Using multiple specialized techniques, IDREAM researchers gained a better understanding of how trace impurities within gibbsite affect the hydrogen yield.

Five PNNL innovations earned 2026 R&D 100 Awards for advances in biotechnology, manufacturing, critical minerals, and nuclear security.

Nanosize platelets of an aluminum material slide and join in a staggered orientation to form larger crystals.

IDREAM researchers uncovered how dimeric complexes control how aluminum hydroxide minerals dissolve.

Trace amounts of iron and chromium can incorporate into gibbsite, affecting how the mineral dissolves.

Increasing concentrations of ions slows the rate of particle aggregation in boehmite suspensions.

New IDREAM research explores the effects of electrolyte species on boehmite nanoparticle aggregation in legacy wastes.

Hydrogen atoms released and trapped in irradiated gibbsite are destabilized by synthetic-precursor residuals.

Recycling polyolefin materials is challenging. One waste management strategy is plastic upcycling. New work demonstrates a single-step upcycling route coupling cracking and alkylation, recycling carbon and keeping valuable resources active.

When exposed to a sufficiently high dose of ionizing radiation, gibbsite and boehmite are less susceptible to dehydration-induced breakdown.

PNNL researchers review ceramic-metal composite technology for immobilizing radioactive wastes from nuclear reactors, including advanced reactors.

Research at PNNL and the University of Texas at El Paso are addressing computational challenges of thinking beyond the list and developing bioagent-agnostic signatures to assess threats.

IDREAM scientists capture electronic response to ionization.

IDREAM research shows the size of cations in highly concentrated nitrite solutions affects the production of radicals.

Differences in water interactions lead to two gibbsite dissolution pathways modulated by solution acidity.

Irradiation in a sodium hydroxide solution increases the dissolution rate and particle roughness of gibbsite compared to dry irradiation.

Resolving how nanoparticles come together is important for industry and environmental remediation. New work predicts nanoparticle aggregation behavior across a wide range of scales for the first time.

A poem inspired by radioactive tank waste—“Can a Scientist Dream it Alone?”—was awarded first place in the Department of Energy’s Poetry of Science Art Contest.

IDREAM research shows that keeping only the most important two- and three-body terms in reactive force fields can decrease computational cost by one order of magnitude, while preserving satisfactory accuracy.

Irradiated boehmite nanoplatelets form smaller aggregates and have a rougher surface than non-irradiated platelets.