Six energy technologies that do everything from protect fish to monitor the health of flow batteries are getting a boost at PNNL with support from DOE's Technology Commercialization Fund.

The Washington State Academy of Sciences (WSAS) elected Sue Clark and Jud Virden its board of directors.

Steve Short, a nuclear engineer at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, has been selected as a fellow of the National Society of Professional Engineers.

PNNL provides gateway to nuclear innovation for small business

Nuclear power figures prominently in our country's energy portfolio and is essential to our economic and environmental security.

In fast-neutron reactors, fuel is sealed in ~7 millimeter diameter steel tubes called cladding. When a high-energy "fast" neutron strikes an atom in the steel, it can knock the atom out of place, like a cue ball striking another billiard ball. This leaves two types of damage in the metal: an empty spot where the atom was, and the displaced atom wedged between other atoms. Over time, these defects typically drive undesirable rearrangement of the microstructure, potentially reducing the life of the cladding.

As Tri-Citians, we're fortunate that we don't have the frustrating traffic and long commutes that our friends in Seattle and Portland endure. And with lower prices at the pump, we don't think much about fuel efficiency.