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Scientists, from left, Parans Paranthaman, Tina Summers and Merlin Theodore at the DOE’s Carbon Fiber Technology Facility at ORNL are partnering with industry and university to develop antiviral materials for N95 masks. Credit: Genevieve Martin/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers collaborated with Iowa State University and RJ Lee Group to demonstrate a safe and effective antiviral coating for N95 masks. The coating destroys the COVID-19-causing coronavirus and could enable reuse of masks made from various fabrics.

An ORNL-led team studied the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein in the trimer state, shown here, to pinpoint structural transitions that could be disrupted to destabilize the protein and negate its harmful effects. Credit: Debsindhu Bhowmik/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

To explore the inner workings of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, or SARS-CoV-2, researchers from ORNL developed a novel technique.

ORNL researchers proved that COVID-19 vaccines can be kept ultra-cool for an extended period in a retrofitted commercial storage container, providing a resource for safe delivery to remote locations. Credit: ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers have retrofitted a commercial refrigeration container designed to ensure COVID-19 vaccines remain at ultra-low temperatures during long transport and while locally stored.

Researchers used an atomic force microscope to test how easily particles of the novel coronavirus cling to certain surfaces, a property known as adhesion energy. Credit: Ali Passian/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

A study by Department of Energy researchers detailed a potential method to detect the novel coronavirus

Ten scientists from the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory are among the world’s most highly cited researchers. Credit: ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Ten scientists from the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory are among the world’s most highly cited researchers, according to a bibliometric analysis conducted by the scientific publication analytics firm Clarivate.

ORNL researchers produced self-healable and highly adhesive elastomers, proving they self-repair in ambient conditions and underwater. This project garnered a 2021 R&D 100 Award. Credit: ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Research teams from the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory and their technologies have received seven 2021 R&D 100 Awards, plus special recognition for a COVID-19-related project.

ORNL analytical chemists coupled a microextraction probe to a mass spectrometer for measurement of uranium isotope ratios from environmental swipes. Credit: Carlos Jones/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Analytical chemists at ORNL have developed a rapid way to measure isotopic ratios of uranium and plutonium collected on environmental swipes, which could help International Atomic Energy Agency analysts detect the presence of undeclared nuclear

Pengfei Cao

Pengfei Cao, a polymer chemist at ORNL, has been chosen to receive a 2021 Young Investigator Award from the Polymeric Materials: Science and Engineering Division of the American Chemical Society, or ACS PMSE.

Joseph Pickel has been elected a 2021 fellow of the American Chemical Society. Credit: Carlos Jones/ORNL, U.S. Dept. of Energy

Joseph Pickel has been elected a 2021 fellow of the American Chemical Society, or ACS. Pickel supports the Fusion and Fission Energy and Sciences Directorate as environment, safety and health

An ORNL research team is investigating new catalysts for ethanol conversion that could advance the cost-effective production of renewable transportation. Credit: Unsplash

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers have developed a new catalyst for converting ethanol into C3+ olefins – the chemical