Waste-to-Energy and Products
PNNL is using in-house-developed tools and expertise to investigate the conversion of waste products such as manures and wastewater into biofuels that power transportation.
Hydrogen & Fuel Cells
Sustainable low-cost hydrogen generation, an effective hydrogen infrastructure, and fuel cell cost, performance, and durability challenge fuel cells for widespread deployment.
Energy-Efficient Mobility Systems
PNNL is leveraging expertise in transportation controls and data analytics to help communities encourage efficient mobility on the nation’s roadways.
Algal Biofuels
PNNL is investigating growth and productivity conditions for multiple algae strains that show promise for conversion to biofuels that power transportation.
ShAPE
Typically, metal extrusion involves the use of external heat to soften or homogenize the feedstock before it is pressed through the die. By contrast, the patented, R&D 100 award–winning ShAPE technique involves the use of a shearing action at the face of the billet to locally heat and plasticize the feedstock material before it is pressed through a shaping die. ShAPE—which is capable of both direct and indirect extrusion—imparts significantly more deformation into the material than does conventional extrusion, offering a number of unique advantages.
Vehicle Grid Integration
We are modeling and analyzing the effects of electric vehicles on the electric grid, determining grid controls for managing this additional electrical demand, and developing processes and technologies integrate the vehicle-grid realm.
Lightweight Materials
PNNL is investigating materials such as magnesium and aluminum alloys, composites, and carbon fiber to reduce vehicle weight.
Aviation Biofuels
PNNL partners with industry to develop high-quality jet fuel from ethanol that helps power commercial aviation.
Friction Stir
Friction stir techniques involve the use of a spinning tool to generate intense levels of deformation and heat, transforming or joining the target material(s). For instance, the tool could be traversed across metal sheets along a joint line, causing the metals to physically mix together to be precisely joined without the use of rivets and fasteners (friction stir welding). Alternatively, the tool could be translated across the surface of a material, creating a modified region with superior properties (friction stir processing). Friction stir techniques can join dissimilar materials that cannot be joined by other methods, enabling the production of next-generation products—and they also require less energy than conventional methods, reducing costs.
Cold Spray
The Smart Advanced Manufacturing (SAM) program at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) is using its cold spray capabilities to research alternative approaches for repairing hydropower turbines and nuclear waste tanks. With cold spray, neither melting nor material degradation occurs, and in the case of hydroelectric turbines, the blades remain in their original shape. The technology facilitates in-field repairs to large, high-value structures.