![Sphere that has the top right fourth removed (exposed) Colors from left are orange, dark blue with orange dots, light blue with horizontal lines, then black. Inside the exposure is green and black with boxes.](/sites/default/files/styles/featured_square_large/public/2024-06/slicer.jpg?h=56311bf6&itok=bCZz09pJ)
Filter News
Area of Research
- (-) Biological Systems (2)
- (-) Neutron Science (13)
- (-) Supercomputing (36)
- Advanced Manufacturing (7)
- Biology and Environment (76)
- Building Technologies (2)
- Clean Energy (108)
- Computational Engineering (2)
- Computer Science (6)
- Electricity and Smart Grid (1)
- Energy Sciences (1)
- Functional Materials for Energy (1)
- Fusion and Fission (6)
- Fusion Energy (2)
- Materials (57)
- Materials for Computing (10)
- Mathematics (1)
- National Security (11)
- Nuclear Science and Technology (5)
- Quantum information Science (2)
News Topics
- (-) Big Data (20)
- (-) Bioenergy (15)
- (-) Clean Water (2)
- (-) Composites (1)
- (-) Microscopy (8)
- (-) Molten Salt (1)
- (-) Sustainable Energy (11)
- 3-D Printing/Advanced Manufacturing (10)
- Advanced Reactors (2)
- Artificial Intelligence (39)
- Biology (14)
- Biomedical (26)
- Biotechnology (2)
- Buildings (4)
- Chemical Sciences (6)
- Climate Change (17)
- Computer Science (98)
- Coronavirus (17)
- Critical Materials (3)
- Cybersecurity (9)
- Decarbonization (7)
- Energy Storage (14)
- Environment (28)
- Exascale Computing (22)
- Fossil Energy (1)
- Frontier (29)
- Fusion (2)
- Grid (5)
- High-Performance Computing (39)
- Isotopes (1)
- Machine Learning (16)
- Materials (28)
- Materials Science (33)
- Mathematics (1)
- Nanotechnology (19)
- National Security (8)
- Net Zero (1)
- Neutron Science (101)
- Nuclear Energy (7)
- Partnerships (1)
- Physics (16)
- Polymers (3)
- Quantum Computing (19)
- Quantum Science (29)
- Security (6)
- Simulation (14)
- Software (1)
- Space Exploration (5)
- Summit (42)
- Transportation (10)
Media Contacts
![The AI agent, incorporating a language model-based molecular generator and a graph neural network-based molecular property predictor, processes a set of user-provided molecules (green) and produces/suggests new molecules (red) with desired chemical/physical properties (i.e. excitation energy). Image credit: Pilsun You, Jason Smith/ORNL, U.S. DOE](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2023-12/image001_0.png?h=16ec4b77&itok=KtCjteSq)
A team of computational scientists at ORNL has generated and released datasets of unprecedented scale that provide the ultraviolet visible spectral properties of over 10 million organic molecules.
![A small droplet of water is suspended in midair via an electrostatic levitator that lifts charged particles using an electric field that counteracts gravity. Credit: Iowa State University/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2023-11/droplet.png?h=ddb1ad0c&itok=3nblnUcm)
How do you get water to float in midair? With a WAND2, of course. But it’s hardly magic. In fact, it’s a scientific device used by scientists to study matter.
![Scientists at Oak Ridge National Laboratory contributed to several chapters of the Fifth National Climate Assessment, providing expertise in complex ecosystem processes, energy systems, human dynamics, computational science and Earth-scale modeling. Credit: ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2023-11/EarthSystem_2023NCA5.jpg?h=d1cb525d&itok=r043oHRM)
Scientists at ORNL used their knowledge of complex ecosystem processes, energy systems, human dynamics, computational science and Earth-scale modeling to inform the nation’s latest National Climate Assessment, which draws attention to vulnerabilities and resilience opportunities in every region of the country.
![ORNL scientists developed a method that improves the accuracy of the CRISPR Cas9 gene editing tool used to modify microbes for renewable fuels and chemicals production. This research draws on the lab’s expertise in quantum biology, artificial intelligence and synthetic biology. Credit: Philip Gray/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2023-11/CRISPR%20Quantum%20AI_2_23-G07105-DOE-BER-BESSD-comms-graphic-pcg_2.jpg?h=847b7ff0&itok=WD2dBsAC)
Scientists at ORNL used their expertise in quantum biology, artificial intelligence and bioengineering to improve how CRISPR Cas9 genome editing tools work on organisms like microbes that can be modified to produce renewable fuels and chemicals.
![Two hybrid poplar plants, middle and right, engineered with the PtrXB38 hub gene exhibited a drastic increase in root and callus formation compared with a wild-type control plant, left. Credit: Tao Yao/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2023-10/Poplar%20root%20story%20tip%20as%20JPEG_0.jpg?h=7bc542ef&itok=HNxpeEt6)
Oak Ridge National Laboratory scientists identified a gene “hotspot” in the poplar tree that triggers dramatically increased root growth. The discovery supports development of better bioenergy crops and other plants that can thrive in difficult conditions while storing more carbon belowground.
![Oak Ridge National Laboratory entrance sign](/themes/custom/ornl/images/default-thumbnail.jpg)
The Department of Energy’s Office of Science has selected three ORNL research teams to receive funding through DOE’s new Biopreparedness Research Virtual Environment initiative.
![Clouds of gray smoke in the lower left are funneled northward from wildfires in Western Canada, reaching the edge of the sea ice covering the Arctic Ocean. A second path of thick smoke is visible at the top center of the image, emanating from wildfires in the boreal areas of Russia’s Far East, in this image captured on July 13, 2023. Credit: NASA MODIS](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2023-07/NASA%20Arctic%20Circle%20wildfire%20smoke_image07182023_1km_1.jpg?h=dbdc3f84&itok=oHQVs6Bn)
Wildfires have shaped the environment for millennia, but they are increasing in frequency, range and intensity in response to a hotter climate. The phenomenon is being incorporated into high-resolution simulations of the Earth’s climate by scientists at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory, with a mission to better understand and predict environmental change.
![ORNL seismic researcher Chengping Chai placed seismic sensors on the ground at various distances from an ORNL nuclear reactor to learn whether they could detect its operating state. Credit: Carlos Jones/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2023-06/2023-P03398.jpg?h=3e43625b&itok=TXK8tthh)
Like most scientists, Chengping Chai is not content with the surface of things: He wants to probe beyond to learn what’s really going on. But in his case, he is literally building a map of the world beneath, using seismic and acoustic data that reveal when and where the earth moves.
![Neutron scattering experiments at the Spallation Neutron Source revealed how the dynamics between copper and oxygen make a special type of enzyme excel at breaking down biomass. Insights could lead to lowering the cost of biofuel production. Credit: Jill Hemman/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2023-05/23-G02576_Meilleur_0.png?h=b6717701&itok=jPIOwV6b)
Nonfood, plant-based biofuels have potential as a green alternative to fossil fuels, but the enzymes required for production are too inefficient and costly to produce. However, new research is shining a light on enzymes from fungi that could make biofuels economically viable.
![An AI-generated image representing atoms and artificial neural networks. Credit: Maxim Ziatdinov, ORNL](/sites/default/files/styles/list_page_thumbnail/public/2023-04/atoms3.jpg?h=ab622562&itok=dNMzrFw8)
Researchers at ORNL have developed a machine-learning inspired software package that provides end-to-end image analysis of electron and scanning probe microscopy images.