The Hanford Site is now immobilizing radioactive waste in glass: a process known as vitrification. PNNL contributed 60 years of materials science expertise—and is providing operational support—to help the nation meet this cleanup milestone.

In a recent study, PNNL researchers found that noncrystalline mineral surfaces can bind microbial residues to build soil organic matter.

Pioneering autonomous science facility puts a big focus on tiny microbes and AI-driven science.

PNNL researchers are opening up a new front in the fight to stop viral pathogens, protecting people against multiple viruses.

PNNL researchers continue to deliver high-quality, high-impact research on radioactive waste and nuclear materials management, earning “Papers of Note” and “Superior Paper” awards.

Dušan Veličković, a PNNL mass spectrometry imaging scientist received a $2.1 million grant to develop techniques to understand how changes in carbohydrate structure affect human health.

PNNL researchers showcased subsurface sampling and remediation expertise at the 2025 Federal Remediation Technologies Roundtable.

PNNL has created and licensed a system that sniffs out trace levels of fentanyl, other drugs and explosives through the air.

Armed with some of the world’s most advanced instrumentation, researchers at PNNL are working to analyze huge amounts of data and uncover hidden biological connections.

RemPlex and IAEA convene international leaders to tackle recruitment and retention in complex environmental cleanup efforts.

This project sought to assure that research activities centered around different sampling and monitoring efforts in northwest Ohio would not disturb any historical cultural resources.

Scientists are developing ways to detect previously unseen forms of fentanyl as well as other synthetic opioids known as nitazenes.

Scientists plumbed the depths of nearly 3,000 soil samples from around the globe to compile the heftiest atlas of soil viruses ever created.

A cross-institutional team of scientists developed PeakQC, a new software tool for automated quality control of mass spectrometry data.

PNNL researchers earned five Papers of Note, 17 Superior Papers, and one poster award for their environmental remediation, radioactive waste, and nuclear energy-related presentations.

Despite the widespread presence of RNA viruses in soils, little is known about the relative contributions and interactions of biological and environmental factors shaping the composition of soil RNA viral communities.

Ljiljana Paša-Tolić, a PNNL fellow, is the recipient of the 2024 International Mass Spectrometry Foundation’s Jochen Franzen Award. 

Scientists have developed a way to detect tiny amounts of hard-to-detect explosives more than eight feet away.

A multi-institutional team of researchers conducted a 13C-labeling greenhouse study using a semi-arid grassland soil, where they tracked the fate of 13C-labeled inputs from living roots and decaying roots from annual grass Avena barbata.

A team of researchers from Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and the Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory developed a new and flexible software tool called “Advanced Spectra PCA Toolbox.”