Feature Articles
Zachary Lebens-Higgins
Looking inside a lithium-ion battery while it operates isn’t easy. Researchers have found a few ways to make it easier to see why batteries fade and fail. They developed a specialized battery and applied advanced scientific instruments to answer fundamental questions about how batteries work … or don’t.
Victoria K. Davis
How will your work change someone's world? That was an easy question for five EFRC members. See how they are made a difference, started a business, and responded to a letter from their U.S. Representative...
Bor-Rong Chen
Technologies such as batteries, LEDs, and solar cells are constructed from materials that have the desired application-specific properties. Despite the significant demands for finding new functional materials, the discovery process relies largely on trial-and-error experiments in which materials are made, properties measured, and then suitable applications considered.
David Dan
Life as an “Army brat” led Susan Latturner to a love of chemistry and an appreciation for meeting tough challenges...
Research Highlights
Sustainable jet fuels made from renewable sources, such as corncobs, could deliver a sharp reduction in carbon emissions compared to traditional aviation fuels. Scientists are using fundamental science to overcome...
When we use electricity, we lose some power as heat. What if we could use this heat to transmit data? Researchers have shown...
Replacing one of the battery’s electrodes with higher-capacity silicon could help. But silicon electrodes crack. Scientists found a way to keep it together.
Storing chemicals efficiently can be a challenge. More efficient options require new materials. At UNCAGE-ME...
Interviews
Editor's Note
If you’ve ever worked with computer programmers or advice columnists, you’ve heard the phrase: It’s not a bug, it’s a feature. It’s true in science too. Sometimes a defect or an unusual starting point is really a benefit. In this issue, we celebrate unexpectedly beneficial features in batteries, electrons, biofuels, childhoods, and more. Kristin Manke, Editor-in-Chief
Editorial Board
- Bor-Rong Chen, Center for Next Generation of Materials Design (CNGMD)
- David Dan, Center for Actinide Science & Technology (CAST)
- Victoria K. Davis, Center for Solar Fuels (UNC)
- Max Grossnickle, Spins and Heat in Nanoscale Electronic Systems (SHINES)
- Zachary Lebens-Higgins, NorthEast Center for Chemical Energy Storage (NECCES)
- Kenneth Madsen, Center for Electrochemical Energy Science (CEES)
- Angela Norton, Catalysis Center for Energy Innovation (CCEI)
- Daniel J. Pope, Interfacial Dynamics in Radioactive Environments and Materials (IDREAM)
- Jenny G. Vitillo, Inorganometallic Catalyst Design Center (ICDC)
Disclaimer: The opinions in this newsletter are those of the individual authors and do not represent the views or position of the Department of Energy.