Water is unlike other substances because its solid form — like this iceberg — is less dense than its liquid form — like this ocean. Scientists are studying other weird properties of water.
Oil spills could be cleaned up in the icy, rough waters of the Arctic with a chemically modified sawdust material that absorbs up to five times its weight in oil and stays afloat for at least four months.
PNNL scientists will discuss their research on more than 100 topics at the annual meeting of the American Geophysical Union in San Francisco next week.
PNNL is supporting today's announcement by the White House about efforts related to soil sustainability by sponsoring research projects through two research initiatives.
The temperature difference between the Southern Great Plains and the ocean produces winds that carry moisture from the Gulf of Mexico to the Great Plains, fueling more intense storms as the climate warms.
PNNL tools that track underground contaminants and speed carbon capture technology development are among R&D Magazine's 100 most innovative scientific breakthroughs of the year.
How might getting old—really old—affect the glass waste form chosen to immobilize radioactive waste at the Hanford Site in southeastern Washington state? Researchers are seeking answers from walls containing ancient glass in Europe. These walls, known as hillforts, are defense structures that date as far back as the Bronze Age. The researchers progress is the cover story in the May 2016 American Ceramic Society Bulletin.
PNNL takes pride in advancing scientific frontiers and developing solutions to vexing problems. In particular, we apply our technical expertise to address national needs in security, energy and the environment.
On October 22, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)granted Tennessee Valley Authority's (TVA's) Watts Bar Nuclear Generating Station a 40-year operating license for its new Unit 2 reactor. This is the first nuclear reactor to be granted an operating license by the NRC in two decades.
Pressurized water nuclear reactors in the United States generate about 13 percent of U.S. electricity. Though efficient, these reactors face a unique challenge with stress corrosion cracking (SCC). This type of corrosion is one of the primary life-limiting degradation mechanisms of nickel-base alloy pressure boundary components, such as instrumentation and control rod nozzles, the welds that attach these nozzles to the reactor vessel, and welds that connect feedwater piping to the reactor vessel. As interest grows in a more sustainable and efficient fleet of nuclear reactors across the world, there is increasing interest in characterizing SCC initiation response.