrb.org) was founded in 1956 to promote conservation and proper utilization of fishery resources through the application of fishery science.

PNNL (www.pnl.gov) is a DOE Office of Science laboratory that solves complex problems in energy, national security, the environment and life sciences by advancing the understanding of physics, chemistry, biology and computation. PNNL employs 3,900, has a $640 million annual budget, and has been managed by Ohio-based Battelle since the lab’s inception in 1965.  (Posted 11/17/2004)

Tom Ackerman and Paul Ellis Elected Fellows by American Association for the Advancement of Science

The full 2004 Class of Fellows was announced in the Oct. 31 issue of Science magazine. Tom Ackerman and Paul Ellis, both of PNNL’s Fundamental Science Directorate, were elected as members whose “efforts on behalf of the advancement of science or its applications are scientifically or socially distinguished.” AAAS began recognizing its distinguished members with the distinctive honor of Fellow in 1874.

Ackerman, a Battelle Fellow and chief scientist for DOE’s Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) program, is being recognized for pioneering studies of radiative properties of aerosols, for developing millimeter-wave radar for measuring cloud properties and for technical leadership of the nation’s principal atmospheric radiation research program.

Ellis, a Laboratory Fellow, is being honored for contributions to the field of multinuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and its applications to bioinorganic chemistry, short-range structure and bonding and chemical catalysis. Following a 23-year career as a member of the chemistry faculty at the University of South Carolina, he joined PNNL in 1993 to lead the development and commissioning of the magnetic resonance instrumentation laboratories at the William R. Wiley Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory (EMSL). The EMSL’s magnetic resonance laboratory is recognized as being world-class in its capability and in the expertise of its staff.

Both Ackerman and Ellis will be recognized in February at the AAAS Fellows Forum to be held at the AAAS National Meeting in Seattle, Wash. Ackerman and Ellis join three other PNNL researchers as AAAS Fellows, including Senior Battelle Fellow Jean Futrell, Battelle Fellow David Dixon and Laboratory Fellow Norman Rosenberg.

Election to APS fellowship is limited to no more than one half of 1 percent of the society memebership, which currently stands at 43,000.  (Posted 10/31/2004)

Don Bihl and Bruce Napier Named Fellows of Health Physics Society

The honorees were recognized in July at the HPS annual meeting in Washington, D.C., for their outstanding contributions to health physics.

Bihl operated the internal dosimetry program at DOE's Hanford Site in Washington State between 1989 and 2002. The program included performing internal radionuclide dose evaluations for thousands of staff on the Site. Bihl further managed the external dosimetry program for two other DOE sites. He presently consults for those two programs and works on the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health dose reconstruction project. He earned a bachelor’s degree in health physics in 1971 and a master’s degree in 1973, both from San Diego State University. Bihl has published more than 20 reports and publications.  (Posted 8/19/2004)

Russell Jones Elected Fellow of NACE International, the National Association of Corrosion Engineers

Russell Jones, a Laboratory Fellow at the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, has been elected Fellow of NACE International, the National Association of Corrosion Engineers. Each year the honor of Fellow is presented in recognition of distinguished contributions in the field of corrosion and its prevention.

Jones has more than 37 years of experience in the fields of stress corrosion cracking, high-tempera