2018 | U.S. DOE Office of Science (SC)

Methane-Producing Microbial Communities Found in Fracking Wells

New research has uncovered the genetic details of microbes found in fracking wells. Not only do a wide array of bacteria and viruses thrive in these crevices created by hydraulic fracturing – they also have the power to produce methane, according to a study led by scientists at The Ohio State University.

UCLA-led Center Receives $9.75 Million to Improve Rechargeable Batteries

An energy research center led by UCLA has been chosen by the U.S. Department of Energy as one of its Energy Frontier Research Centers and awarded a four-year grant of $9.75 million.

Keeping up with Lipids on the Move: A New Molecular Tracking Method

Scientists at the MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory have created a new tracking method for plant lipids. The approach could fill our knowledge gaps of lipid movement and help us improve yields in crops targeted for biofuels.

In Search of Dark Matter

Researchers, including a UC Riverside particle physicist, interpret new experimental data aimed at showing dark matter interacts with ordinary matter — an unmet challenge in modern physics.

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Electric Car Batteries Souped-up with Fluorinated Electrolytes for Longer-range Driving

Researchers at the University of Maryland (UMD), the U.S. Army Research Laboratory (ARL), and Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) have figured out how to increase a rechargeable battery's capacity by using aggressive electrodes and then stabilizing these potentially dangerous electrode materials with a highly-fluorinated electrolyte.

Natural Mechanism Could Lower Emissions From Tropical Peatlands

Scientists have long feared that as Earth warms, tropical peatlands -- which store up to 10 percent of the planet’s soil carbon -- could dry out, decay and release vast pools of carbon dioxide and methane into the atmosphere, rapidly accelerating climate change. A new international study headed by researchers at Florida State University and Duke University, reveals the outlook may not be as bleak.

‘Cloud Computing’ Takes on New Meaning for Scientists

Clouds may be wispy puffs of water vapor drifting through the sky, but they’re heavy lifting computationally for scientists wanting to factor them into climate simulations. Researchers from the University of California, Irvine, the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich and Columbia University have turned to data science to achieve better cumulus calculating results.

Tying Electrons Down with Nanoribbons

Scientists are experimenting with narrow strips of graphene, called nanoribbons, in hopes of making cool new electronic devices, but University of California, Berkeley scientists have discovered another possible role for them: as nanoscale electron traps with potential applications in quantum computers.

University of Richmond Professor Jerry Gilfoyle Awarded $275,000 U.S. Department of Energy Grant for Nuclear Physics Research

This renewal grant supports the University’s electromagnetic nuclear physics program at the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator facility (JLab). Located in Newport News, JLab is the newest U.S. national laboratory and recently completed a $340 million upgrade.

Chemist Receives Department of Energy Award

Ming Lee Tang, an assistant professor of chemistry at the University of California, Riverside, has received a $750,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to continue her work on developing hybrid organic-inorganic materials that have applications in health care and the solar industry.

Microbiologists and Plant Scientists Find Secret to Tackling Cholera

While cholera rages across many regions of the world, a team of microbiologists and plant scientists from Michigan State University and Tufts University, has pinpointed a genetic weakness in the pandemic’s armor, which could lead to future treatments.

Protons Get Zippier in Neutron-rich Nuclei

Researchers at William and Mary were part of a multi-institution study carried out at the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility, confirming that increasing the number of neutrons as compared to protons in the atom’s nucleus also increases the average momentum of its protons, showing implications for the dynamics of neutron stars.