Atmospheric aerosol particles modulate climate and the Earth’s energy balance by scattering and absorbing sunlight. They also seed clouds, acting as cloud condensation nuclei.

Extensive in situ and remote sensing measurements were collected to address data gaps and better understand the interactions of convective clouds and the surrounding environment.

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

A PNNL team has developed an energy- and chemical-efficient method of separating valuable critical minerals from dissolved solutions of rare earth element magnets.

Surface manganese mining from nodules in South Dakota is now possible with a new scalable selective precipitation process.

Over the next four years, PNNL and University of Arizona will develop open-source computational tools to better identify and characterize the viruses associated with the human microbiome.

Researchers developed a robust, cost-effective, and easy-to-use cap-based technique for spatial proteome mapping, addressing the lack of accessible proteomics technologies for studying tissue heterogeneity and microenvironments.

Cobalt substitution for magnesium in a model mafic mineral dramatically slows reaction with carbon dioxide to form a cobalt-doped carbonate.

Precipitation with sodium hydroxide in a flow-gel device enables the rapid extraction of magnesium from seawater in a new scalable process.

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

Pyrocumulonimbus clouds are increasing in frequency as large wildfires become more prevalent in a warming climate. These clouds can inject smoke particles into the atmosphere, where they can remain suspended for several months.

PNNL chemist John Shilling builds custom chamber helping uncover how aerosol particles and clouds contribute to Earth’s changing climate.

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

Using numerical simulations to reproduce the laboratory experiments, this study reveals that liquid droplets are present near the bottom surface, which warms and moistens the air in the chamber.

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

Three PNNL researchers will receive five continuous years of funding for projects through highly competitive DOE Early Career Research Program awards.

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.

The atomic-level distribution of nickel and cobalt in forsterite depends on the concentration of the different elements.

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.