Keqi Tang and Ryan Kelly Win Technology Transfer Award
Congratulations to Pacific Northwest National Laboratory scientists Dr. Keqi Tang and Dr. Ryan Kelly, and commercialization manager Bruce Harrer, who have received a 2012 Excellence in Technology Transfer Award from the Federal Laboratory Consortium.
Studying the Chemistry as It Happens in Catalytic Reactions
While retaining their speed, catalysts have lost some of their secrets, thanks to a new probe built by scientists at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory to help clarify the steps catalysts take in promoting reactions. The new device is called a large-sample-volume constant-flow magic angle spinning probe for use in a nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometer.
The Great Gas Hydrate Escape
The analysis is the first time researchers have accurately quantified the molecular-scale interactions between the gases—either hydrogen or methane, aka natural gas—and the water molecules that form cages around them. A team of researchers from Pacific Northwest National Laboratory published the results in Chemical Physics Letters, online December 22, 2011 and due to be published in print in 2012.
Wendy Shaw Selected to Attend First U.S-Indonesia Symposium
Congratulations to Dr. Wendy Shaw of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory on being one of 31 distinguished young researchers from the United States selected by the National Academy of Sciences to attend the first Indonesian-American Frontiers of Science symposium that took place in Bogor, Indonesia, in July 2011.
When Atoms Collide
A novel technique for materials research is unexpectedly also contributing to the nuclear safety efforts of the International Atomic Energy Agency. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory scientist Dr. Weilin Jiang and his team developed a novel analytical method for measuring the concentration of oxygen atoms at different depths in solid samples. Because their data, published in 2003, can also be used to validate theoretical models that describe how likely nuclear reactions can occur, it caught the attention of the IAEA.
DOE Awards PNNL $2 Million for Innovative Hydrogen Storage Technology in Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles
The U.S. Department of Energy has awarded Pacific Northwest National Laboratory up to $2.1 million for a 3-year project that will advance hydrogen storage technologies to be used in fuel cell electric vehicles. PNNL, in collaboration with Ford Motor Company, Lincoln Composites, Toray Carbon Fibers America, Inc. and AOC Inc., will use a coordinated approach to reduce the costs associated with compressed hydrogen storage systems
A Pop Quiz for Cells
When trying to understand how cells respond to toxins, scientists want to do as little sample preparation as possible. Preparing these cells by immersing them in chemicals or drying them out can erase vital information. At Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, scientists proved that a new ionization technique they developed in 2009 can provide fingerprint and locate proteins, amino acids, and other chemicals in cells that make up tissues or microbial communities using mass spectrometry.
Getting Your Molecule into the Movies
Worse than toddlers on a sugar high, carbon dioxide molecules just don't like standing still. The tiny molecules, just three atoms, leap from place to place in less than a trillionth of a second. Yet, scientists at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and the University of Wisconsin-Parkside found a way to get clear pictures.
Helping Hydrogen Move Back Home
To increase our national security while minimizing our impact on the world, millions of dollars are being spent on developing electric vehicles. Electric vehicles, powered by hydrogen fuel cells, provide the demanded driving range and low environmental impact. However, hydrogen fuel cell powered electric vehicles suffer from a refueling problem. The challenge is to recharge the hydrogen safely, quickly and affordably. One way to do this is to store the hydrogen in safe materials that release the hydrogen on demand via simple chemical reactions.
