Award Data

At present, CdZnTe is considered the material of choice for efficient, room temperature gamma-radiation detection systems used for the detection and identification of radionuclides. Despite the advances in CdZnTe materials technology during the last decade, the major impediments in the progress of - ray detection technology are the low yield of device quality materials and detectors, and the limit ...

This Small Business Innovation Research (STTR) project targets the development of novel methodology for the evaluation of a wide range of oxygen carriers, in particular, their attrition resistance, under conditions that broadly account for the process requirements of coal-based chemical looping systems. Existing test protocols and procedures for the evaluation of granular materials do not accurate ...

The ionomer dispersion technology invented at LANL has demonstrated great potential to significantly improve the lifetime of proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells via accelerated stress tests. However, more validation and improvements are needed to make this technology commercially viable for PEM fuel cell-based hydrogen vehicles. The overall project is to further improve and validate this ion ...

Adding thermal insulation to existing building envelopes can be an effective way of reducing building energy use. While most thermal insulation materials are affordable, the cost of installing thermal insulation into existing buildings can be expensive. Real facades are also characterized by many unique elements that affect their rated thermal performance, such as corners, windows, d ...

This SBIR/STTR project targets the development of a validated modeling/design tool for predicting the behavior of spouted fluidizied beds for chemical looping combustion/gasification applications of coal and biomass fuels and fuel blends. Chemical looping is an advanced energy conversion technology for generating a pure CO2 effluent, which can then be sequestered or utilized. A spouted fluidized b ...

Despite incremental improvements in the technology, polyfluorosulfonic acid (PFSA) membranes are still not an ideal fuel cell membrane material and their drawbacks (e.g., high cost and low mechanical strength at high temperature) require development of alternative polymer electrolyte membranes (PEMs) for successful adoption of fuel cells as reliable and inexpensive energy conversion devices. The g ...

The rate of climate change in the Arctic is larger than elsewhere on Earth. The Arctic has unique and complex couplings and feedbacks between the surface and the atmosphere that in turn modify the radiative balance there differently than elsewhere. Current understanding holds that an increase in downwelling long wave radiative flux, driven by increased water vapor and clouds, may be accelerating c ...

Reactive absorption-based carbon dioxide capture processes using solvents is the preferred technology for large scale capture of carbon dioxide in flue gases from coal-fired power plants. This Small Business Innovation Research project targets the development of mitigation strategies to decrease the quantity of aerosols that are formed from such post-combustion capture systems in the presence of s ...

The Department of Energy has a mission to ensure America's prosperity and security by addressing energy and environmental challenges. This Phase I project aims to produce domestic, economic and environmentally responsible biodiesel fuel from brown grease, a waste that is currently disposed in landfills or incinerated. The conversion of "brown grease" from wastewater treatment plant’s fats oils a ...

While aluminum casing materials provide some enhanced performance and thermal loading to explosive ordinance, their overall effectiveness is highly limited by incomplete combustion and long residence times. In order to reduce these problems, the casing material must be designed to facilitate rapid fragmentation through either specialized casing geometries or greatly refined initial particle sizes. ...