New spin makes lightweight magnesium auto parts more useful.

Nearly $6 million in new funding has been awarded to 15 energy storage projects through the PNNL-led Battery500 consortium.

PNNL will help companies make lighter weight vehicles.

PNNL research has created a unique video that shows oxygen bubbles inflating and later deflating inside a tiny lithium-air battery. The knowledge gained from the video could help make lithium-air batteries that are more compact, stable and

There is a science website for kids that defines materials science as "the study of stuff" and, in the simplest of terms, that's right.

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.

PNNL researchers have demonstrated a process for the expanded use of lightweight aluminum in cars and trucks at the speed, scale, quality and consistency required by the auto industry.