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It is critical to have a validated modeling tool for fluid bed-based chemical looping combustion to develop scaled-up designs of equipment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from coal and biomass fuels in power generation. The proposed work aims to develop such a modeling tool for widespread use in research and industry.

This program will develop and commercialize an ultra-fine pixel pitch, direct-detection, x-ray imaging camera. These cameras will provide scientists with 5 to 10 fold increase in measurable energy resolution enabling greater discovery and new material science.

Neutron scattering is one of the most useful methods of studying the structure and dynamics of matter. Therefore, a number of new large neutron facilities have recently being constructed, upgraded or planned around the world. Examples include the new, 1.4 billion-dollars Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) at DoE’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and upgrades of ORNL’s High-Flux Isotope React ...

Neutron-sensitive microchannel Plates (MCPs) are now providing state-of-the-art user-based, high spatial resolution neutron imaging systems at several US government neutron research facilities as well as university research reactors. Using enriched 10B, thermalized neutron detection efficiencies exceeding 50% have been demonstrated, and cold neutron detection efficiencies of up to 70% have been do ...

Synchrotron light sources and X-ray free electron lasers are now generating shorter pulses with more intense light than ever before possible. The capabilities of these new sources grant unprecedented access into the workings of the natural world. X-ray scattering experiments are among the most common and critical types of experiments conducted in the light source community today. X-ray detectors, ...

Despite enormous advantages of high efficiency and fuel flexibility, solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) have seen limited development in mobile, including aerospace, application areas. On the technical front, this condition has been primarily driven by the low specific power density of SOFCs, typically less than 0.5 kW/kg. On the manufacturing front, limitations have been related to catalyst infiltrat ...

Nickel super alloys, such as Inconel®, are leading candidates for fossil energy-based power production components due to their resilience in extreme environments. A significant technical roadblock to the implementation of nickel-based power plant systems is the inability to produce large-scale components in a cost competitive manner. We will address the problem of manufacturing large, low-cost su ...

Since drilling the earliest gas and oil wells, migration of hydrocarbons to the surface has challenged the oil and gas industry. With the recent onset of geologic CO2 sequestration activities, it has become even more important to develop well leakage mitigation strategies that can seal even microscopic apertures around injection, abandoned, and monitoring wells—especially in cases where traditio ...

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 mixed phase clouds, may be ac ...

Fine powder thermal battery cathode materials can exhibit challenging flow properties which makes processing with automated presses difficult.Granulating these powders substantially improves flow properties and reduces the tendency for powder segregation during handling and pressing operations.The properties of Magnesium Oxide (MgO) that lead to good performance in thermal battery separators are n ...