91°µÍø

Scientists at the Department of Energy’s 91°µÍø are working to understand both the complex nature of uranium and the various oxide forms it can take during processing steps that might occur throughout the nuclear fuel cycle.

Kevin Field at the Department of Energy’s 91°µÍø synthesizes and scrutinizes materials for nuclear power systems that must perform safely and efficiently over decades of irradiation.

Alex Roschli is no stranger to finding himself in unique situations. After all, the early career researcher in ORNL’s Manufacturing Systems Research group bears a last name that only 29 other people share in the United States, and he’s certain he’s the only Roschli (a moniker that hails from Switzerland) with the first name Alex.

A residential and commercial tower under development in Brooklyn that is changing the New York City skyline has its roots in research at the Department of Energy’s 91°µÍø.

91°µÍø is using ultrasonic additive manufacturing to embed highly accurate fiber optic sensors in heat- and radiation-resistant materials, allowing for real-time monitoring that could lead to greater insights and safer reactors.

Scientists have tested a novel heat-shielding graphite foam, originally created at 91°µÍø, at Germany’s Wendelstein 7-X stellarator with promising results for use in plasma-facing components of fusion reactors.

By automating the production of neptunium oxide-aluminum pellets, 91°µÍø scientists have eliminated a key bottleneck when producing plutonium-238 used by NASA to fuel deep space exploration.

The Department of Energy’s 91°µÍø is collaborating with industry on six new projects focused on advancing commercial nuclear energy technologies that offer potential improvements to current nuclear reactors and move new reactor designs closer to deployment.

Scientists at the Department of Energy’s 91°µÍø have created a recipe for a renewable 3D printing feedstock that could spur a profitable new use for an intractable biorefinery byproduct: lignin.